Seniors on Medicare Advantage Less Likely to Have Issues Paying Medical Bills: CDC Study

A study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that seniors on traditional Medicare were more likely to be in families that have difficulties paying medical bills compared to Medicare Advantage (MA) beneficiaries, reports FierceHealthcare . However, MA beneficiaries also were more likely to struggle with medical bills than those covered by private insurance. The CDC estimated that the percentage of people in families that had a problem paying a medical bill declined from nearly 20 percent in 2011 to 14 percent in 2018. Among adults 65 and over, the numbers of people in families with problems paying a medical bill in the past year were 12.4 percent in Medicare only and 12.3 percent for Medicare and Medicaid enrollees. Yet 8.3 percent of people on MA and 5.6 percent on private coverage were in families that had trouble paying medical bills. The gap between private coverage and people on Medicare or MA widened among adults 75 and older, of whom 10 percent in traditional Medicare were in families with problems paying their medical bills — while 7.2 percent were MA beneficiaries. However, just 4.2 percent of those with private coverage reported the same. MA advocates claimed the study proves that the program yields cost savings.