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Senator Claire McCaskill to hold Senate Aging Committee Hearing in St. Louis… Hearing will investigate unscrupulous insurance practices aimed at seniors in the state

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Missourians over the age of sixty-five rely on Medicare to ensure they receive top-notch health care, but insurance companies in the state may be putting profits first. U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill will hold a hearing of the Senate Special Committee on Aging on Monday, June 30 to investigate the aggressive sales and marketing of Medicare Advantage insurance policies. 

The hearing is entitled “What Seniors Don't Know Before They Enroll - Aggressive Sales of MA Plans in Missouri”.

Medicare Advantage allows seniors to receive Medicare benefits through a private company, but the program frequently results in costing seniors more out-of-pocket and often requires them to drive long distances to receive care, hitting low-income and rural seniors hardest.  

Their access to the services, doctors and hospitals they need may be lost while a confusing fee structure leaves them paying more than they can afford. Because of federal pre-emption laws there is little the state can do to protect them.

Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans, however, has increased rapidly, growing over 11 percent nationally in the last six months alone. 

Special needs plans, marketed to individuals suffering from chronic and debilitating conditions, are growing quickly as well. 

any seniors across Missouri are enrolled in Medicare Advantage programs. For example, in St. Louis County and St. Louis City, 25% percent of eligible seniors are enrolled in a Medicare Advantage program. 

On the other side of the state, in Jackson County 27% or seniors are enrolled and in Greene County, 30% of seniors are enrolled.

Reports indicate that insurance companies selling Medicare Advantage, including those that operate in Missouri, use aggressive and at times deceptive marketing to convince seniors to enroll in their plans. 

McCaskill’s office has received reports from health care providers, the state health insurance assistance program and the MO Department of Insurance that some sales agents are encouraging seniors to enroll in programs that don’t match their needs. 

As a result, some Medicare Advantage enrollees are foregoing health services because of the higher co-payments or the cost of traveling long distances to receive care. 

In a hearing to be held at the St. Louis Senior Center, McCaskill will question witnesses, including a senior who was misled into enrolling in an unsuitable Medicare Advantage program.

State Senator Wes Shoemyer, who has championed this issue on the state level, officials from the Missouri Department of Insurance, and an insurance company official that sells this type of health insurance plan will testify as well.

A full list of witnesses is available below. 

Monday, June 30,  2008 - Medicare Advantage Field Hearing

WHO:  U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill

Senate Special Committee on Aging

WHAT:                 Senate Special Committee on Aging Field Hearing investigating Medicare Advantage policies in Missouri

WHEN:                 9:00 A.M. CT

Monday, June 30, 2008

WHERE: St. Louis Senior Center

5602 Arsenal

St. Louis, MO 63139