Both the Republican and Democratic parties are more open to Medicare Advantage (MA) reform than they have been in prior election years in a shift that some former federal officials are warning should be a call for the health insurance industry to refocus its messaging and advocacy efforts for the plan.
“I think the consensus around MA is eroding somewhat,” Alex Azar, former Department of Health and Human Services secretary for President Donald Trump, said during a recent webinar hosted by Avalere (h/t Fierce Healthcare).
Back in March, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized their cut of Medicare Advantage (MA) payments which caused pushback from insurers who say that the move would cause layoffs, a backing away from service areas, as well as fewer supplemental benefits for existing members.
Many have been pointing to a MedPac report that found that Medicare is projected to overpay Medicare Advantage (MA) plans by around $88 billion in comparison to what traditional Medicare would have hauled.
“I think some of those [cuts] may come back to haunt them on Oct. 15 when open enrollment comes and we see either increased cost sharing, reduced benefits or increased premiums as a result of what they’ve done two weeks before the election,” Azar said.
“I do think it behooves the industry to do a lot of myth busting out there on MA,” Azar added. “That’s not to say there aren’t problems with maybe how certain operators have done things. It is a fallacy that MA plans are so profitable and high margin.”
According to Politico, AHIP will spend seven figures on digital advertising in an effort to ramp up their ability to persuade older Americans to protect Medicare Advantage starting next month.
At this time it is unclear if that marketing will include an efforts in Medicare SEO or Medicare Agent Marketing verticals.
