Medicare Part D Reconciliation Payments
The OIG has issued a report on “Medicare Part D Reconciliation Payments for 2006 and 2007." The OIG found that Part D sponsors owe $18 million to Medicare for the 2007 Part D payment reconciliation, compared to $4.4 billion that sponsors owed for 2006. Despite this improvement, the OIG asserts that sponsors continue to submit inaccurate bids and make large unexpected profits. The OIG recommends that CMS: (1) ensure that sponsors' bids more accurately reflect their costs of providing the benefit to Medicare beneficiaries, (2) hold sponsors more accountable for bid inaccuracies, (3) determine whether changes to the risk corridors are appropriate, (4) determine whether alternative methodologies would better align payments with sponsors' costs for the low-income cost-sharing and reinsurance subsidies, and (5) follow up with the sponsors that owe funds for 2006.
