THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE TO PRESERVE SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE
~ Protecting the Health and Economic Future of Older Americans ~

September 25, 2009

NEWS RELEASE

Medicare Advocates Applaud CMS Efforts to Keep Politics in its Place

Private Insurers Should Not be Allowed to Use Mailings to Mislead Seniors about Health care Reform

Medicare Advantage (MA) plans are required by federal law to provide beneficiaries with correct and accurate information about the benefits they provide.  The announcement by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Medicare to investigate health care reform mailings sent by Humana to its Medicare Advantage beneficiaries is the appropriate response to protect seniors from misleading and politicized messages.  

"Especially at this time of year, when private Medicare plans are required to tell enrollees about their benefits for the coming year, beneficiaries can easily become confused if they receive mailings that say their benefits could be cut as a result of pending legislation. People with Medicare may mistake these letters for the mailings that tell them what benefits will be offered next year by their MA plan." Judith Stein, Executive Director of the Center for Medicare Advocacy, Inc.

The Humana letter incorrectly claims pending health care reform legislation will cut benefits when in fact neither the House nor Senate bills reduce the benefits provided under the original Medicare program--benefits that Medicare Advantage plans must offer to their enrollees. Nor does the Humana letter explain that the "cuts" are not benefit cuts but actually cuts in the $170 billion in industry subsidies to MA plans. If private health plans choose to reduce the benefits they provide as a result of the overpayments they receive, that will be their business decision.  Even without changes in payment amounts, Medicare Advantage plans can and do change the benefits they offer every year. 

"The only threat to cut Medicare benefits is coming from private insurers themselves not Congress or the President.  Humana fails to mention that fact in its letter to beneficiaries because it's much harder to garner support for billions in insurance industry subsidies than to scare seniors with misleading information. CMS has a responsibility to ensure providers keep their political agenda out of beneficiary mailings and that's exactly what it has done." Barbara Kennelly, President/CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare

"Medicare Advantage plans owe it to seniors to convey factual benefits information as clearly as possible. It is unacceptable that they confuse members into doing political work."  Joe Baker, President of the Medicare Rights Center ,

Cutting wasteful subsidies to private insurers in Medicare Advantage is not the same as cutting benefits. "Humana and other MA providers have an obligation to their beneficiaries to provide more than political sloganeering in their role as federally subsidized Medicare providers," says David Lipschutz, attorney for California Health Advocates.  

As advocates for millions of Medicare beneficiaries, we encourage CMS to continue playing its vital role in ensuring seniors receive accurate information on health care reform and its impact on seniors.

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Media Contacts:

California Health Advocates; David Lipschutz, Staff Attorney, (323)284-5326

Center for Medicare Advocacy; Judith A. Stein, Executive Director, 860-456-7790; Vicki Gottlich, Senior Policy Attorney, 202-293-5760

Medicare Rights Center; Paul Precht, Director for Policy and Communications, 202-637-0961

National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare; Pamela Causey, Communications Director, 202-216-8378, causeyp@ncpssm.org