From 2011 to 2020, the Veterans Health Administration spent $78 billion to care for U.S. military veterans enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, raising questions about federal overpayments to those private plans.
That's according to an analysis by researchers from Brown University and the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Published in JAMA , the study notes that because Medicare Advantage plans receive fixed per-patient payments for health care services without having payments reduced when veterans receive care through the Veterans Health Administration, the dual enrollment of some veterans may result in more federal spending than is necessary. When the federal government pays for care through the Veterans Health Administration and pays Medicare Advantage plans the full amount, it may mean the government is paying twice for the care of the same beneficiaries.
These potential overpayments could correspond to substantial additional spending by the federal government." David Meyers, study author, assistant professor of health services, policy and practice, Brown University's School of Public Health The Medicare Advantage program is the privately run arm of the Medicare program, in which private insurance plans are paid by the federal government to deliver Medicare benefits, Meyers said. The Medicare Advantage program is growing rapidly, and the number of military veterans who used Veterans Health Administration services increased by 63% from 634,470 in 2011 to 1,033,6.
