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  • The Obama Administration’s 2010 Call Letter for Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plans: Implications for Beneficiaries

    Issue Brief

    On March 30, 2009, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued the 2010 “call letter,” which functions as a request for proposals to private health insurers and organizations that want to sponsor Medicare Advantage Plans or Medicare Prescription Drug Plans. This issue brief reviews the call letter — the first issued by the Obama Administration — and examines the implications for beneficiaries of some of the proposed changes, including its emphasis on accountability of health plan sponsors, promoting…

  • The Value of Extra Benefits Offered by Medicare Advantage Plans in 2006

    Report

    The Value of Extra Benefits Offered by Medicare Advantage Plans in 2006 As Medicare Advantage enrollment continues to climb, this report prepared for the Kaiser Family Foundation compares the value of extra benefits provided by private fee-for-service and other types of Medicare Advantage plans. As of January 2008, 8.8 million people with Medicare were enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, an increase of 63% since 2005. Some say the recent growth in Medicare Advantage enrollment…

  • Do We Know If Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plans Are Special?

    Report

    This report describes the history of special needs plans, how they fit into the larger Medicare Advantage marketplace, and what information could help assess whether these plans are performing differently from other Medicare Advantage plans. Special needs plans serve individuals such as those who are institutionalized, people covered under both Medicare and Medicaid, or those with chronic or disabling conditions. Enrollment in these plans doubled in the past year, and President Bush recently signed the…

  • How Medicare Advantage Rebates Disadvantage Medicare’s Stand-Alone Drug Plan Market

    Issue Brief

    The private plans that offer the Medicare Part D benefit - stand-alone drug plans and Medicare Advantage drug plans - are increasingly are competing on uneven terms, in part because the payment system for Medicare Advantage plans enables them to lower Part D premiums or reduce Part D cost sharing, making drug coverage from Medicare Advantage plans appear considerably cheaper, or even premium-free, to the beneficiary. This brief discusses the growing instability of the Part…

  • Medicare Part D Enrollment, Premiums, and Cost Sharing in 2026

    Issue Brief

    The Medicare Part D program provides an outpatient prescription drug benefit to 56 million older adults and people with long-term disabilities in Medicare who enroll in private plans. This brief analyzes Medicare Part D enrollment, premiums, and cost sharing in 2026 and trends over time, based on data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

  • Key Facts About Medicare Part D Enrollment, Premiums, and Cost Sharing in 2021

    Issue Brief

    The Medicare Part D program provides an outpatient prescription drug benefit to older adults and people with long-term disabilities in Medicare who enroll in private plans, including stand-alone drug plans and Medicare Advantage drug plans. This analysis provides the latest data about Part D enrollment, premiums, and cost sharing in 2021 and trends over time.

  • Cost-Related Problems Are Less Common Among Beneficiaries in Traditional Medicare Than in Medicare Advantage, Mainly Due to Supplemental Coverage

    Issue Brief

    This analysis examines health care cost-related problems among Medicare beneficiaries, comparing beneficiaries in traditional Medicare, including those with and without supplemental coverage, to those in Medicare Advantage, with a focus on racial equity. We compare rates of cost-related problems among White, Black, and Hispanic beneficiaries, those in fair or poor health, and those under age 65 with long-term disabilities. The measure of cost-related problems include problems getting care due to cost, delays seeking care due…

  • As Medicare’s Open Enrollment Nears, New Analyses Highlight Key Changes in Medicare Advantage and Part D Plans for 2015

    News Release

    With Medicare's 2015 open enrollment set to begin Oct. 15, two new analyses from the Kaiser Family Foundation find modest change in the total number of private Medicare Advantage plans available for 2015, and the fewest Part D prescription drug plans nationwide since the start of the drug benefit in 2006. As in previous years, changes in Medicare Advantage and Part D plan availability, premiums, cost-sharing and benefits could require some beneficiaries to find alternative…

  • Medicare Beneficiaries Rarely Change Their Coverage During Open Enrollment

    Issue Brief

    During the Medicare open enrollment period for 2020, Medicare beneficiaries had an average of 24 Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans and 28 stand-alone Part D prescription drug plans to choose from for their coverage. Despite having so many Medicare options, relatively few Medicare private plan enrollees opted to switch their coverage.