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Ask your senators to support seniors, not insurance corporations!

An industry-friendly letter in support of Medicare Advantage is currently circulating in the U.S. Senate, and we need senators to stand up for their constituents by refusing to sign.

Introduced by Sens. Cortez Masto, Scott, Peters, and Capito, this letter praises Medicare Advantage and asks for “stability” in the program, when what we really need is scrutiny of corporate health insurers and a crackdown on the harms they cause to seniors and people with disabilities.

The deadline for signing this industry-friendly letter is Jan. 24. Encourage your senators to put their constituents first, and to resist corporate and lobbyist pressure to sign on.

To learn more about the so-called “Medicare Advantage” program, visit healmedicare.org.

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Ask your senators to support seniors, not insurance corporations!

U.S. Senators

Subject: Seniors need your support. Medicare Advantage corporations deserve scrutiny.

Message:

I’m reaching out as a constituent with serious concerns about the Medicare Advantage program. Currently, there is a letter circulating in the Senate, led by Sens. Cortez Masto, Scott, Peters, and Capito, praising Medicare Advantage and asking for “stability” in the program. I urge you to NOT sign on to this letter. The reality is that Medicare Advantage is an unstable program for millions of Americans. These plans restrict our choice of doctors; delay and deny care that is routinely approved by traditional Medicare; and hit us with surprise medical bills when we can least afford them. For 20 years, the program has failed to deliver on its promises. It is essential for the viability of the entire Medicare program, and for the health of your most vulnerable constituents, that the Medicare Advantage program be reappraised and that the health insurance corporations that manage these plans be held accountable. How does Medicare Advantage fall short? Let us count the ways: * Multiple studies have demonstrated that Medicare Advantage is overpaid by as much as $140 billion annually. This is more than the sum total of all Part B premiums, and more than it would cost to provide a $5,000 out-of-pocket cap in Medicare—plus dental, hearing, and vision benefits to everyone with Medicare as well as everyone with Medicaid. https://pnhp.org/system/assets/uploads/2024/01/MAOverpaymentReport_Oct2023.pdf * Medicare Advantage supporters claim that the program results in “better health outcomes.” Despite the circulating letter including seven references for other non-controversial points, it is telling that it provides zero citations of improved quality. In fact, we know that MedPAC has repeatedly demonstrated an absence of such meaningful data. * Medicare Advantage insurers claim to be a vital resource for “a growing number of Americans in minority and rural communities,” but the sad truth is that the higher penetration of these plans into disenfranchised communities actually contributes to inequities in health care. For example, evidence shows that Hispanic and Black Medicare Advantage members report far more cost-related problems accessing care when compared to people in Traditional Medicare with a Medigap policy. https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/cost-related-problems-are-less-common-among-beneficiaries-in-traditional-medicare-than-in-medicare-advantage-mainly-due-to-supplemental-coverage/ * The letter is correct in its claim that “Medicare Advantage enrollees are more likely to live on less than $20,000 per year” ... but this population is enticed into Medicare Advantage with promises of low premiums and then stuck with the delays, denials, and network barriers that we know compromise health. People with more financial resources are much less willing to accept the kind of inferior care, service, and outcomes that are rampant in Medicare Advantage. For these reasons and more, I urge you to reject any requests to sign on to this letter.

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Ask your senators to support seniors, not insurance corporations!

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