Prescriptions filled with Medicare's new drug coverage are averaging 3 million a day, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says.
That amounts to 270 million prescriptions for Medicare beneficiaries in the first 3 months of the prescription drug program.
Medicare has more than 30 million Medicare beneficiaries with prescription coverage, including more than 8 million beneficiaries who have gotten new, individual coverage since the program began, HHS says.
Another 6 million people with Medicare get drug coverage from the Veterans Administration and other sources with prescription drug coverage equal to Medicare.
Medicare already has passed its original estimate of 28 to 30 million enrollees in the first year, the department says.
Nearly all of the beneficiaries who have enrolled chose a plan that has no deductible and a low premium or provides some coverage for the gap not covered by Medicare, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reports.
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