Medicare Advantage must be funded
In a few short months, policymakers will decide the financial fate of the Medicare Advantage program and its millions of members. While the program is not in any danger of disappearing altogether, even the smallest funding decreases could leave Alabama’s seniors and seniors nationwide scrambling to pay billions of dollars more via increased premiums and out-of-pocket costs.
This is a critical moment for Alabama’s vulnerable seniors and their ability to access the long-term, affordable health care they need.
As a state representative, I want to encourage our congressional delegation to do everything in their power to prevent potential Medicare Advantage cuts from happening and to protect the health and wellness of our seniors.
With an affordable health care program like Medicare Advantage as part of their aging plan, Alabama’s seniors are able to access critical baseline health care needs such as doctor appointments, specialist care, and prescription drugs, all at low or no cost.
These, along with Medicare Advantage’s robust preventative and wellness care programs, help seniors to maintain good health and figure out medical concerns while they are still easily treatable. Our seniors shouldn’t have to be afraid of not being able to meet the financial cost of treating life-threatening illnesses, or even the standard aches and pains that occur as a natural part of aging for all of us.
Imagine the crushing anxiety of seniors when they hear that policymakers are once again considering cuts to Medicare Advantage. For beneficiaries, these discussions are not theoretical but a lived reality and come with reallife impacts that threaten to damage the quality of their day-to-day lives and finances.
Adequate Medicare Advantage funding ensures senior members’ access to doctor visits, specialist care, and affordable prescription drugs, and also provides them with extended benefits at no additional cost. Extended benefits include dental check-ups, vision care, mental health counseling, and in-home care for rural members and those with chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease who may not be able to travel for medical care.
Our federal lawmakers have a great track record of protecting seniors and I know they will continue to do so by fighting for Medicare Advantage. We must ensure the program receives the robust funding it needs to continue and even expand its many programs and benefits. We must ensure the program remains stable and able to retain the high levels of trust it has earned from its members by providing reliable access to affordable health care.
Without the necessary funding to continue to operate at this high level, the Medicare Advantage program will be forced to cut basic health care services, as well as supplemental offerings, including critical home care services for housebound and rural beneficiaries, many of whom have no other health care options to turn to.
As someone who cares deeply about this state and its people, I encourage lawmakers to consider the ramifications of reducing Medicare Advantage funding and to carefully consider how those cuts would negatively impact the lives of Medicare Advantage members.
Alabama’s seniors are relying on us to do the right thing.
Ed Oliver has served 81st District as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives since 2018.
