Best Medicare Part D Plans for North Dakota Beneficiaries in 2024

We found the 24 best Medicare Part D Plans in North Dakota. Sign-up for 2024 Medicare Part D plan notification HERE.

We also ranked the best Medicare Advantage plans with Part D in North Dakota for 2024.

Every Part D Plan in North Dakota Has 4 Cost Phases

Part D prescription drug plans help North Dakota's Medicare beneficiaries pay for their prescriptions. If you're new to Medicare, you may not be familiar with how Medicare Part D out-of-pocket costs work. So, let's start with the four cost-sharing phases.

The Deductible Phase

The deductible (up to $505 in 2023) is the amount that you pay before your Medicare Part D plan begins paying its share of the costs. So, if you enroll in a 2023 prescription drug plan with a $480 deductible, you'll spend $480 out-of-pocket before cost-sharing coverage begins. Most Medicare Part D plans have a deductible, but some Medicare Part D plans exclude Tier 1 drugs from the deductible, giving immediate coverage on most generic medications.

The 2nd Phase is the Initial Coverage Limit (ICL)

The 2023 Initial Coverage Limit (ICL) is $4,660. The ICL phase is when your Part D plan begins to pay the bulk of the costs. If your prescription costs exceed $4,660, you will enter the Coverage Gap phase (aka, "donut hole").

The Third Phase is a Coverage Gap

After your gross drug costs have reached $4,660, you will enter the Coverage Gap phase. This is where you will pay 25% of your medication's retail cost. While the price of generic drugs might not be much different, what you pay for brand-name drugs will be higher (because you're paying 25% of the full price). This will continue until you reach $7,400 in True Out Of Pocket Costs (TrOOP).

Some plans offer additional gap coverage, so look for it on the plan information pages.

Phase 4 is Catastrophic Coverage

After you have spent $7,400 in true out-of-pocket costs on your medications, you get out of the coverage gap phase and you automatically receive "catastrophic coverage". In this phase, you will only have to pay a small percentage of coinsurance or payment on covered drugs for the rest of the year.

The out-of-pocket costs that help you get catastrophic coverage include:

1. Your plan's deductible;
2. What you paid during the initial coverage limit period;
3. Most of the full cost of brand-name drugs (and the manufacturer’s discount) purchased in the coverage gap;
4. The amount paid by others, including family members, most charities, and other persons on your behalf; and
5. The amount paid by State Pharmaceutical Assistance Programs (SPAPs), AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, and the Indian Health Service.

Choose Your Part D Plan with Care

Choose from the available Part D Medicare plans carefully, and don't settle on a Part D plan until you know that your most expensive medications are covered at a price you can afford. This information is available in the plan's formulary. You'll find links to the formulary information, pharmacy information, and the customer service phone number on each PDP page (above).

IMPORTANT: Identifying the best Medicare Part D Plans for you takes a bit of research. What's best for you is personal and must consider multiple factors, including your regular prescriptions, your health, and your finances.

Get Your Prescriptions and More with a Medicare Advantage Plan

Medicare realizes that one type of plan does not suit everyone. That's why there are two ways to get help with your prescription drug costs. All of the Medicare prescription drug plans available in North Dakota work with Original Medicare. That's one way to get coverage. But maybe you'd like even more benefits. That's where North Dakota Medicare Advantage Plans come in. Most offer Part D coverage.

Combining a Medicare Supplement and Medicare Part D Benefits

Medicare does not pay for all of your hospitalization and medical bills. In fact, Original Medicare only covers about 80 percent of your major medical costs. We keep an up-to-date directory of North Dakota Medigap Plans, also called Medicare Supplements, with the tools you need to find the best price and coverage. Medicare Part D plans are fully compatible with North Dakota Medigap plans.

Getting Medicare Part D with North Dakota Medicaid

In North Dakota, if you are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid (aka, "dual eligible" or "Medi-Medi") you will automatically be enrolled in a North Dakota Medicare Prescription Drug Plan and the Social Security Extra Help program. Extra Help pays for most of the costs of your prescriptions if you meet the eligibility requirements. You may also enroll in a plan of your own choosing that better meets your needs. If you qualified for Medicaid before you were eligible for Medicare, contact your local Medicaid office.

Plans Offered

Medicare Advantage and Part D plans and benefits offered by the following carriers: Aetna Medicare, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aspire Health Plan, Centene Corporation, Dean Health Plan, Devoted Health, GlobalHealth, Health Care Service Corporation, Cigna-HealthSpring, Humana, Molina Healthcare, Mutual of Omaha, Oscar Health Insurance, Premera Blue Cross, Medica Central Health Plan, SCAN Health Plan, Scott and White Health Plan now part of Baylor Scott & White Health, and UnitedHealthcare.

Citations & References

1. Medicare.gov, "How to get prescription drug coverage", Last Accessed September 3, 2022
2. Medicare.gov, "What Medicare Part D drug plans cover", Last Accessed August 1, 2022
3. Medicare.gov, "Catastrophic coverage", Last Accessed June 13, 2022
4. Medicare.gov, "Are prescription drugs covered in Medicare Advantage plans?", Last Accessed June 5, 2022
5. SSA.gov, "Extra Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Costs", Last Accessed June 1, 2022
6. CMS.gov, "Landscape Source Files", Last Accessed January 15, 2023
7. CMS.gov, "Medicare Part C & D Performance", Last Accessed January 15, 2023