It's Now Open Season on Seniors: 'Medicare Disadvantage.' Unsolicited Calls, Aggressive Ads

[appalachiablue]

- Daily Kos, Oct. 15, 2023. Ed.

(Photo and caption: A health insurance claim form is seen on a medical-bill.jpg * Denied and Delayed Claims are part of the MA business model)

We are beginning to be besieged with ads, mailings, phone calls, etc. for Medicare “Disadvantage” plans. Don’t be fooled - it’s a scam to funnel people into private insurance — not Medicare. And it’s an assault on traditional Medicare with the goal to completely privatize a very popular government program.

There is a reason why 250,000 retired New York City employees fought back against a plan to move them into a Medicare Advantage plan - they were concerned about limited access and higher costs. In August, a judge banned the city from making this switch. Vermont’s retired state employees are currently in a battle to prevent a shift to an MA plan. A similar fight is being waged in the state of Delaware.

California’s Scripps Health recently notified 30,000 patients they would no longer accept MA insurance because $75 million of services were denied by these companies. Mayo Clinic also notified their FL and AZ patients that MA would no longer be accepted. On Oct. 4, PNHP (Physicians for a National Health Program) issued a report that estimated that Medicare Advantage overcharges taxpayers by a minimum of 22% or $88 billion per year, and potentially by up to 35% or $140 billion. These overcharges could have paid for Part B premiums or Part D drug benefits. Either of these— or other crucial aspects of Medicare and Medicaid—could be funded entirely by eliminating overcharges in the Medicare Advantage program. pnhp.org/…

On Oct. 8, 2022, the New York Times published an article entitled “The Cash Monster was Insatiable: How Insurers Exploited Medicare for Billions.” The article details the deceptive practices used: overstating the severity of illnesses or adding new ones, inflating bills, limiting choice, requiring pre-authorizations, denying care, delaying payments, etc. UHC, the largest insurer, was accused of fraud by insiders and the government, and overbilling by the Inspector General. www.nytimes.com/…https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/08/upshot/medicare-advantage-fraud-allegations.html

- More, https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/10/15/2199518/-It-s-Now-Open-Season-on-Seniors
-----------
- *NPR: Medicare shoppers often face a barrage of unsolicited calls and aggressive ads. Medicare Open Enrollment Starts, Oct. 16, 2023,
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/10/16/1205798647/open-enrollment-medicare-advantage-plans-help