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BOSCOLA: PACE/PACENET CUTS PAPERWORK
REQUIREMENTS FOR ENROLLEES
Bethlehem (Jan 06) –
State Senator Lisa Boscola announced
today that as of January 1, 2005
Pennsylvania’s PACE and PACENET
prescription assistance programs for
older adults streamlined paperwork
requirements for enrollees.
“I am pleased to see this change in
place in order to help make it
easier for existing enrollees to
remain eligible for coverage and for
new enrollees to join,” Boscola
said.
Effective Jan. 1, PACE and PACENET
will no longer require age,
residence and income documentation
to be included with the application
upon submittal. However, applicants
still must certify that they have
reported complete and accurate
information on their applications.
Currently, nearly 11 percent of
existing PACE/PACENET enrollees do
not submit re-enrollment
applications each year, possibly
because they may have difficulty
obtaining and producing copies of
the required documentation. In
addition, nearly 25 percent of new
enrollment applications lack the
required documentation.
To verify eligibility for enrollees,
PACE/PACENET has established data
exchanges with various other
agencies, including the U.S. Social
Security Administration, the
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue,
and the Pennsylvania State
Employees’ Retirement System. If
applicants have incorrectly reported
eligibility information, they may be
asked to reimburse the program for
any benefits for which they were
ineligible.
Launched in 1984, the Pharmaceutical
Assistance Contract for the Elderly,
more commonly known as PACE,
currently covers more than 192,000
older Pennsylvanians. PACENET was
created in 1996 to assist older
adults whose incomes fall just above
PACE limits but who still may need
assistance paying for prescription
drugs. Nearly 98,000 older
Pennsylvanians are currently
enrolled in PACENET. The
Pennsylvania Lottery funds both
programs.
To be eligible for PACE or PACENET,
an applicant must be 65 or older and
a resident of Pennsylvania for at
least 90 days prior to the date of
application.
For PACE, the combined income for
married applicants must not exceed
$17,700 and the annual income for
single applicants must not exceed
$14,500 during the calendar year
prior to application. PACE enrollees
are responsible for co-payments of
$6 for generic medications and $9
for brand name medications.
PACENET income ranges are between
$17,700 and $31,500 for married
couples and $14,500 to $23,500 for
single persons. Enrollees are
responsible for a $40 monthly
deductible before the program begins
reimbursing for prescriptions. In
addition, PACENET enrollees must pay
an $8 co-payment for generic
medications and $15 for brand name
medications.
For questions regarding
PACE/PACENET or assistance filling
out an application, please feel free
to contact one of Senator Boscola’s
offices: Bethlehem (610) 868-8667,
Stroudsburg (570) 420-2938,
Whitehall (610) 266-2117 or
toll-free 1-877-535-1818.
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