Changes have been made to the email accounts used by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS’) Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) Program. Effective immediately, Plan Sponsors can only use the RDS@cms.hhs.gov email address to communicate with the RDS Program.
RDS Spotlight
This page highlights timely information throughout the application plan year. Monitor this section for important tips and reminders from CMS' RDS Center.
Do you know where to go when you have questions about RDS Reconciliation? The answers to your questions are available 24-7 on the RDS Public Website.
As a requirement of Reconciliation, Plan Sponsors must finalize their application's Covered Retiree List (CRL) and submit final cost data to CMS' RDS Center. Please review the following guidance and resources for successfully reporting final costs during Reconciliation.
As a requirement of Reconciliation, Plan Sponsors must finalize their application's Covered Retiree List (CRL) and submit final cost data to CMS' RDS Center. Please review the following guidance and resources for successfully finalizing your application’s retiree count during Reconciliation.
In preparation for the final Reconciliation payment request, the Plan Sponsor agrees to the CRL in the Reconciliation: Finalize Covered Retirees step by completing the following tasks:
To avoid missed Reconciliation Deadlines and delayed subsidy payments, ensure that your RDS user accounts and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) are active and that you are able to access the RDS Secure Website today! Please encourage all users assigned to your RDS application(s) to log in to the Secure Website as soon as possible, and well in advance of your deadline date.
Review the summary of Reconciliation steps and the user roles responsible for completing each step. Know your responsibilities during Reconciliation, coordinate with other Plan Sponsor users and vendors (if applicable), and protect your Plan Sponsor’s subsidy!
The busiest RDS Reconciliation season is approaching – within 15 months after the application Plan Year End Date, Plan Sponsors must complete Reconciliation to finalize their application's Covered Retiree List and submit final cost data to CMS' RDS Center. This is a requirement for each application for which the Plan Sponsor is seeking subsidy. As such, now is the perfect time to familiarize yourself and your Plan Sponsor organization with the new, modernized Reconciliation process in the RDS Secure Website.
The Annual Plan Year Application is the fundamental component of the Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) Program. In the modernized RDS Secure Website, Plan Sponsors can create new applications in two different ways. Regardless of how the Plan Sponsor chooses to create an application, certain required application information must be defined for an application to be considered complete and RDS eligible. Much of this required application information is defined during the Application Submission Process, before submission, whereas other required application information cannot be defined until an application is approved, after submission.
CMS’ RDS Center would like to remind RDS Secure Website (SWS) users that for an Application to be considered timely, a Plan Sponsor must submit a Valid Initial Retiree List to CMS' RDS Center prior to the expiration of the Application Deadline, and that Retiree List must contain at least one Qualified Covered Retiree. Initial Retiree Lists are processed by CMS' RDS Center after the Application is submitted by the Authorized Representative. When the Valid Initial Retiree List is submitted and the format is validated, the Initial Retiree List Received Date displays on the Application Overview page. It can take several days after a successful file transfer for the application to show that the Valid Initial Retiree List is complete.
CMS’ RDS Center would like to remind RDS Secure Website (SWS) users: don’t wait until the last minute to complete your Application. Confirm your access to the RDS Secure Website now!