If you elected to have Social Security withhold funds from your Social Security to cover your Prescription Drug Plan (PDP), you may have to pay to catch up. Due to a system error, the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), did not withhold funds needed to pay for the cost of your prescription plan. Be on the lookout for a bill from your insurance company to cover February, March and April premiums. Evidently, this issue affected all
PDP insurance carriers.
To add even more confusion, because members now have past-due amounts, the premium payment option has been changed to direct billing effective February 1, 2019. This means you have to pay any past-due amounts directly to the insurance company that sends you a bill.
I recommend that you call your insurance company when you receive the notice and bill. Ask them to restart your SSA premium deduction. This may take up to 90 days so be prepared to make payments monthly until the deductions start again.
This is not the fault of your insurance carrier. You are NOT at risk of having your plan terminated, IF you start making payments. If you are confused or if this is a financial hardship, please contact the customer service number on the back of your prescription card.
