Tag Archives: Medicare Advantage

Once again, there are efforts made to the US Senate urging Senators to support Medicare Advantage plans. The facts against Medicare Advantage for seniors have been stated over and over again by Kip Sullivan, myself, and others as well. PNHP President has authored a counter letter to the Senate explaining some of the issues and problems with Medicate Advantage. Many of which come to bear once the enrollee is a part of the Advantage programs....

After doing some quick scanning of articles on the topic of Medicare Advantage plan disenrollment, I found many leave Medicare Advantage because of complex healthcare conditions. Either a change in health leading to such or an inability to get the care they need. Medicare Advantage plans notoriously deny care as a method to delay care and gain greater profitability. There is more to my explanation than what I have said. Medicare Advantage...

Industry has been talking about AI (Artificial Intelligence) for a while now. And of course, industry has been looking to reduce the amount of labor input with AI. Having used computerized systems such as MRPII, ERP, etc., I have always followed the wisdom of people such as Oliver Wight and George Plossl. The system is as accurate as the input to it. Which means, you have to check your work. A system can also be used to intentionally mislead in its...

I am late on the draw for this information on Medicare. Been busy with other issues. Had dinner last night at VA’ Bene, a restaurant in Chandler which is not too far from us. An older couple joined us afterwards as we were sipping some Chianti. The heat finally got to this couple and they are moving back to Oregon after living here for twenty years. Medicare Part D in 2024: A First Look at Prescription Drug Plan Availability, Premiums, and Cost...

Maybe $88 billion and $140 billion will get your attention? Congress does not blink an eye at this expenditure. Received an email from PNHP’s Kip Sullivan who is knowledgeable on Single Payer and Medicare Advantage healthcare plans. Whenever he writes an article, he sends me an email so Angry Bear can be first in line to place it on the blogosphere. Computer was down and I am a couple of days late in posting his commentary. If you are unaware...

At Angry Bear, we have one person and his wife using a KFF Medicare Advantage plan. He reports good to excellent care being the result of the KFF plan. Potentially there still can be cost issue even with KFF plans. This commentary by KFF Health News is about Medicare Advantage plans in general. Read on. I have made some comments in the author’s text. Feds Rein in Predictive Software That Limits Care for Medicare Advantage Patients, MedPage Today,...

Medicare Advantage Overbilling Taxpayers by $140 Billion a Year, This is Enough to Wipe Out Medicare Premiums, Informed Comment, Juan Cole and Jake Johnson. AB‘s Joel sent me an Informed Comment article. I read the article and knew there was more to the issue than just overcharging the government by upcoding Medicare Advantage plan members. Merrill Goozner writes GoozNews and got the jump on this topic before me in March of this year. Catching up...

In May of 2023 The $20 Billion Scam At The Heart Of Medicare Advantage, PNHP, Matthew Cunningham-Cook and Andrew Perez, Lever News, May 2023. Health insurance company Humana enjoyed a banner year in 2022. Humana made $2.8 billion in profits in 2022, while paying out $448 million in dividends to shareholders, and paying more than $17 million in compensation to its CEO. One of the main inputs to those earnings was the federal government’s $20.5...

The Medicare Advantage Quality Bonus Program, Urban Institute, Laura Skopec and Robert A. Berenson The following is an introduction and a portion of a very readable report to which the link can be found at the end of this introduction. The findings are similar as to what Kip Sullivan and others have been reporting all along. To which I have reported and confirmed on Angry Bear on numerous occasions. The one liner finding to this being, the Quality...

Kip Sullivan has been comparing Fee for Service Medicare to Medicare Advantage and Commercial Healthcare Insurance at length calling out the failures of the latter. The results of such comparisons show FFS Medicare is far less costly in providing similar and better healthcare. Expanding Medicare to include all constituents as it is or in a Single Payer format would lower costs and provide better healthcare to all constituents. The “if” here is...