Medicare Advantage Premiums May Rise $40 to $70 Monthly in 2010

Reader Comments
Back to blog

+1

soundtracks of AL 7:24AM July 17, 2009

Obama said he wants to reform healthcare. But in my opinion after seeing what he is doing to Seniors Medicare Advantage plans, I belive his health plan will not benefit Americans little or none at all.
These $0 premium plans have been able to give beneficaries dental, hearing and visions benefits and even more. Instead of being responsible for 20% of expenses that traditional MC requires on outpatient and a high $deductible on Inpatient, the MC advantage plans have only reqired the client to pay a co-pay. Usually $15 to $20 co pay at Drs. office and a per day co-pay on inpatient up to 1-6 days (usually totally at most $1100).
This has saved Senior a lot of money so that they can afford food, util etc, that are also continuly raising. If OBama cares about the Seniors he should not have done away with the PFFS plans or plan for Medicare Advantage plans to start charging a higher premium.
He needs to leave Medicare beneficaries and the Medicare healh plans alone.

Teresa Cole of WV 4:41PM May 25, 2009

Dear, Sirs Are to whom it may concern? Can a disable person on Social Security Disability. Can they apply for Medicare Medical coverage for them and their spouse? And at what cost? Thanks For: Your Response!

Jesse L. Hutto of TX 2:28PM May 13, 2009

Dear, Sirs Are to whom it may concern? Can a disable person on Social Security Disability. Can they apply for Medicare Medical coverage for them and their spouse? And at what cost? Thanks For: Your Response!

Jesse L. Hutto of TX 2:28PM May 13, 2009

Last year CMS made it impossible to market Advantange plans and even told the plans to pay the insurance agents less than half the commissin they earned the previos year.
The rates they pay the plans are based on the previous years cost. Thus CMS is fixing their cost that go up every year on last years cost.The plans do the billing and fraud protection that are also not in the cost.Everyone knows that this is a Political issue not dollars. Obama wants bigger goverment and control of the Health Care system, first he has to do away with these private plans that are favored over socialised medicine

Robert Alboney of CA 3:12PM April 21, 2009

Liberals are always trying to fix something that's not broken! If it works guaranteed they will gut it! Ever since this incompetent fool got into office all he's done is make things worse! This country better wake up! This man is dangerous!! He's been awful quiet about this too, guess he's going to try and sneak it buy us seniors.

Roxanne of AZ 4:59AM April 13, 2009

I'm a Medicare Advantage plan member. One huge benefit over Standard Medicare is the annual exam. In order to stay healthy and address health problems as they slowly develop my PCP sees me every year. Under Standard Medicare, you don't ever see a doctor until you are sick. Then the costs of treating the illness are much higher. It's much better to be proactive and monitor health on an annual basis. I would request Congress study types of plans to see which plan has a better chance of keeping people healthy. I agree that some savings could be made by triming benefits, like vision and hearing tests, but not the annual physical.

Dennis Wood of OR 2:46PM April 08, 2009

Anyone against Medicare Advantage plans actually have inside knowledge on them? Ask patients who are enrolled in MA plans and that actually have a Managered Care savvy PCP. The quality of care is way higher. MA plans also have the ability to curb over utilization of certain specialists (cough, cardiologists, cough) whereas straight medicare pays them for the most useless, expensive tests, making patients pay unnecessary copays and wasting their time. 30% of all straight Medicare hospital admissions end up being readmitted in the next 60 days. I wonder what the figure is for MA plans, where the PCP has a financial incentive to make sure patients admitted gets proper discharge care.
Perhaps they are over funded, but this 14% that everyone keeps mentioning is ridiculous. There are advantages to a well managed MA plan (well managed being key here).
Also, cutting MA funding by 5% isn't going to be close to funding this administrations bold plans. Blindly printing money to solve our nations problems is just as irresponsible as not fixing them at all...

Mike Hough of FL 12:24PM April 08, 2009

We should regulate the profits of insurance companies just like the profits of utilities are regulated. Maybe put an 8% cap on them.

Bill Couture of CA 1:18AM April 08, 2009

That medicare "advantage" thing was named to mean exactly what? Advantage to the insurance companies? Advantage to SOME seniors paid for by other seniors in fee for service plan or by government as a matter of fixed discrimination? What?
Sort of like "Patriot" Act, "death" tax, "No Child Left Behind"---Republicans could really dream up the dreamy names, couldn't they?
Era has changed.

Muser of NM 4:46PM April 07, 2009