A new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)—the government agency charged with enforcing federal consumer financial laws—sheds light on the widespread problem of elder financial abuse.

Studies show that financial exploitation is the most common form of elder abuse. Perpetrators can include a wide variety of people ranging from close family members to offshore scammers, and estimates of annual losses to older adults have ranged from $2.9 billion to $36.5 billion.

This week, researchers released an analysis of patterns in Medicare showing that people with high needs—like significant chronic illness—and people with both Medicare and Medicaid coverage choose to leave their Medicare Advantage (MA) plans more often than people without similar health issues or Medicaid coverage. The researchers sought to discover why these patterns exist and what the implications might be for MA going forward.

Each year, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) updates the federal poverty guidelines, which are then used to determine eligibility for programs including Medicaid, the Low Income Subsidy for Part D (LIS), and Medicare Savings Programs.

A new study by the Commonwealth Fund examines the use of long-term services and supports (LTSS) among Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older, and finds that the Medicare program is falling behind in offering the supports many older adults need. Currently, Medicare does not broadly cover most types of LTSS that could help older adults and people with disabilities remain in their homes and communities as they age. While Medicare Advantage does cover some limited LTSS, this coverage is spotty, and does not apply to the approximately two-thirds of Medicare beneficiaries who rely on Original Medicare.

Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)—the agency that oversees the Medicare program—announced a new model within traditional Medicare that could help people with Medicare avoid unnecessary trips to the Emergency Department. This new model would allow emergency transportation services to take individuals to their primary care doctor or urgent care, or to deliver treatment in place, when the person does not need to be seen in an emergency room.

When the 116th Congress convened in January, it ushered in a dramatic shift in political dynamics. For the first time in eight years, Democrats have a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. With Republicans still in control of the U.S. Senate, the two chambers of Congress will be divided for at least the next two years.

Under split-party control, legislation will require bipartisan support in order to pass. The need for this agreement greatly, if temporarily, blunts the acute legislative threats to Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that dominated the last Congress.

With extensive program overhauls unlikely to succeed this year, we expect lawmakers to instead focus on areas of shared consensus and concern. This includes “must-pass” items, like expiring health care programs, as well as those that are a top priority for both chambers, such as high prescription drug prices.