As we look forward to the year 2024, it’s natural to wonder what changes will occur in the Medicare Advantage landscape. After all, Medicare Advantage has been expanding rapidly and currently covers over one-third of all Medicare beneficiaries. If you’re thinking about enrolling in a Medicare Advantage plans 2024, here’s a guide to help you understand what you can expect in 2024.
Coverage for Telehealth: With recent developments in technology, telehealth is becoming an increasingly popular option for healthcare delivery. Medicare Advantage plans are expected to grow in popularity and offer extensive coverage for telehealth services such as telemedicine, virtual consultations, and remote monitoring. Whether you’re dealing with minor health issues or complex medical conditions, you can receive the medical attention you need from the comfort of your own home.
Comprehensive Chronic Care Coverage: Medicare Advantage plans currently offer a wide range of benefits, including routine eye and dental exams, fitness programs, and preventive care services. In 2024, we can expect an increased focus on chronic care benefits, which is becoming a vital component of healthcare. Chronic health conditions such as diabetes and heart disease are prevalent amongst seniors, and adequate care can help to prevent complications. Medicare Advantage plans in 2024 will offer comprehensive chronic care management to give beneficiaries an improved quality of life.
More Personalized Care: Medicare Advantage plans in 2024 will focus on delivering care that is customized to meet individual needs. The availability of data analytic tools will fuel health plans to develop a better understanding of their beneficiaries’ health needs via population health management. Scalable platforms intend to be deployed to improve patient health management across multiple sites of service delivery to reduce the gaps in care.
Reduced Out-of-Pocket Expenses: Medicare Advantage plans currently offer lower out-of-pocket costs compared to Original Medicare. Nevertheless, plan members in traditional Medicare enjoy the freedom to choose any doctor that accepts Medicare. To retain enrollees, more providers plan to offer Medicare Advantage plans that provide broader networks of providers. By 2024, beneficiaries will enjoy even lower cost-sharing and out-of-pocket expenses for inpatient and outpatient services than they do now.
Focus on Closing the Health Equity Gap: There has been a policy push to improve health equity, particularly in Medicare Advantage plans. Reducing the gap of health access and outcomes amongst different groups of beneficiaries could improve the health of communities that are most at-risk, such as ethnic and racial minorities. In the efforts to bridge the health equity gap and enforce payment reforms, CMS intends to increase performance measures to capture equity measures, emphasizing determination of payments.
Conclusion: To sum up, the Medicare Advantage landscape is set to change in many ways in 2024, providing improved healthcare coverage and scaled-up patient-centered models of care delivery, Medicare beneficiaries are in for a treat in 2024, with more personalized care, comprehensive chronic care coverage, reduced out-of-pocket expenses, and improved outcomes for minorities. If you’re considering enrolling in a Medicare Advantage plan, we hope this guide has provided you with useful insights into what to expect in 2024. Always do research on all plans before making your decision to ensure that you select the best plan for your needs.