To enroll in a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan, a beneficiary must:
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Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why C is correct
Part D eligibility requires the beneficiary to be entitled to Part A and/or enrolled in Part B, the same general Medicare entitlement that anchors the other Medicare benefits. Part D is voluntary, but it sits on top of the Part A and Part B structure. No physician referral is needed to enroll in a drug plan, and beneficiaries in Original Medicare, who are not in an MA plan, are exactly the ones who need a stand-alone PDP. Part D eligibility rests on simple entitlement: a person entitled to Part A or enrolled in Part B may join a drug plan. Enrollment timing controls the penalty, so beneficiaries are encouraged to join at the initial enrollment period and keep creditable coverage, because any 63-day gap later triggers the late enrollment penalty.
Why the other options are wrong
- D) Part D enrollment is a plan-choice decision; no physician referral is required. Part D enrollment requires entitlement to Part A or enrollment in Part B; a physician referral is not part of the enrollment criteria.
- A) There is no requirement to exhaust other drug coverage before enrolling in Part D. Beneficiaries need not exhaust other drug coverage first; they may choose a PDP freely during applicable enrollment periods.
- B) Beneficiaries in Original Medicare enroll in stand-alone PDPs; MA enrollment is not required. Stand-alone PDPs serve Original Medicare beneficiaries, so enrollment in a Medicare Advantage plan is not required for Part D.
Memory hook
Part D rides on the Part A/B ticket, that's the only boarding requirement.