Switching between Medicare Advantage plans has become more popular in recent years, particularly for enrollees who are dually eligible for Medicaid, according to a study published Sept. 9 in the American Journal of Managed Care.
The research relied on administrative enrollment data, looking at the 2016-to-2022 period.
Compared with beneficiaries who only have Medicare, dually eligible beneficiaries may have greater disease burden, according to background cited in the study. They also have more flexibility to switch plans throughout the year.
Here are six takeaways from the study:
- From 2016 to 2022, fully dually eligible, partially dually eligible and non-dually eligible beneficiaries who voluntarily switched between MA plans increased from 12.49% to 22.49%, 17.36% to 30.11% and 9.92% to 13.39%, respectively.
- However, moves to traditional Medicare remain limited: 3.73% of FDE, 1.62% of PDE and 0.91% of NDE beneficiaries transitioned to traditional Medicare in 2022.
- FDE beneficiaries who were at least 86 years old were 1.8 percentage points more likely to transition to traditional Medicare, while they were 7.46 percentage points less likely to switch within MA, compared to those younger than 65 years old. Those under 65 may qualify for Medicare if they have specific conditions.
- Both kinds of switching — MA to MA and MA to traditional Medicare — were lower for older PDE and NDE beneficiaries.
- Among FDE beneficiaries in 2022, non-Hispanic white beneficiaries switched MA plans at a lower rate than Black, Hispanic and American Indian/Alaska Native beneficiaries.
- In each dual-eligibility category, switching between MA and traditional Medicare was more common among the highest-risk enrollees than the lowest-risk ones.
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