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For those of us HD readers who have warned against the problems in using Medicare Advanatge (MA), you may want to read an op-ed published in the The Hill on Sunday. Former Republican Rep. Jim Greenwood of Pennsylvania, who helped write the Medicare Modernization Act that created Medicare Advantage, stated directly: “The program no longer lives up to [its] promise.”
Greenwood once believed private competition would drive innovation and efficiency. But today, he says, MA has been overtaken by “a handful of massive insurers who are gaming the rules for profit.” Overpayments, cherry-picking, and risk-score manipulation are now “endemic.” “It pains me to say this, but the system we helped create is being abused. And it’s not just hurting taxpayers. It’s hurting patients.” “Seniors… are too often finding out — at the worst possible time — that their plan won’t cover what they need.”
While Greenwood still believes there is a place for private-sector involvement in Medicare, he now calls for rigorous oversight, transparency, and enforcement. He also warns against insurers’ predictable scare tactics whenever reform is on the table.
According to Wikipedia “Greenwood announced in the midst of the 2004 congressional election that he would not seek re-election and retire. He had already won the 8th district’s Republican primary, and his abrupt withdrawal raised many questions . . . After serving six terms in Congress, Greenwood was appointed president and CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), a biotechnology trade association based in Washington, DC.”
I’m no fan of Medicare Advantage but some 22 years later, Mr. Greenwood suddenly admits “the program no longer lives up to that promise,” but still believes “that private-sector participation can play a meaningful role in Medicare.”
Pardon me if I find his doe-eyed mea culpa a little late and a little weak. He’s working an angle and I’d prefer it if everyone would just stop wasting my time by propagating his copy.
And what course of action do Greenwood and other MA critics recommend for MA plan members?
Prepare to pay higher premiums?
That’s correct. Under a fair playing field MA is not sustainable at current premium and benefit levels.