Medicare

NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

What to Know About Medicare Coverage of Telehealth

Congress has repeatedly extended pandemic-era flexibilities around Medicare coverage of telehealth, but most such flexibilities remain temporary. This brief answers key questions about the current scope of Medicare telehealth coverage, including both temporary and permanent changes adopted through legislation and regulation, and future policy considerations.

Changes to the Medicare Advantage Program Enhance Some Consumer Protections But Roll Back Others

CMS recently finalized policies as part of the 2027 Medicare Advantage final rule that both enhance consumer protections and roll back changes to the Medicare Advantage program that were intended to protect consumers. These changes have gotten less attention than payment issues and changes to the star ratings system, which also affect plan payments, but could have implications for Medicare beneficiaries.

Examining the Potential Impact of Medicare’s New WISeR Model

A federal initiative to establish new prior authorization requirements in traditional Medicare, called the Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction (WISeR) model, is likely to have only modest impact in its first year.

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. u003cbru003eu003cbru003eExplore 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.u003cbru003eu003cbru003eu003ca href=u0022https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/faqs-on-medicare-financing-and-trust-fund-solvency/u0022 data-type=u0022linku0022 data-id=u0022https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/faqs-on-medicare-financing-and-trust-fund-solvency/u0022u003eRelated:u003ca href=u0022https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/faqs-on-medicare-financing-and-trust-fund-solvency/u0022u003e FAQs on Medicare Financing and Trust Fund Solvencyu003c/au003eu003c/au003e

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  • Pulling It Together: Are We Headed for a Government Takeover of Health Care?

    Perspective

    Remember the “government takeover of the health care system” argument that critics of the health reform law have used?  Well, last week the Office of the Actuary in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services published the latest projections of health spending in the journal Health Affairs.  Attention focused mainly on the Actuary’s estimate that national health spending would grow to almost 20% of GDP by 2020 and that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would…

  • How Popular Is The Idea Of Changing Medicare To A Defined Contribution Plan?

    Poll Finding

    In March 2011, House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan released his "Path to Prosperity" budget plan, which included a proposal to change Medicare from a defined benefit program into one in which the government pays a specific amount towards the cost of private health insurance for each enrollee. Surveys conducted by five different polling organizations from March-April 2011 have attempted to gauge the level of public support for such a plan, and their results have…

  • Beneficiary Challenges in Using the Medicare Part D Appeals Process To Obtain Medically Necessary Drugs

    Issue Brief

    This paper describes the various steps of the Medicare Part D appeals process for obtaining necessary drugs not on a plan’s formulary. Using case reports collected from a network of beneficiary advocates, it illustrates the challenges and problems some beneficiaries encountered when navigating this aspect of the drug benefit. The paper concludes with a discussion of potential policy options including the implications of establishing an exceptions and appeals process that is uniform in paperwork and…

  • “My Name Is…” A Video

    Event Date:
    Event

    People with disabilities were profiled in “My Name Is…” a video produced by Kaiser Family Foundation Senior Visiting Fellow and former ABC News Correspondent, Jackie Judd, and shown at a December 12 briefing to release the findings from a survey of people with permanent mental and/or physical disabilities and their health-care experiences and challenges in accessing and paying for care. Please note: the video is no longer available.  If you have an urgent need for…

  • The Swing States and Medicare

    Poll Finding

    The latest partnership poll from The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation explores attitudes towards Medicare among registered voters in three swing states -- Florida, Virginia, and Ohio. While the economy remains the top issue, in each state about four in ten voters say Medicare is an extremely important issue to their vote. As of mid-September, majorities of voters in these states say they would prefer to keep Medicare as it is rather than…

  • Seniors and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit

    Poll Finding

    The survey, which assessed seniors' views of and experiences with the Medicare drug benefit, was conducted November 9-19 by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health. It included a nationally representative sample of 718 seniors, including 275 who reported being enrolled in a Medicare drug plan. The questions about experiences under the Medicare drug benefit were part of a larger survey of 1,867 adults on the public's health agenda for Congress…

  • Prescription Drug Trends Fact Sheet – May 2010 Update

    Fact Sheet

    This updated fact sheet provides trend information about prescription drug expenditures and coverage, key factors that contribute to rising prescription spending, and efforts to contain rising drug costs. May 2010 Fact Sheet (.pdf)