Medicare Advantage - Research and Data from KFF

Higher and Faster Growing Spending Per Medicare Advantage Enrollee Adds to Medicare’s Solvency and Affordability Challenges

Aug 17, 2021

Issue Brief

This analysis finds that Medicare spending for Medicare Advantage enrollees was $321 higher per person in 2019 than if enrollees had instead been coverage by traditional Medicare, leading to an estimated $7 billion in additional spending in 2019. It also examines the implications of expected growth in Medicare Advantage enrollment and payments per enrollee from 2021 to 2029.

Medicare Part D in 2016 and Trends over Time

Sep 16, 2016

Report

This chartpack presents a summary of Part D enrollment, premiums, cost sharing, benefit design and other key trends in 2016 and changes over time. For 2016, the analysis finds that 40% of Part D enrollees are now in Medicare Advantage drug plans, and over half of all enrollees are in plans offered by just three firms. The chartpack also highlights some concerning trends in the Low-Income Subsidy market, with the fewest number of premium-free plans…

Medicare Advantage Plan Switching: Exception or Norm?

Sep 20, 2016

Issue Brief

The Medicare open enrollment period allows enrollees to compare plans, stick with their current plan, switch to another plan, or shift to traditional Medicare. This analysis examines the extent to which Medicare Advantage enrollees change plans when given the opportunity. It also analyzes the variation in the rate of plan switching by enrollee and plan characteristics and whether people who voluntarily switch plans tend to move to plans with lower premiums, lower out-of-pocket limits, or…

Few People Switch Medicare Advantage Plans Each Year, Raising Questions About Whether Seniors Have the Tools and Information They Need To Compare Plans

Sep 20, 2016

News Release

A small share of Medicare Advantage enrollees switch plans each year, but those who do tend to pick plans with lower premiums and out-of-pocket limits than the plans they left behind, according to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Eleven percent of enrollees voluntarily switched from one Medicare Advantage plan to another between 2013 and 2014, the analysis finds, while another four percent were forced to change because their Medicare Advantage plan exited…

UnitedHealthcare Has Largest and Fastest Growing Share of Medicare Advantage Enrollees Over Past Decade

Oct 18, 2019

Feature

While Medicare Advantage enrollment is highly concentrated among a small number of firms, UnitedHealthcare has seen the largest and fastest growing share of enrollees over the past decade. Learn more in this Chart of the Week.

Medicare Part B Drugs: Cost Implications for Beneficiaries in Traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage

Mar 15, 2022

Issue Brief

In the face of rising prescription drug costs, a large majority of the public supports federal efforts to lower drug spending. Policymakers are considering several proposals that would lower prescription drug costs. To better understand the potential out-of-pocket cost exposure that Medicare beneficiaries may face for Part B drugs, which are typically administered by physicians and other health care providers, we analyzed cost-sharing liability for these drugs in traditional Medicare and cost-sharing requirements in Medicare…

Ending COVID-19 Emergency Declarations Will Bring an End to Flexibilities that Aided Patients, Providers, Insurers, and Public Programs in Responding to the Pandemic

Apr 8, 2022

News Release

When the federal government ends COVID-19 emergency declarations that were declared in the early days of the pandemic, it will bring to a close several changes that were enacted temporarily to enable the U.S. health care system to better deal with the crisis. A new KFF resource details a number of those flexibilities and lays out what it will mean for people, providers and federal health programs when they go away. One of the key…

Beneficiary Experience, Affordability, Utilization, and Quality in Medicare Advantage and Traditional Medicare: A Review of the Literature

Sep 16, 2022

Report

This literature review examines 62 studies published since 2016 that compare Medicare Advantage and traditional Medicare based on measures of beneficiary experience, affordability, service utilization, and quality.

Access Problems And Cost Concerns Of Younger Medicare Beneficiaries Exceeded Those Of Older Beneficiaries In 2019

Apr 3, 2023

Issue Brief

Published in the journal Health Affairs, this analysis compared measures of access to care, cost concerns, and satisfaction with care for beneficiaries younger than age sixty-five versus those ages sixty-five and older, using the 2019 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey.

Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Coverage in Medicare Advantage Plans

Apr 28, 2023

Issue Brief

This brief describes the scope of mental health and substance use disorder benefits in Medicare Advantage plans, including extra benefits, cost sharing, and prior authorization and referral requirements, based on an analysis of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Medicare Advantage plan benefit and enrollment files for 2022.

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