Maya Goldman reports for Axios on the risks of Medicare Advantage flex cards for people getting public assistance. The extra money people think they’re getting through a flex card could mean the end of your government housing or food benefits. UnitedHealth, Humana, CVS offer these cards to entice people to join their MA plans without warning people that the cards could mean the end of their public assistance, even if they don’t use them.
How is it possible people can lose precious benefits? Government agencies can count flex cards as income. So, when people apply for Supplemental Security Income or rental assistance, adding the value of the flex cards to their income could disqualify them.
Why are Medicare Advantage plans offering flex cards when they could be harmful to enrollees? It’s hard to imagine insurers are concerned with the risks of giving flex cards to disabled and low-income enrollees. They likely see the flex cards simply as a good hook to boost enrollment and profits.
Some of the flex cards are specifically targeted to use on items such as groceries and electric bills. Each Medicare Advantage plan offers something different. But, the value of these cards can be significant, with an average value of nearly $1,000.
People with Medicare and Medicaid could be far better off in traditional Medicare, with coverage from most providers in the US and without the prior authorization obstacles to care people face in Medicare Advantage. But, an extra several hundred dollars a year from a Medicare Advantage plan to offset grocery or utility costs is hard to pass up.
Ideally, the Biden administration could direct agencies not to consider the flex cards as income, as more than 30 Democratic members of Congress have requested. But, regulations and statutory mandates for different agencies could get in the way of that. Alternatively, CMS should permit insurers to use the money in the flex cards for a different benefit, such as over-the-counter drugs, which would not be considered income.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) excludes most Medicare Advantage benefits from a person’s income when they apply for help. But, HUD is required by statute to count certain utility and rent benefits as income.
One other concern: People can be misled about the flex cards. They can come with a bunch of limitations that prevent people from using them as they expected. Of course, the insurers profit more if people don’t use their flex cards.
The insurers, for their part, have done nothing to address the serious issues their flex cards present for some of their most vulnerable enrollees.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- Corporate health insurers generate sizeable profits covering people with Medicare and Medicaid. Why?
- Medicare and Medicaid: How they work together
- 2024: What to know this Medicare Open Enrollment Period
- 2024: Programs that lower your health care costs if you have Medicare
- Insurers pay Medicare Advantage brokers to steer you away from Traditional Medicare
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