Medicare Beneficiaries and HMOs: Highlights of Los Angeles and New York City Medicare HMO Markets January 30, 1998 Fact Sheet A growing number of Medicare beneficiaries are enrolling in Medicare HMOs as an alternative to the traditional Medicare program. However, Medicare HMO enrollment has not grown uniformly in market areas across the country. Case studies conducted by researchers at Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. for The Kaiser Family Foundation describe the…
Whom Does the Public Trust More on Health Care and Medicare? October 30, 2012 Poll Finding This data note reviews takes a historical look at the public’s views of whom they trust more, Democrats or Republicans, when it comes to health care policy and Medicare policy and analyzes these views in the context of the current presidential election, in which both issues are playing a prominent…
Polling on Medicare Premium Support Systems Over Time October 1, 2012 Poll Finding This data note reviews years of polling dating to 1995 to gauge public opinion on proposals to change Medicare to a premium support system, an idea embraced by GOP presidential nominee Governor Mitt Romney and rejected by President Obama. Under the proposed change, the federal government would provide people on Medicare a fixed amount of money that could be applied toward the cost of health insurance purchased either from private insurers or the traditional Medicare program. The data note outlines historical trends in public opinion on the issue, reviews recent results and examines possible reasons for variation in the findings of different polls.
Transforming Medicare into a Premium Support System: Implications for Beneficiary Premiums September 30, 2012 Report This study illustrates why geography would matter for Medicare beneficiaries under a premium support system that relies on a competitive bidding process envisioned under several key Medicare reform proposals. It examines potential changes in the premiums paid by Medicare beneficiaries under a payment approach that caps federal contributions per beneficiary…
Restructuring Medicare’s Benefit Design: Implications for Beneficiaries and Spending October 31, 2011 Report Several deficit-reduction plans have proposed combining Medicare’s separate deductibles for hospital and physician services, standardizing cost sharing across types of benefits, and establishing a new limit on annual out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries. A new Kaiser Family Foundation study examines the potential implications of proposals to revamp Medicare’s cost-sharing requirements as…
Inside Deficit Reduction: What It Means for Medicare October 11, 2011 Event Proposals to generate Medicare savings abound, from the various commissions recommending change, members of Congress and others. Which proposals will, or should receive serious considerations by the Congressional super committee in its quest to find $1.2 trillion or more in savings by its November 23 deadline? What impact would these…
Medicare Part D 2011 Data Spotlights September 30, 2011 Report The Kaiser Family Foundation has issued a collection of analyses related to the Medicare Part D stand-alone drug plan options available to seniors for calendar year 2011. These spotlights focuses on key aspects of the drug plan choices available and relevant trends since the Medicare drug benefit took effect in…
Raising Medicare’s Age of Eligibility to 67 Would Achieve Significant Savings, But Shift Costs To 65- and 66-Year-Olds, Other Individuals, Employers and Medicaid, New Analysis Shows July 18, 2011 News Release Study Estimates Two in Three People Ages 65 and 66 Would Pay $2,200 More On Average For Health Care in 2014 Than They Would If They Remained in Medicare MENLO PARK, Calif. — Raising Medicare’s eligibility age from 65 to 67 in 2014 would generate an estimated $5.7 billion in…
What’s in the Stars? Quality Ratings of Medicare Advantage Plans, 2010 November 29, 2009 Issue Brief NEW: Foundation brief looks at implications of 2011 quality ratings for Medicare Advantage plans. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rates the relative quality of the private plans that are offered to Medicare beneficiaries through the Medicare Advantage program as a way of aiding beneficiaries who are considering…
Medicare Part D 2010 Data Spotlights August 31, 2010 Issue Brief The Kaiser Family Foundation has issued a collection of analyses related to the Part D Medicare stand-alone drug plan options available to seniors for calendar year 2010. Each of these spotlights focuses on a key aspect of the drug plans that will be available to Medicare beneficiaries in 2010 and…