A few years ago the HHS inspector general identified widespread upcoding fraud among Medicare Advantage insurers. At the time it was estimated to be $30 Billion per year.
It’s since grown to $50 Billion year. CMS has the regulatory authority to fix this, but gets push back from the Congressmen and Senators getting big campaign contributions from the health insurers. It’s no coincidence that corrupt AF Sen Joe Manchin of West Virginia would be “leading 63 bipartisan Senators in support of Medicare Advantage”.
We’re probably in the last decade or two of the Republic as we circle the drain in a carnival of corruption.
This is a stop gap. Manchin is a realist about our lacking factory output. We can only afford so much. Individuals pay the price in what is supposed to be an insured position to be in. Remember these folks were denied part of their pay because the pie was too small for decades and now they cant afford a supplemental policy for traditional Medicare. Yet we can not bail them out because the economy is not wealthy enough yet. Manchin is a realist, we need Medicare Advantage plans for the next five to ten years.
We should all know under supply side econ the recessions were funneled down the poor and vulnerable. Big men(sarcasm) profited.
Medicare Advantage costs the Gov’t 8% more than traditional Medicare. If you look at the 63 senators that signed Manchin’s letter, they’re not among the group that worries about the health and welfare of middle-class Americans.
The direct comparison is the wrong way to measure it.
The issue is the hospital and medical costs that go unpaid. The IRS sees a different end of that cost. The people on the advantage plans can not afford any of this very often. When they fail to pay off credit cards and bankrupt or when hospitals write off what is not covered by traditional Medicare you get the real numbers.
Do Medicare Advantage plans cost more than Medicare?
The average cost of a Medicare Advantage plan is $28 per month, but $0 plans are available in many locations. **The cost for Medicare Advantage is on top of the $164.90 per month that you pay for Medicare Part B.**Jul 18, 2023
I pay $48/month for a high deductible Plan G Medigap that caps my out-of pocket cost at $2,700 for 2023. Maximum out-of-pocket cost for the lowest-premium Medicare Advantage plans is $8,300 for 2023 (it may be even more if you went “out-of-network” to get any care). They have to fund that extra 15% that gets skimmed off to the insurers’ overhead & profit somehow. There’s no free lunch in finance.
{{{ In 2023, the out-of-pocket limit for Medicare Advantage plans may not exceed $8,300 for in-network services and $12,450 for in-network and out-of-network services combined. These out-of-pocket limits apply to Part A and B services only, and do not apply to Part D {prescription drug} spending, … }}}
I’ll guarantee you that the people buying these Medicare Advantage scams aren’t reading the fine print. {{ LOL }}
