What Are Major Payers Offering Medicare Advantage Members in 2024?
Health Payer Intelligence / By Victoria Bailey
- As Medicare’s open enrollment period approaches, payers have announced new Medicare Advantage plan offerings for 2024.
Because Medicare Advantage plans receive flexibility to cover benefits beyond the traditional Medicare offerings, plans have an opportunity to differentiate themselves from their competitors with new benefits. In their 2024 offerings, major payers prioritized $0 monthly premiums, low-cost prescription drug coverage, and benefits addressing social determinants of health.
UnitedHealthcare, Humana, Cigna, and Aetna represent 18.3 million members and 60 percent of the Medicare Advantage market, according to estimates from KFF. Their new benefits provide insight into what payers are prioritizing in senior healthcare and their growing footprints can affect the Medicare Advantage payer landscape and consumers’ plan options.
UnitedHealthcare
UnitedHealthcare is expanding its coverage area to reach 96 percent of all Medicare beneficiaries.
The payer currently offers an online hub members can use to access their benefits and manage their appointments. The UCard is integrated with UnitedHealthcare’s member website and mobile app. Members can use the UCard to check in at an in-network provider’s office or pharmacy and can spend rewards in-store or online.
In 2024, the payer will introduce new benefits that make it easier for members to shop with their UCard. A mobile product scanner will allow members to confirm benefit eligibility for covered products when shopping in-store. A mobile UCard will allow merchants to scan a barcode for payment when a member is ready to check out.
The payer has also expanded its reach to an additional 700,000 people eligible for Medicare Advantage plans in 110 new counties and 2.7 million additional people eligible for UnitedHealthcare’s chronic special needs plans.
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Like many Medicare Advantage plans, UnitedHealthcare will continue offering dental, hearing, and vision coverage. In addition to having the largest Medicare Advantage network for medical providers, the payer boasts the largest national dental network, one of the largest national vision and hearing provider and retail networks, and one of the largest pharmacy networks.
In 2024, members will have stable or lower maximum out-of-pocket costs compared to 2023, according to the payer. In addition, standard Medicare Advantage plans will offer $0 copays for virtual visits, mammograms and colonoscopies, and routine dental, vision, and hearing exams…
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