WASHINGTON, D.C. 鈥� (November 8, 2023) 鈥� More than 31.5 million seniors and people with disabilities choose Medicare Advantage (MA) because it delivers better services, better access to care, and better value. A new published by Harvard Medical School and Inovalon shows that Medicare Advantage enrollees have fewer readmissions, fewer preventable hospitalizations, and lower rates of high-risk medication use than people in original Medicare.
The Harvard-Inovalon Medicare Study compared health and quality of care outcomes for Medicare Advantage enrollees versus those in original Medicare. After controlling for socioeconomic and patient characteristics, the study found:
- Avoidable hospitalizations in original Medicare were 1.7 times higher than in Medicare Advantage
- Original Medicare readmissions were 3.8 times higher than Medicare Advantage
- Rates of inappropriate high-risk medication use were 1.4 times higher in original Medicare than Medicare Advantage
The study relied on a sample of 50,512 individuals enrolled in original Medicare and 10,158 individuals enrolled in Medicare Advantage. It adjusted for pre-existing differences between the two populations, such as different demographic, clinical and social risk factors.
Medicare Advantage serves a diverse population of Americans鈥攁bout half of all racial and ethnic minorities eligible for Medicare choose Medicare Advantage and 56% of the program鈥檚 enrollees are women. In rural counties, . Medicare Advantage plans have the flexibility to offer expanded access to telehealth services and supplemental benefits such as grocery deliveries and rides to and from doctors鈥� appointments.
Medicare Advantage is a prime example of the government and free market working together to deliver better services, better access to care, and better value.
Click to view the Harvard-Inovalon Medicare Study.
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