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Research tells us that Medicare Advantage provides savings for taxpayers. Other stats show that it is driving better health outcomes. Now, a new AHIP study shows Medicare Advantage also has better preventive treatment for the seniors and people with disabilities that rely on it.
Medicare Advantage outperformed original Medicare in 10-of-11 preventive measures, meaning that the program is better in using federal taxpayer dollars and at delivering high-quality care for millions of Americans.
The findings, explained: There are performance measures that are widely used across the health care system to quantify how good health plans are at caring for patients. The study focused on 11 of these quality measures that are related to preventive and chronic disease care and apply to Medicare patients.
The study found that Medicare Advantage scored higher than original Medicare on all but one of the measures.
Enrollees in Medicare Advantage plans were more likely to complete treatments, like a course of beta-blockers after a heart attack and statin therapy for cardiovascular disease. They were also more likely to receive treatments, like disease-modifying drugs for rheumatoid arthritis, management for osteoporosis with fractures, and corticosteroids for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The standout stat: Cancer screenings. Overall, a higher share of Medicare Advantage enrollees were screened for breast cancer than in original Medicare (73.3% vs. 69.9%) and colorectal cancer (38.9% vs. 33.1%).
The bottom line: More preventive and chronic disease care can mean problems are treated earlier, leading to fewer trips to the hospital and overall healthier people.
These findings are further evidence that Medicare Advantage plans deliver high quality care even as they continue to achieve greater cost efficiency. We know that this matters for policymakers and health insurance providers working to strengthen the program — and especially for the 32 million people (including an increasing number of minorities and low-income patients) that choose these plans to access treatment and care.