Don't Throw Away Your OTC Benefit

Recently I was conducting a benefits review with a client.  I asked her if she was using her Over The Counter drug benefit because it is "use it or loose it".  She looked confused, so I showed her a copy of the CVS over the counter catalog from her carrier.   "OH NO", she said, "Was I supposed to be doing something with that?" 

It turned out she had been throwing it in the trash every month assuming it was a CVS sales paper.  

If you are on a Medicare Advantage Plan, chances are you have an "over the counter" drug benefit with your plan.  Not all plans include this benefit, and the benefit differs among carriers and plan. 

What is an OTC benefit?

An OTC benefit is a certain dollar amount of "free" over the counter items you get from your Medicare Advantage Plan.  Because this is not a benefit you can use simply by going to the store and picking out aspirin and bandages, your plan will provide you with a catalog, like the one pictured below, that you can select items from.  You are allowed to call an order number or use a shopping cart on the carriers website to order the items.  The items are then shipped to you free of charge.  You don't even pay shipping.