In its June 2019 report to Congress, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recommends improvements to the complex Medicare Part B enrollment process, including strengthening notification requirements which is, in part, what the Beneficiary Enrollment Notification and Eligibility Simplification (BENES) Act proposes to do (S. 1280/H.R. 2477).
The Medicare Rights Center applauds Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and John Cornyn (R-TX) for introducing the bipartisan Streamlining Part D Appeals Process Act (S. 1861).
The bill would eliminate unnecessary steps in the Medicare Part D appeals process, making the system less burdensome for people with Medicare, providers, and plans. Specifically, the Cardin-Cornyn bill would simplify the process for Part D enrollees who experience medication denials at the pharmacy counter.
On June 4, Medicare Rights Center President Fred Riccardi testified at a hearing of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health titled “Investing in America’s Health Care.”
The hearing examined an array of public health initiatives set to expire in September. Riccardi spoke to several of the Medicare-related programs, urging Congress to address these expirations in a health care “extenders” legislative package later this year.
Earlier this year, a federal government systems issue prevented Medicare Advantage and Part D premiums from being automatically deducted from the Social Security payments of some people with Medicare. Normally, if a beneficiary elects, Social Security deducts the premiums and sends them directly to the plan. In this instance, the payments were not sent to the plans, and beneficiaries did not know that their plans were not receiving them.
A new issue brief from the Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that people with Medicare who choose Medicare Advantage (MA) plans have lower Medicare spending and use fewer services relative to their peers with Original Medicare, even before they enroll in MA.
The Medicare Trustee’s report underscores what we already know: Medicare is strong and built to last. We urge lawmakers to pursue commonsense reforms—like reversing the tax bill’s troubling trajectory, reigning in high prescription drug prices, and eliminating Medicare Advantage overpayments—to ensure it stays that way.
A new report from the AARP Public Policy Institute (PPI) examines trends in prices for 390 generic prescription drugs widely used by older adults. The report found that retail prices for these drugs fell by an average of 9.3% between 2016 and 2017; the general inflation rate rose by 2.1% during the same period. This follows two consecutive years of substantial generic drug price decreases; the previous two years saw prices increase.
The President’s budget is a powerful document, as it represents the Trump administration’s vision for the country—a roadmap for where it would like lawmakers to go. It reflects the administration’s fiscal and programmatic priorities, which again this year do not include people with Medicare.
Further, because many older adults and people with disabilities look to a constellation of programs to stay healthy as they age, the budget’s Medicare cuts alone don’t tell the full story of how the administration’s vision for the future would impact beneficiaries.
In January, Congress temporarily extended two important Medicaid provisions that help older adults and people with disabilities live at home and participate in the community—the home and community-based (HCBS) spousal impoverishment protection and the Money Follows the Person (MFP) program.
Unless Congress acts soon, these programs will expire on March 31. Take action to help protect Medicaid HCBS.
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.
In its June 2019 report to Congress, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recommends improvements to the complex Medicare Part B enrollment process, including strengthening notification requirements which is, in part, what the Beneficiary Enrollment Notification and Eligibility Simplification (BENES) Act proposes to do (S. 1280/H.R. 2477).
The Medicare Rights Center applauds Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and John Cornyn (R-TX) for introducing the bipartisan Streamlining Part D Appeals Process Act (S. 1861).
The bill would eliminate unnecessary steps in the Medicare Part D appeals process, making the system less burdensome for people with Medicare, providers, and plans. Specifically, the Cardin-Cornyn bill would simplify the process for Part D enrollees who experience medication denials at the pharmacy counter.
On June 4, Medicare Rights Center President Fred Riccardi testified at a hearing of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health titled “Investing in America’s Health Care.”
The hearing examined an array of public health initiatives set to expire in September. Riccardi spoke to several of the Medicare-related programs, urging Congress to address these expirations in a health care “extenders” legislative package later this year.
Earlier this year, a federal government systems issue prevented Medicare Advantage and Part D premiums from being automatically deducted from the Social Security payments of some people with Medicare. Normally, if a beneficiary elects, Social Security deducts the premiums and sends them directly to the plan. In this instance, the payments were not sent to the plans, and beneficiaries did not know that their plans were not receiving them.
A new issue brief from the Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that people with Medicare who choose Medicare Advantage (MA) plans have lower Medicare spending and use fewer services relative to their peers with Original Medicare, even before they enroll in MA.
The Medicare Trustee’s report underscores what we already know: Medicare is strong and built to last. We urge lawmakers to pursue commonsense reforms—like reversing the tax bill’s troubling trajectory, reigning in high prescription drug prices, and eliminating Medicare Advantage overpayments—to ensure it stays that way.
A new report from the AARP Public Policy Institute (PPI) examines trends in prices for 390 generic prescription drugs widely used by older adults. The report found that retail prices for these drugs fell by an average of 9.3% between 2016 and 2017; the general inflation rate rose by 2.1% during the same period. This follows two consecutive years of substantial generic drug price decreases; the previous two years saw prices increase.
The President’s budget is a powerful document, as it represents the Trump administration’s vision for the country—a roadmap for where it would like lawmakers to go. It reflects the administration’s fiscal and programmatic priorities, which again this year do not include people with Medicare.
Further, because many older adults and people with disabilities look to a constellation of programs to stay healthy as they age, the budget’s Medicare cuts alone don’t tell the full story of how the administration’s vision for the future would impact beneficiaries.
In January, Congress temporarily extended two important Medicaid provisions that help older adults and people with disabilities live at home and participate in the community—the home and community-based (HCBS) spousal impoverishment protection and the Money Follows the Person (MFP) program.
Unless Congress acts soon, these programs will expire on March 31. Take action to help protect Medicaid HCBS.
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.
