A Problem With Ads for Private Medicare Plans

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Medicare Advantage is nothing short of corporate fraud. The private plans are 9 to 12 percent less efficient than real Medicare and often ration care or limit coverage.
Seniors beware Medicare Advantage scams. Stick with real Medicare.

JRC of IL 4:06PM July 13, 2009

Healthspring is a wonderful Medicare advantage plan it has helped to keep care afordable for my disabled friend the service is wonderful the doctors in the plan are great and the coverage is also great for so many reasons i heartily reccomend HEALTHSPRING .

Terry of IL 3:13PM February 28, 2009

This is certainly a hot topic right now. I've worked with seniors for many years now, including nursing home admissions. I can assure you that they do not understand what they are buying and the companies that are selling it to them don't really care what's best for them. I know this from the inside because when I took sometime out of the industry I was lured into getting my insurance license to sell Medicare supplemental plans. What I saw happening during my training was unethical so I quit.
I volunteered helping seniors sign-up for the Medicare D plans and they were so confused. If they didn't have an advocate who could analyze what was best for them they were really confused and probably just bought the first one that came along. They often just hear the low premium.
It's when they go to use the Advantage plan that they realize that they can't use their same physician or home healthcare company. There are a very limited number of providers that participate in these programs which makes it difficult for seniors to have continuity in their care. I'm hearing from home healthcare companies that none of the Fee for Service Plans are approving payment for their patients.
Remember who confusing it was to us when HMO's first came out. I'm proud of our government for standing up for our seniors. They should not be preyed upon. Read explainations of all the types of plans and Medicare coverage at www.agingavenues.com.

Carlotta Katra of IN 5:15PM September 27, 2008

No amount of advertising is going to be able to give a reader the proper amount of information to make an informed decision because each reader has different thresholds of knowledge they personally need to make any given decision. Ads should prompt the interested reader to inquire to their own satisfaction so they can make a better informed decision. Ads are not designed or intended to answer all the questions about a given topic but in contrast are written to get the reader interested in the product.
Last month Congress passed key legislation guiding insurance company advertising to seniors specifically aimed at Medicare and the MA insurance plans. Insurers get more money for MA plans with the drug benefit because they are covering more risk for the government insurance program.
Insurance agents are trained to answer insurance policy questions and how to best meet the insurance needs of someone looking for insurance. Each person is individual and requires a unique set of circumstances to be professionally reviewed before purchasing any insurance product.

Robert B. of UT 2:57PM September 26, 2008

Your article is excellent. The contact information about the State Health Insurance Assistance Programs should be listed as the first sentence along with it being at the end. Repetition is OK when resources are given. In fact, sometimes the information has to be reviewed more than once to get the full flavor.
This content is so right on point. The options that Medicare offers are usually stright forward, but it is all the exception that make it confusing.
Another new idea would be that the "fine print" must be in 12-14 point so the older reader can see it clearly.
Thank you for your efforts!

Blanche Katz of CA 9:27PM September 25, 2008

Does the AFLAC duck give you adequate information on which to base a decision? Nope. Ads don't work that way. That is why ads for insurance, especially health insurance, ought to be totally outlawed.
If you had the national health plan you should have---NO ADS WOULD BE NEEDED. NO DUCK. NO SCHTICK.

of 4:11PM September 25, 2008