Medicare

New & Noteworthy

Health Provisions in the 2025 Federal Budget Reconciliation Law

On July 4, President Trump signed the budget reconciliation bill, previously known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” into law. This summary provides background, description, budgetary impact and related information on the health care provisions of the law in four categories: Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, Medicare and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).

Medicare Open Enrollment FAQs

This list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the Medicare Open Enrollment period covers a range of topics related to enrollment, including Medicare Advantage, Part D, Medigap, and more.

State Profiles for Dual-Eligible Individuals

This data collection draws on Medicare and Medicaid administrative data to present national and state-level information on people who are covered by both Medicare and Medicaid, referred to as dual-eligible individuals (also known as dually-enrolled beneficiaries).

Data Visualization

The Facts About Medicare Spending

This interactive provides the facts on Medicare spending. Medicare, which serves 67 million people and accounts for 12 percent of the federal budget and 21 percent of national health spending, is often the focus of discussions about health expenditures, health care affordability and the sustainability of federal health programs.

Explore data on enrollment growth, Medicare spending trends overall and per person, growth in Medicare spending relative to private insurance, spending on benefits and Medicare Advantage, Part A trust fund solvency challenges, and growth in out-of-pocket spending by beneficiaries.

Related: FAQs on Medicare Financing and Trust Fund Solvency

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191 - 200 of 1,564 Results

  • Medicare Spending was 27% More for People who Disenrolled from Medicare Advantage than for Similar People in Traditional Medicare

    Issue Brief

    This analysis looks at traditional Medicare spending among people who choose to disenroll from Medicare Advantage and obtain coverage under traditional Medicare during the annual Medicare open enrollment period. It compares their traditional Medicare spending (Parts A and B) in the year following disenrollment to similar people who were continuously covered by traditional Medicare, using data from the Medicare Beneficiary Summary File (MBSF) for 2021 and 2022.

  • Coverage of Dental Services in Traditional Medicare

    Issue Brief

    In Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Final Rules from recent years, the administration made changes to Medicare payment policies for certain dental services, in addition to other payment and policy changes. The 2023 rule clarified CMS’s interpretation of when medically necessary dental services can be covered and codified certain payment policies, and the 2023, 2024, and 2025 rules define new clinical scenarios for which Medicare payment can be made for dental services. This brief describes current law related to coverage and payment for dental services under Medicare and the rationale for changes to current policy, explains changes to dental payment and coverage included in these rules, and discusses the impact on Medicare and beneficiaries. While these changes are projected to benefit a small number of Medicare beneficiaries, they do not represent a broad expansion of Medicare coverage of dental services.

  • How Pending Health-Related Lawsuits Could be Impacted by the Incoming Trump Administration

    Issue Brief

    This brief provides an overview of current lawsuits in health policy including preventive services, abortion care, gender affirming care, Medicare drug price negotiations, nursing home staffing rules, private coverage consumer protections, and protections and health coverage for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients; how they may be affected by the incoming Trump administration; and the implications of their potential outcomes.

  • Medicare Advantage Has Become More Popular Among the Shrinking Share of Employers That Offer Retiree Health Benefits

    Issue Brief

    This analysis examines the extent to which large private and non-federal public employers that offer retiree health benefits are turning to Medicare Advantage and why they are making this shift, using data from the 2024 Employer Health Benefits Survey. We find that slightly more than half (56%) of large employers offering retiree health benefits to Medicare-age retirees offer coverage to at least some retirees through a contract with a Medicare Advantage plan, more than double the share in 2017 (26%).

  • Medicare Advantage 2025 Spotlight: A First Look at Plan Offerings

    Issue Brief

    This brief provides an overview of the Medicare Advantage plans that are available for 2025 and key trends over time. The average Medicare beneficiary will have the option of 34 Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MA-PD) plans in 2025, 2 fewer than the 36 options available in 2024. The average Medicare beneficiary can choose among plans offered by 8 firms in 2025, the same as in 2024.

  • Medicare Advantage 2025 Spotlight: A First Look at Plan Premiums and Benefits

    Issue Brief

    This brief provides an overview of premiums and benefits in Medicare Advantage plans that are available for 2025 and key trends over time. Two-thirds of all Medicare Advantage plans with Part D prescription drug coverage (MA-PDs) (67%) will charge no premium (other than the Part B premium) in 2025, similar to 2024 (66%). Nearly all Medicare Advantage plans (97% or more) are offering vision, dental and hearing, as they have in previous years. However, the share of plans offering certain benefits has declined, such as over-the-counter benefits (85% in 2024 vs. 72% in 2025), remote access technologies (74% in 2024 vs. 53% in 2025), meal benefits (72% in 2024 vs. 65% in 2025) and transportation (36% in 2024 vs. 29% in 2025).