WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), and a bipartisan group of their Senate colleagues urged the administration to continue support for the Medicare Advantage program, which provides quality health care to 27 million seniors and individuals with disabilities.
The senators sent a letter to Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), highlighting the need to continue supporting the popular program. In West Virginia, 43% of all Medicare recipients choose the Advantage program over regular Medicare.
“As you consider annual updates for plan year 2023,” the senators wrote, “we ask you to ensure that payment or policy changes allow Medicare Advantage plans to continue to provide the patient-centered care that 43 percent of Medicare-eligible Americans rely on every day.
“Enrollees in the program benefit from out-of-pocket cost limits and plan options that can include access to telehealth services, in-home care, nutrition services, and transportation benefits to meet seniors’ individual needs,” the senators continued. “In fact, over 95 percent of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries have access to meal services, telehealth, transportation, dental, fitness, vision, and hearing benefits. Access to these benefits and care provided under the Medicare Advantage program have helped enrollees stay healthy and safe throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.”
The full text of the letter is available here.
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