DV Journal

When President Joe Biden took office, he embarked on a multi-trillion-dollar spending spree. It contributed mightily to an inflation spike of 9.1 percent in June 2022, the highest rate in more than 40 years.

In response, the Biden administration hit the panic button, only to come up with an even worse solution: Another multi-trillion-dollar spending spree. This time, the president rebranded a bloated package of bills that Democrats had already been struggling to pass, christening it the “Inflation Reduction Act.”

That wishful name certainly didn’t stop inflation, which is headed upward again this year. What it did do is deliver a slew of economically illiterate Democratic priorities, including several that were sold to the public as ways to lower healthcare costs for patients.

But the real-world impacts of the now two-year-old law tell a different story.

Case in point: monthly premiums for Medicare Part D. Part D is the insurance program that provides prescription drug coverage to more than 50 million older Americans. The IRA made structural changes to Part D that have caused premiums to skyrocket. These massive price hikes are likely to cancel out much — if not all — of the “savings” seniors were promised.

Seniors have seen a 21 percent increase, on average, in premiums for standalone prescription drug plans in 2024. And at three major Medicare insurance providers — Cigna, Humana, and Aetna — premiums have gone up by 33 percent to 57 percent in a single year. It would certainly upset family finances if the cost of groceries or gasoline went up that much in just 12 months, and health insurance is no different.

Worse, in 2025, Medicare premiums will almost certainly get even more expensive as the administration’s new policies take full effect. One analysis projects a staggering increase of nearly 50 percent next year.

This kind of hit to household budgets would be hard to bear at any time, but this moment is especially inopportune. Older people have watched their savings accounts shrink in value after multiple years of inflation. And many live on fixed incomes, so they’re among the hardest hit by the rising cost of living. It’s no wonder that high monthly premiums are among enrollees’ top complaints about Medicare, along with cost-sharing requirements for doctor visits and other medical charges.

The tragic irony of the IRA “reforms” is that aside from concerns about price, Medicare patients are generally satisfied with the program. They enjoy having the flexibility to choose among a variety of Part D plans. But the number of standalone plans has fallen to an all-time low, which means some seniors will struggle to find one that fits their needs and offers an affordable premium.  In short, through bad policy and deceptive rhetoric, Democrats are making Medicare less popular and more expensive.

Clearly, Biden’s strategy for lowering healthcare costs isn’t working. His administration should rip it up and start again.

Medicare Advantage is the best bet for seniors looking at their options as the open enrollment period begins, according to a new study published by the “Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Health Forum.”Medicare Advantage, also known as Medicare Part C, gives seniors a choice about how to get their medical services delivered over the traditional fee-for-service Medicare plan. According to the JAMA study, that choice also gives seniors better value and better care.

Examining data from nearly two million Medicare beneficiaries, the JAMA-published study concluded that “those enrolled in MA had lower rates of hospital stays, emergency department visits, and 30-day readmissions.” Additionally, the study noted that “[a]mong Medicare beneficiaries with complex care needs, those enrolled in MA had lower rates of acute care utilization, suggesting that managed care activities in MA may influence the nature and quality of care provided to these beneficiaries.”

Medicare Advantage provides health care plans offered by approved private coverage providers. Unlike government-run fee-for-service Medicare, Medicare Advantage plans can cover additional services that seniors rely on and depend upon, such as prescription drugs and routine eye and dental care.

The option currently enjoys broad backing in the halls of Congress, with 63 members of the U.S. Senate signing a letter on the program’s behalf.

“We write to express bipartisan support for the Medicare Advantage program and the high-quality, affordable care it provides to over 27 million older adults and people with disabilities,” the letter read, signed by members as ideologically diverse as Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.)

In September, the House of Representatives passed a bill on a voice vote to make it easier for seniors using MA to get approval for treatment and prescriptions.

Traditional fee-for-service Medicare does not limit seniors’ out-of-pocket costs and copays. As a result, beneficiaries pay nearly $2,000 more per year in total healthcare-related costs than those enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans.

Because Medicare Advantage relies on the private sector, some more progressive politicians oppose the option and have tried to limit its expansion or even kill it entirely. The progressive magazine “The American Prospect” wrote about Medicare advantage, and their opposition to it, in a piece headlined “The Dark History of Medicare Privatization.”

Some members of Congress have urged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) to protect eligible Medicare beneficiaries who might be subject to aggressive and potentially predatory marketing tactics related to the sale of Medicare Advantage plans or other insurance products.

However, based on the data, it appears seniors are satisfied with both the coverage and the quality of care received.

According to the non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation, Medicare Advantage enrollment has doubled over the last 15 years. Currently, 32 percent of Medicare-eligible Granite State seniors choose Medicare Advantage over traditional fee-for-service Medicare.

Reports from the Better Medicare Alliance, a research and advocacy group, indicate 95 percent of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are satisfied with their network of care and a full 88 percent say Medicare Advantage gives them more flexibility and choice.

A separate study published by JAMA found Medicare Advantage beneficiaries received 9.2 percent fewer “costly, potentially harmful” low-value services than fee-for-service Medicare enrollees. In other words, Medicare Advantage beneficiaries received better-quality care.

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