Important Application Deadline Information
A Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) application consists of both a valid initial online application and a valid initial retiree list. In order to submit a timely RDS application for a given plan year, a Plan Sponsor must submit a valid initial online application AND a valid initial retiree list by no later than 90 days prior to the beginning of the plan year, unless a 30-day application deadline extension has been requested and approved by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) prior to the expiration of the application deadline. If a 30-day application deadline extension is approved, a Plan Sponsor must submit a valid initial online application AND a valid initial retiree list no later than 30 days after the above-mentioned application deadline. A Plan Sponsor application that fails to meet these requirements is not timely and the Plan Sponsor will receive a notification that its application has been denied.
Please note that a Plan Sponsor may choose to submit a valid initial retiree list to the RDS Center via the RDS Secure Web Site, Plan Sponsor mainframe to the RDS Center mainframe, or by entering into a Voluntary Data Sharing Agreement (VDSA) with the CMS Coordination of Benefits contractor. Regardless of how a Plan Sponsor elects to submit its valid initial retiree list to the RDS Center, a valid initial online application AND a valid initial retiree list must be submitted by the above-mentioned application deadline in order to constitute a timely RDS application.
