Medicare

NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

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. 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.

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  • Medigap and the Medicare “Doc Fix”

    News Release

    The House-passed legislation to repeal the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) includes a provision that would prohibit Medicare supplemental insurance (Medigap) policies from covering the Part B deductible for people who become eligible for Medicare beginning in 2020. A new Kaiser Family Foundation Data Note explores the implications of this proposal and finds that about 10 percent of 65-year olds on Medicare would have been affected in 2010 (the most recent year for which data…

  • Medigap Enrollment Among New Medicare Beneficiaries: How Many 65-Year Olds Enroll In Plans With First-Dollar Coverage?

    Issue Brief

    On March 26, 2015, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 2, the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015, which would replace the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula, among other changes; the bill is currently pending in the U.S. Senate. H.R. 2 includes a provision that would prohibit Medicare supplemental insurance (Medigap) policies from covering the Part B deductible for people who become eligible for Medicare on or after January 1, 2020. This data…

  • Medicare 101: What You Need To Know

    Event Date:
    Event

    Hosted by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Alliance for Health Reform, this briefing reviewed basic questions about the Medicare program, such as: What services does Medicare provide, and how does Medicare pay for these services? How is Medicare financed? What changes did the Affordable Care Act (ACA) make to Medicare? How fast is Medicare spending growing? What are current proposals to strengthen Medicare for the future, and what are prospects for action in the…

  • The Story of Medicare: A Timeline

    Video

    Written and produced by KFF staff, The Story of Medicare: A Timeline serves as a visual timeline of Medicare’s history, including the debate that led to its creation in 1965 and subsequent changes, such as the passage and repeal of the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act in the 1980s, the Medicare Modernization Act in 2003, and the Affordable Care Act.

  • Medicare Timeline

    Other Post

    In 1965, Medicare was created to provide health insurance for the nation's seniors beginning in 1966. Fifty years later, the program covers over 54 million people - primarily seniors but also others under age 65 with permanent disabilities. Medicare helps pay for a range of medical services, including hospital stays, physician visits, preventive benefits, and starting in 2006, prescription drugs. This timeline provides an overview of changes that have shaped the Medicare program over the…

  • Income-Related Premiums in Medicare: Who Pays, and How Much Do They Pay?

    News Release

    Since 2007, seniors with incomes greater than $85,000 have had to pay higher premiums for Medicare than their counterparts with lower incomes.  Six percent of Medicare Part B enrollees are expected to pay higher monthly premiums in 2015, ranging from $147 to $336, depending on their income.  Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are considering whether to increase these income-related premiums to help offset the federal cost of repealing the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) payment formula, a…

  • A Primer on Medicare: Key Facts About the Medicare Program and the People it Covers

    Report

    This primer explains key elements of the Medicare program, which now provides health coverage to 55 million people -- including 46 million people age 65 and older and another 9 million younger adults with permanent disabilities. It looks at the characteristics of the Medicare population, what benefits are covered, how much people with Medicare pay for their benefits and the program’s overall costs and future financing challenges.

  • Comparison of Consumer Protections in Three Health Insurance Markets: Medicare Advantage, Qualified Health Plans and Medicaid Managed Care Organizations

    Report

    This report examines similarities and differences in federal consumer protection standards for Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, Qualified Health Plans (QHPs), and Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MCOs). It focuses on rules established at the federal level, though some states have chosen to go above the federal minimums and impose additional requirements for QHPs and Medicaid MCOs.

  • How Much (More) Will Seniors Pay for a Doc Fix?

    Perspective

    In this Policy Insight, the Foundation’s Cristina Boccuti and Tricia Neuman examine how Congress’ effort to permanently stave off scheduled cuts in Medicare’s physician payments could affect what Medicare beneficiaries pay for their care -- both in premiums and in other potential changes -- to offset the cost of the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) “doc fix.”

  • How Would a Long-Term “Doc Fix” Affect Seniors’ Medicare Costs?

    News Release

    In this new Policy Insight, the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Cristina Boccuti and Tricia Neuman examine how Congress’ effort to permanently stave off scheduled cuts in Medicare’s physician payments could affect what Medicare beneficiaries pay for their care -- both in premiums and in other potential changes -- to offset the cost of the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) “doc fix.” Previous columns in the Policy Insights series are also available.