The Landscape of Private Firms Offering Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage in 2006 February 28, 2006 Issue Brief describes key characteristics of the organizations that offer the new Medicare drug benefit and analyzes how companies are positioning themselves to attract Medicare enrollees.• Seven of the 10 organizations that sponsor stand-alone prescription drug plans nationwide are based in commercial insurance firms with substantial Medicare Advantage experience, and three of…
Medicare Advantage Plan Star Ratings and Bonus Payments in 2012 November 1, 2011 Report This report looks at the star ratings that have been used for many years to help consumers compare plans, and examines how Medicare Advantage quality scores will interact with plan payments, beginning in 2012. To encourage Medicare Advantage plans to provide quality care, the 2010 health reform law authorized Medicare…
Medicare Advantage in 2008 May 30, 2008 Issue Brief Medicare Advantage plans enrolled a record 9.8 million beneficiaries, more than one in five of the nation’s 44 million people on Medicare as of April 2008. That represents an increase of more than 800,000 beneficiaries in just four months, continuing a period of unprecedented growth for private plans in Medicare…
Seniors' Knowledge and Experience With Medicare's Open Enrollment Period and Choosing a Plan: Key Findings from the Kaiser Family Foundation 2012 National Survey of Seniors October 10, 2012 Issue Brief These key findings from the Foundation’s 2012 National Survey of Seniors relate to seniors’ knowledge and experience with Medicare’s open enrollment period and choosing a plan. The survey finds one in four seniors say they are unaware of this annual opportunity to review and change their Medicare coverage, with even…
The Federal Government’s Authority To Regulate Advertising in Medicare August 31, 2008 Issue Brief This policy brief, prepared for the Kaiser Family Foundation by Vicky Gottlich at the Center for Medicare Advocacy, explains the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ legal authority to regulate advertising and other information issued by the private companies that contract with the government to provide Medicare benefits. The brief…
Medicare Advantage: Key Issues and Implications for Beneficiaries June 1, 2007 Report On June 28, 2007, Foundation Vice President Tricia Neuman testified before the House Budget Committee about Medicare Advantage plans and their implications for beneficiaries. Testimony (.pdf)
Private Plans In Medicare: A 2007 Update February 28, 2007 Issue Brief This March 2007 issue brief, commissioned by the Kaiser Family Foundation, examines changes between 2006 and 2007 in the availability of and enrollment in Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans overall and in urban and rural areas. It also focuses on the firms that are offering various types of…
Medicare Prescription Drug Enrollment Update June 2, 2006 Issue Brief Medicare Drug Benefit Enrollment UpdateThis enrollment update breaks down and explains the statistics related to enrollment under the new Medicare drug benefit and the separate low-income subsidy program that provides additional assistance. The enrollment update summarizes the latest enrollment figures released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and…
Low-Income Subsidies for the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit: The Impact of the Asset Test March 31, 2005 Report This study assesses the impact of the requirement that low-income people with Medicare meet an asset test in order to receive additional help paying premiums and cost-sharing under the new Medicare drug benefit.Report (.pdf)American Journal of Managed Care Article: Who Will Be Denied Medicare Prescription Drug Subsidies Because of the…
Issues for Medicare Beneficiaries in Long-Term Care Facilities: An Analysis of the MMA and Proposed Regulations September 1, 2004 Issue Brief This paper, by Vicki Gottlich, J.D., of the Center for Medicare Advocacy, looks at issues related to the new Medicare prescription drug benefit for people with Medicare who live in nursing homes or other long-term-care settings. It is one in a series commissioned by the Kaiser Family Foundation that analyzes…