Impact of Increased Financial Assistance to Medicare Advantage Plans

Title
Impact of Increased Financial Assistance to Medicare Advantage Plans
Project Officer(s)
Melissa Montgomery
Start Date
End Date
Award
Task Order (RADSTO)
Description
Section 211(g) of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) requires that the Secretary of Health and Human Services report to Congress, no later than July 1, 2006, on the impact of additional funding provided under MMA and other Acts including the Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999 and the Beneficiary Improvement and Protection Act of 2000 and on the availability of Medicare advantage (MA) plans in different areas and the impact on lowering premiums and increasing benefits under such plans. The purpose of this project is to develop and implement a monitoring system with key indicators of health plan performance. Key indicators, both nationwide and within market areas, will be used to support the Report to Congress. In 2006, extensive program-wide changes (e.g., regional plans, competitive programs, and the Part D drug benefit) were implemented. CMS exercised the contract option to continue to monitor the MA program. The option phase of the contract focused on the post-MMA years (2006 through 2008), in which, RTI examined plan availability, participation, plan premiums, benefits cost sharing, and enrollment.
Funding
$1,249,917.00
Principal Investigator(s)
Gregory Pope
Project Number
500-00-0024/0017
Status
The Report to Congress has been completed and can be found at the following website: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/reports/downloads/Pope.pdf. The 2006 Final Report on Medicare Advantage Plan Availability, Premiums and Benefits, and Beneficiary Enrollment has been completed and can be found at the following website: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/Reports/Downloads/Pope_FAMA_2007.pdf. The 2007 and 2008 MA Monitoring Reports are in progress. Data issues which required additional work occurred on both reports. CMS finalized these reports in late Spring 2010.
Awardee Address

P.O. Box 12194, 3040 Cornwallis Road
Research, Triangle Park,
United States

Awardee Name
Research Triangle Institute, (NC)