Tools
Benefit Eligibility Screening Tool (B.E.S.T.)
Web site
A tool to find out if a person could be eligible for benefits from any of the programs Social Security administers.
BenefitsCheckUpRX
Web site
Helps Medicare beneficiaries learn about and enroll in government benefits, including Medicare Part D, the new outpatient prescription drug benefit, and other federal, state and private programs that can help save money on health care and prescription drugs.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Regional Offices
Web site
Locator and contact information for the CMS Regional Representatives serving 10 regions across the United States.
CMS Hospitals Center
Web site
Contains Medicare manuals, forms, and regulations for hospitals.
CMS State Survey Agency Directory
Web site
Directory of state agencies that handle survey and certification of certain health care facilities for compliance with the Medicare health and safety standards.
KaiserEDU
Web site
Detailed resource lists and tutorials on health policy and public health topics, with links to publications, data, and organizations. Topics covered include Medicare, Medicaid, the uninsured, quality of care, and more. Designed for health policy students and faculty.
Medicare and Medicaid at 40
Web site
Resources that examine how Medicare and Medicaid came into existence and how they have evolved over the past 40 years. Includes documentaries and extended interviews with key policymakers and government officials examining the origins of Medicare and Medicaid, new interactive historical timelines, and a chart pack of key information and statistics.
Medicare Contracting Reform
Web site
Information and resources concerning the Part A/Part B Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs), which will replace the current fiscal intermediaries and carriers and handle administration of both the Medicare Part A and Part B programs in specified geographic regions.
Medicare Health and Prescription Drug Plan Tracker
Web site
Interactive tool providing information about private plans participating in the Medicare Advantage program and the Medicare prescription drug program. Includes national statistics specific to rural areas.
Medicare Health Plans - General Information
Web site
Information for current and future contracting Medicare Advantage Organizations, other health plans, and other parties interested in the operational and regulatory aspects of the Medicare Advantage program.
Medicare Information for Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and Physician Scarcity Areas (PSAs)
Web site
Information and resources concerning Medicare bonus payments effective January 1, 2005 to physicians who provide services to Medicare beneficiaries in areas that are designated as Physician Scarcity Areas (PSAs) and Geographic Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). Includes lists of eligible zip codes for receiving the bonus payments
Medicare Interactive Counselor
Web site
A one-stop source for information about health care rights, options and benefits. Helps older and disabled Americans, their caregivers and the professionals who serve them, understand their health care rights and benefits.
Medicare Learning Network Publications
Web site
Contains publications and resources for the health care professional.
Medicare Modernization Act
Web site
Information on CMS implementation of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA). Includes links to CMS fact sheets and press releases, as well as other resources for understanding the impact of the MMA.
Medicare Part D & Safety Net Providers
Web site
Provides contacts for the State Health Insurance Assistance Program.
Medicare Part D Changes in Enrollment & Eligibility for Low Income Subsidy
Web site
Describes common situations facing safety net patients during the Medicare Part D open enrollment period that ends December 31, 2006 and ways that safety net providers can help.
Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage - General Information
Web site
Links to important information on the new Medicare prescription drug benefit. Includes prescription drug benefit pharmacy training information.
Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder
Web site
Online tool for identifying and enrolling in Medicare prescription drug plans. Includes information about plans available in each state. Available in Spanish.
Medicare RX: National Conversation-Friends and Family First
Web site
Aids faith-based and community organizations working with individuals eligible for the Medicare prescription drug benefit. Describes five steps to select a Medicare prescription drug plan.
Medicare.gov
Database
Searchable database on a host of Medicare related tools, including prescription drug plans, publications, and nursing home comparing.
MedlinePlus: Medicare Prescription Drug Plan
Web site
Links to resources, tools and news related to the Medicare prescription drug plan (Part D).
National Provider Identifer (NPI) Information for Medicare Fee-for-Service Providers
Web site
Information on how to apply for a National Provider Identifier (NPI) and links to resources and education materials related to the NPI.
National Provider Identifier Standard (NPI)
Web site
Overview of the National Provider Identifier (NPI) requirement, with links to resources and additional information. The purpose of the National Provider Identifier (NPI) is to uniquely identify a health care provider in standard transactions, such as health care claims.
Rural Health Research: Medicare
Web site
Provides summaries of current and completed rural health research projects and related publications addressing the topic of Medicare, produced by the Office of Rural Health Policy's funded rural health research centers.
Toolkit for Healthcare Professionals: Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage
Web site
Educational materials for physicians and other healthcare professionals to learn about Medicare's prescription drug coverage. Also includes materials physicians can distribute to Medicare patients.
Regulations, Forms & Other Useful Documents
2006 CMS Statistics
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Summary information about health expenditures and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
programs. Includes data on populations served by Medicare and Medicaid, Medicare providers, and expenditures.
