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Was struck today that I have heard very little about the role of Medigap in the current health insurance debate…despite massive discussion of Medicare, Medicare Advantage, payment reform…etc. In addition, it highlights how difficult it is to sort through the tangled web of money and influence…not sure how much I believe it, but its certainly food for thought.
This thought was triggered by Michelle Milkin’s post on AARP’s dependance on royalties from selling sponsored insurance plans:
A Hill source summed it up for me this way: “AARP has endorsed a huge reduction in funding of Medicare Advantage, which touches over 10 million middle-lower income seniors. If Medicare Advantage funding is reduced, and seniors are forced out of the program, they become potential buyers of the heavily-promoted and very profitable Medicare Supplement program sponsored by AARP (MediGap is 70% of AARP’s annual income). Medicare Supplement is a huge source of revenue to AARP. At a minimum, AARP should be required to disclose this every time they discuss Medicare Advantage.
