Medicare Advantage and value added
We’ve long known the benefits of Medicare Advantage for millions of seniors. Today, a new blog post from The New York Times sheds more light on the fact that Medicare Advantage delivers superior quality to beneficiaries.
The NYT Upshots blog points to recent research from Harvard that demonstrates Medicare Advantage outperforms traditional Medicare on various quality measures. And with such high-quality performance, looming payment cuts may be “shortsighted.”
The studies found women enrolled in a Medicare Advantage are more likely to receive several preventive services, including mammography screenings and flu and pneumonia vaccinations. Moreover, female beneficiaries with diabetes are more likely to get blood sugar testing and retinal exams, and those with diabetes or cardiovascular disease are more likely to undergo cholesterol testing.
The analysis also highlighted the benefits of having established provider networks, which allows Medicare Advantage plans to enhance access to higher-quality doctors.
“[W]e want Medicare beneficiaries — which we all hope to be someday, if we’re not already — to receive the highest quality of care. Here, as far as we know from research to date, Medicare Advantage shines, at least relative to traditional Medicare,” states the NYT Upshots post.
There you have it: Medicare Advantage provides good value to beneficiaries—value being put at risk by major payment cuts.
– See more at: http://www.ahipcoverage.com/2014/08/18/medicare-advantage-and-value-added/#sthash.B2GcYDwE.dpuf
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