Bera urges Administration to stop proposed Medicare Advantage cuts
Congressman Ami Bera, M.D. joined 27 of his colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius urging her to reverse course and reconsider proposed cuts to Medicare Advantage to ensure that the critical program in sustainable for seniors.
“As a doctor, I know firsthand how critical strengthening Medicare is for our seniors, said Bera. “Medicare Advantage plans cover 44 percent of Medicare recipients in Sacramento County, nearly 100,000 seniors, and deliver improved health outcomes while bringing down costs. We need to do what’s right, keep the promises we’ve made to our seniors, and ensure this critical program is there for the people who need it.”
Read the full text of the letter:
Dear Secretary Sebelius,
We write today on behalf of the millions of seniors we represent to strongly urge your immediate action to reconsider the proposed changes in the 2015 Advance Notice on payments for beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. We believe that these provisions will have a severe and negative impact on the beneficiaries who depend on these plans, threatening benefits, provider access, and plan options.
Medicare Advantage continues to offer seniors and individuals with disabilities additional choices for high quality and coordinated care in their communities. With a focus on innovative services, prevention and disease management, MA plans have consistently delivered improved health outcomes while containing costs and requiring smaller co-payments or deductibles from beneficiaries. Further consistent with the goals of your agency, these plans reduce hospitalizations and readmissions, decrease the length of stay in nursing facilities and manage high-risk, high-need patients more effectively.
We urge you to take the necessary actions to keep MA payment rates stable in 2014. Since the proposal to cut rates, we have heard an outcry of concern from our constituents who rely on this program. And at a time of great transition in health care coverage across our country, we must ensure that seniors and individuals with disabilities have access to quality care on which they can depend.
We urge you to reverse course and keep Medicare Advantage rates level to ensure the sustainability of this critical program.
Sincerely,
Ami Bera
Member of Congress
Patrick E. Murphy
Member of Congress
Ron Barber
Member of Congress
John Barrow
Member of Congress
Tim Bishop
Member of Congress
Marsha Blackburn
Member of Congress
Julia Brownley
Member of Congress
Cheri Bustos
Member of Congress
Tony Cárdenas
Member of Congress
William Enyart
Member of Congress
Lois Frankel
Member of Congress
Trent Franks
Member of Congress
Pete Gallego
Member of Congress
Joe Garcia
Member of Congress
Chris Gibson
Member of Congress
Joe Heck
Member of Congress
Lynn Jenkins
Member of Congress
David Joyce
Member of Congress
Ann Kirkpatrick
Member of Congress
Ann M. Kuster
Member of Congress
Sean Patrick Maloney
Member of Congress
Jim Matheson
Member of Congress
Scott Peters
Member of Congress
Linda Sánchez
Member of Congress
Brad Schneider
Member of Congress
Kurt Schrader
Member of Congress
Kyrsten Sinema
Member of Congress
Eric Swalwell
Member of Congress
Steve Womack
Member of Congress