Medicare Advantage Outperforms Traditional Medicare on Cost Protections for Low- and Modest-Income Populations
Better Medicare Alliance March 2021
Medicare Advantage provides critical cost protections to beneficiaries relative to Traditional FFS Medicare, while maintaining quality and access to care. This is particularly true for financially vulnerable beneficiaries, who tend to prefer Medicare Advantage over Traditional FFS Medicare, and who are less likely to be cost burdened when enrolled in Medicare Advantage.
This analysis also demonstrates that beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage and Traditional FFS Medicare are clinically and functionally similar. Despite these similarities, beneficiaries in Medicare Advantage report lower out-of-pocket spending ($1,640 lower on average) and lower health care cost burden.
As policymakers consider opportunities to enhance care and protections for Medicare beneficiaries, they should consider the important role that Medicare Advantage plays in easing financial burden for beneficiaries.
