Better Medicare Alliance and Allies Urge CMS to Delay Medicare Advantage Changes

​Last Tuesday, the Better Medicare Alliance (BMA) and dozens of groups representing millions of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries called on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to delay proposed changes to Medicare Advantage. More time for review and evaluation the impact of the proposal is needed before changes are implemented, the groups urged.

CMS released the Advance Notice of Methodological Changes for Calendar Year 2024 for Medicare Advantage (MA) Capitation Rates and Part C and Part D Payment Policies on February 1, with significant  changes to Medicare Advantage’s coding and risk adjustment model. According to BMA and their partners, the 5-week comment period was insufficient to properly study the impact on the 30 million seniors and individuals with disabilities enrolled in MA plans.
 
“CMS’ proposed changes to the risk adjustment model in this notice are likely to have significant impacts on the program with potentially disproportionate negative impacts on people with some chronic diseases and disabilities,” said Randall Rutta, CEO of the National Health Council. “Given the short timeframe for analysis, it is difficult for the patient community to fully analyze and comprehend the potential consequences.”
 
“CMS should extend the deadline for implementation, and in the meantime, work with stake holders to project potential impacts on providers and patients prior to removing codes from the HCC model,” said Jerry Penso, M.D., MBA, President & CEO of the American Medical Group Association.
 
To read the letter and excerpts from more than a dozen other organization’s letters, click here.