The majority of fee-for-service Medicare and Medicare Advantage members largely don't understand their coverage policies, leading to the widespread risk of enrollees who are in plans that don't fit their health or financial needs, according to a new report from Sage Growth Partners.
The July 11 survey was commissioned by Nashville, Tenn.-based Healthpilot and said the problem will continue unless health plan options become less confusing or seniors employ better advisers and tools to navigate Medicare policies every year.
Five key takeaways:
- While 75 percent of individuals said they are able to choose the best Medicare policy for them, 80 percent could not identify basic components of Medicare and 69 percent could not identify components of Medicare Advantage.
- Medicare advertising strongly or somewhat overwhelms 63 percent of survey respondents.
- Thirty percent of respondents feel that they are able to easily access the information they need to make good decisions about their policy.
- Individuals said their top drivers behind selecting a plan were prescription drug coverage (83 percent), their physicians are in network (81 percent) and pharmacy coverage (74 percent).
- Only 39 percent of members review different policy options every year.
The survey took place in April and included 1,142 Medicare-eligible individuals aged 64 and up. More than 80 percent of respondents were covered under Medicare or Medicare Advantage plans.