Cost Sharing

Medicare Part D is a voluntary outpatient prescription drug benefit for people with Medicare provided through private plans, including stand-alone prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage plans that offer drug coverage. This analysis provides an overview of Medicare Part D plan availability, premiums, and cost sharing in 2025 and key trends over time.

This brief provides an overview of the Medicare Advantage plans that are available for 2025 and key trends over time. The average Medicare beneficiary will have the option of 34 Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MA-PD) plans in 2025, 2 fewer than the 36 options available in 2024. The average Medicare beneficiary can choose among plans offered by 8 firms in 2025, the same as in 2024.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced the drugs selected for the second round of negotiation for the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program, which was established by the Inflation Reduction Act. These FAQs address several questions related to Medicare’s drug price negotiation program and CMS’s implementation of the program, with a focus on the details that apply for 2027, the second year that negotiated prices will be available under the program.

In his Beyond the Data column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman discusses how how family health coverage is no longer affordable for workers at small employers, contributing to the health cost crisis affecting the American people.