The COVID-19 Response: Differences in Medicare Advantage and Fee-For-Service Medicare in Meeting Beneficiary and Provider Needs
This white paper, conducted by Health Management Associates (HMA) and commissioned by Better Medicare Alliance, evaluates the Medicare Advantage community’s response to COVID-19 and key differences in Medicare Advantage and fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare’s abilities to meet beneficiary and provider needs.
The report is based on an extensive review of more than 70 publications and public data spanning the length of the ongoing pandemic and was supplemented by 18 in-depth interviews with Medicare Advantage plans and health care provider organizations.
Findings show that capitated payment arrangements in Medicare Advantage offered key flexibilities and financial support to providers facing revenue losses as patient visit volumes declined in the first months of the public health emergency.
HMA’s research goes on to explain how Medicare Advantage’s faster transition to telehealth and its leveraging of supplemental benefit offerings helped keep beneficiaries safe in the home and supported providers’ efforts to deliver safe, effective care during the pandemic.