Medicare Monitor
The Palm Beach Post's veteran Washington correspondent, Larry Lipman, tracks policy makers and interest groups who are shaping the future of the federal health insurance program for the elderly.Medicare Web Resources
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Medicare is the federal health care system that covers about 36 million people age 65 and older, plus 7 million disabled. It has four parts:
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Financed by Medicare and beneficiary premiums, which vary among plans.
The plans are private and financed by Medicare and beneficiary premiums, which vary among plans.
-- Larry Lipman
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All the entries posted on February 08, 2008.
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Home > Medicare Monitor > Archives > 2008 > February > 08
Friday, February 8, 2008
Republicans: Medicare Advantage saves money
Riding to the defense of the embattled Medicare Advantage program, Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee have sent out an e-mail claiming that “Medicare Advantage (MA) offers better benefits, at lower costs to beneficiaries, than the traditional fee-for-service Medicare program.”
The e-mail points to a recent study by the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation titled “The Value of Extra Benefits Offered by Medicare Advantage Plans in 2006.”
Here’s what the Kaiser folks said about their study: “The report’s analysis confirms that on average Medicare Advantage plans provided extra benefits above what traditional Medicare covers in 2006, but finds the value of extra benefits lower for private fee-for-service plans than for other Medicare Advantage plans.”
Republicans zeroed in on the finding that MA beneficiaries have lower out-of-pocket costs than those enrolled in traditional fee-for-service Medicare.
Specifically, the Republicans noted the study found: “For the sickest beneficiaries, with the highest rates of annual out-of-pocket spending, average out-of-pocket costs in traditional Medicare are at least $6,353. In contrast, these same beneficiaries would have spent just $2,160 in a coordinated care MA plan and just $3,113 in an MA private fee-for-service plan. This means sickest and highest cost beneficiaries stand to save up to 66 percent compared to what they would have spent in traditional Medicare.”