BREAKING THE CODE:

Defying Experts, Insurers Join Medicare Drug Plan: A substantial number of big insurance firms plan to offer prescription drug coverage to Medicare beneficiaries next year. (ROBERT PEAR, 3/06/05, NY Times)

The new Medicare drug benefit passed a major milestone in recent weeks as a substantial number of big insurance companies said they would offer prescription drug coverage to Medicare beneficiaries next year, defying the predictions of many industry experts.

Some companies intend to offer the new benefit nationwide. Others will offer it in certain states or regions. It is too soon to know how many of the 41 million Medicare beneficiaries will enroll. But it is increasingly clear that they will at least have access to drug coverage offered by commercial insurers, Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans, and pharmacy benefit managers.

In the Times Style Book, "defying experts" is code for: "Bush was right again."

Posted by Orrin Judd at March 6, 2005 12:50 PM