Are Medicare Advantage extras worth $86 billion?

Medicare Advantage plans, as part of their appeal to Medicare recipients, offer “extra” or ancillary benefits, including dental, vision, and hearing, which are not covered by original Medicare. Some plans, not all, have the SilverSneakers program, which is reimbursed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).  These “goodies” are what draw people to Medicare Advantage plans, but are those individuals using them? Or are they simply a waste of taxpayers’ money? Beth Pinsker, writing for MarketWatch, looks at whether taxpayers are wasting $86 billion in these Medicare Advantage plans “extra” benefits. Read Ms. Pinsker’s article here…

Notice: The link provided above connects readers to the full content of the posted article. The URL (internet address) for this link is valid on the posted date; medicarereport.org cannot guarantee the duration of the link’s validity. Also, the opinions expressed in these postings are the viewpoints of the original source and are not explicitly endorsed by AMAC, Inc.; the AMAC Foundation, Inc.; or medicarereport.org.