Seniors, stakeholders, and lawmakers urge CMS to keep Medicare Advantage payments flat next year
A new video from AHIP’s Coalition for Medicare Choices (CMC) highlights months of activity by seniors, a broad array of health care stakeholders and experts, and a bipartisan group of over 270 lawmakers to protect Medicare Advantage beneficiaries from a proposed 5.9 percent cut to the program. Click on the image below to watch the new video:
The video notes more than 56,000 seniors made phone calls and over 1,400 wrote letters to Congress. Seniors also engaged on social media and published opinion pieces to protect their benefits. “Seniors aren’t the only ones taking action,” the new video says. Over 172 organizations—representing employers, consumers, providers, and stakeholders— have written letters to the Medicare agency expressing concern about proposed cuts to the program. “Members of Congress have heard these concerns,” the video notes. A bipartisan group of over 270 legislators have defended Medicare Advantage in floor speeches, letters to CMS, on social media, and in op-eds. Final Medicare Advantage payment rates will be announced on April 7, 2014. Seniors are following this issue closely and will be watching to see if Washington protects them from further cuts to their Medicare Advantage benefits.
The coalition has been highlighting stories from beneficiaries about why it is important to protect Medicare Advantage. You can view the “Senior Spotlight” series on the coalition’s Tumblr and Facebook page. Seniors will see the impact of any new payment cuts in late October 2014, when they begin enrolling in their 2015 Medicare Advantage coverage.
The CMC launched an advocacy campaign to urge the Medicare agency to protect seniors by maintaining current Medicare Advantage payment rates for 2015. The campaign includes television, digital, print, and display advertising in key markets around the country and in Washington, D.C. and grassroots mobilization of CMC’s 1.5 million Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. To learn more, visit www.MedicareChoices.org, check out the CMC’s new Tumblr page, and follow the coalition on Twitter (@ProtectMyMA) and Facebook.