Medicare Advantage getting more expensive

Experts at Avalere and elsewhere attribute the increased premiums to rising health care and drug costs. The insurance industry also blames cuts in government payments to Medicare Advantage plans, which were reduced by approximately 4 percent after federal laws were changed in 2006 and 2008.

On a positive note, as part of health care reform, “The law freezes 2011 county benchmarks for Medicare Advantage at the 2010 levels, resulting in flattened payments for MA plans starting in 2011. The 2010 Advance Notice will need to be modified to reflect the new law.”