Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) urged the administration on Thursday to reverse cuts to Medicare Advantage health plans serving more than 54,000 seniors in Sarasota and Manatee counties.
Buchanan, a member of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, spoke at a hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee on the future of Medicare Advantage, warning that future cuts could be harmful to seniors who could lose their plans, benefits and trusted doctors, according to a press release.
“I’m very concerned about these cuts and the impact it will have on our seniors,” Buchanan said.
More than $300 billion was cut from Medicare Advantage by the Affordable Care Act to fund new entitlement spending. Eighty percent of the cuts will begin to take effect in 2015 and will then be phased in over the following 10 years.
One-third of all Medicare beneficiaries and 1.3 million Florida seniors are covered by Medicare Advantage programs, which have been praised widely for offering preventative and disease management services that are superior to other health plans in Medicare’s fee-for-service program.
Buchanan wrote to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Marilyn Tavenner earlier this year, urging the current administration to work with Congress to protect Medicare Advantage.