Q: Can you help me figure out how to choose a Medicare prescription drug plan?

Answer: Having a solid understanding of how Prescription Drug Plans (PDP) work can save a lot of money and grief. Obviously, most people want to pick the plan that covers all their medications at the lowest cost. It is a common misconception among Medicare recipients that a higher premium means better coverage, but there are actually two other factors that will better help determine which PDP would be best for you — the plan’s formulary and where they place your medications on the tier list within that formulary.

A formulary is basically a list of medications that any given plan will cover and pay for. Every PDP has a formulary and every formulary is different. This means the most important part of finding the best plan is making sure that all medications you are taking are on that plan’s formulary. You should be aware that the more medications a consumer takes, the more difficult it will be to find a plan with a formulary that covers all the medications.