Older adults and people with disabilities have no warning to avoid enrolling in Medicare Advantage plans–plans run by corporate health insurers–that likely will deny them care. And, they have no good protections. If Donald Trump becomes President again, everyone could be forced into a Medicare Advantage plan, reports Jessica Glenza for The Guardian.
Today, traditional Medicare, the government-administered alternative to Medicare Advantage, has become a luxury for the wealthy. People enroll in Medicare Advantage because the upfront costs are lower. And, they are then locked in. They can’t switch to traditional Medicare because it lacks an out-of-pocket cap, and they can’t afford supplemental insurance to protect themselves against catastrophic costs.
Problems abound in Medicare Advantage for people who get sick and need costly care. Millions of people in Medicare Advantage struggle to figure out how they are going to stay with their treating physicians because their Medicare Advantage plan is leaving their area or their physicians are leaving their Medicare Advantage plan networks. Or, they wonder how they will travel tens of miles to get the care they need because their local hospital is no longer in-network. Or, they struggle to deal with Medicare Advantage denials of care their treating physicians says they need.
Joe Namath and William Shatner might tell you how much they like Medicare Advantage, but dollars to donuts, they are in traditional Medicare. Traditional Medicare is a luxury for the wealthy because it actually covers the care you need from the physicians and hospitals you want to use.
Trump and his supporters in Congress want to privatize Medicare and end traditional Medicare. They want you to believe that you will have all the choices you need in Medicare Advantage. The fact is that you will have a bunch of meaningless choices because you won’t be guaranteed the choice of a Medicare Advantage plan that will meet your needs if you are in an accident or are diagnosed with cancer or heart disease. Only traditional Medicare guarantees you coverage for all your needs.
The ten big insurers offering Medicare Advantage have been charged with fraud many times. In 2022, eight of them were defending themselves in court.
While Medicare Advantage plans might not meet your needs, they meet the needs of the biggest health insurers, who are able to profit wildly. Nearly half of United Healthcare’s total revenue came from Medicare Advantage. But, Medicare Advantage enrollees represent only 15 percent of all its enrollees, according to Accountable.US.
Trump and his supporters in Congress appear to prefer a Medicare program in which health insurers have the financial incentive to stint on care and profit wildly at taxpayer expense, to a more cost-effective world in which people can get the care they need and the government is in charge.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- Donald Trump’s threat to Medicare and Social Security
- Insulin costs: Biden v. Trump
- Drug prices: Biden v. Trump
- Kamala Harris announces plan to expand Medicare to cover long-term care at home
- Need home health care? Don’t count on Medicare