Date: 2006
2006 Medicare Advantage: Benefits and Premiums
Author(s): Marsha Gold, Maria Cupples Hudson, Sarah Davis
Sponsoring organization: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.
Analyzes in detail how premiums and benefits are structured in the Medicare Advantage plans 2006.
Date: 11 / 2006
2007 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Service Issues
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Examines three key topics in health and human services and their effects in rural areas: Medicare Advantage in Rural Communities, Head Start in Rural Communities, and Substance Abuse in Rural America. Includes recommendations to address these topics.
Date: 01 / 2007
2008 Medicare Advantage (MA), Medicare Advantage-Prescription Drug (MA-PD), Cost-Based Plan, and Stand Alone Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) Call Letter
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Provides information for health plans regarding how to implement CMS policies and procedures and comply with critical program requirements for the 2008 contract year. Includes detailed information on the Medicare Advantage (Part C) and prescription drug (Part D) programs.
Date: 04 / 2007
Basics: Medicare
Author(s): Mary Ellen Stahlman
Sponsoring organization: National Health Policy Forum
Describes the basics of Medicare including each Medicare part, who is eligible, what services are covered under each part, what services are not covered, cost-sharing requirements for beneficiaries, and how Medicare is financed.
Date: 01 / 2007
Basics: Medicare's Mental Health Benefits
Author(s): Christopher Loftis
Sponsoring organization: National Health Policy Forum
Describes the mental health coverage policies for Medicare beneficiaries.
Date: 02 / 2007
Chartpack: Seniors and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Charts highlight data from a poll on seniors and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit, conducted jointly by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health between November 9 and 19, 2006. It included a nationally representative sample of 718 seniors, including 275 who reported being enrolled in a Medicare drug plan.
Date: 12 / 2006
CMS’ Legal Authority to Support Caregivers
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Describes the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ legal authority to support caregivers and the ways in which CMS currently supports caregivers through its programs. Intended to serve as a resource for organizations that work on behalf of caregivers.
Date: 09 / 2007
Contracting with Medicare Advantage Plans: A Brief for Critical Access Hospital Administrators
Summarizes the experience of CAH administrators with contracts offered by Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Telephone surveys were conducted with CAH administrators across the country to learn about their experiences with MA plans. This brief includes information about the contract terms administrators have been offered, their experiences negotiating with MA plans, and their advice for others dealing with this issue.
Date: 12 / 2005
Data Book: Healthcare Spending and the Medicare Program
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Provides data, including some rural-specific statistics, on various aspects of the Medicare program. Covers beneficiary demographics, quality and access, national health care spending, and data for specific provider settings. Includes sections on Medicare Advantage and prescription drug coverage for Medicare beneficiaries.
Date: 06 / 2007
Depression and the Initiation of Alcohol and Other Drug Use among Youths Aged 12 to 17
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Provides discussion and statistics regarding the association between mental health disorders and substance use disorders among youth.
Date: 05 / 2007
Enrollment in Medicare Part D for Rural Beneficiaries Is Encouraging
Author(s): Timothy D. McBride, Tanchica L. Terry, Keith J. Mueller
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Provides updated findings about Medicare beneficiary enrollment in prescription drug plans (PDPs) in rural and urban areas across the United
States. Updates findings presented in RUPRI Center Policy Brief PB2006-8.
Journal citation: RUPRI Rural Policy Brief Volume 12 Issue 1
Date: 01 / 2007
Experience of Sole Community Rural Independent Pharmacies with Medicare Part D: Reports from the Field
Author(s): Andrea Radford, Rebecca Slifkin, Roslyn Fraser, Michelle Mason, Keith Mueller
The findings from this study, along with specific suggestions made by pharmacists during the interviews, suggest short-term actions that can be taken to address the challenges faced by rural independent pharmacies who are the sole providers in their communities. A joint publication of the North Carolina Rural Health Research & Policy Analysis Center and the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis.
Date: 11 / 2006
Fact Sheet on the 2006 Medicare Trustees Report
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Overview of Medicare's financial outlook, as reported in the 2006 Medicare Trustees Report.
Date: 05 / 2006
Impacts of the Medicare Modernization Act on Rural Health Systems and Beneficiaries
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller, Andrew F. Coburn, Charles W. Fluharty, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride, Rebecca T. Slifkin, Mary Wakefield
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI) Rural Health Panel
This paper offers an analysis of rural-pertinent provisions of the Medicare
Modernization Act of 2003. A highlights section summarizes legislative and
regulatory provisions of special significance to rural beneficiaries and
health care systems. The final section includes Panel analysis of all
provisions identified by the Panel as important to rural interests.
Date: 02 / 2005
Medicare "Pay-for-Performance (P4P)" Initiatives
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Identifies various CMS initiatives to encourage improved quality of care in all health care settings where Medicare beneficiaries receive their health care services, including physicians' offices and ambulatory care facilities, hospitals, nursing homes, home health care agencies and dialysis facilities.
Date: 01 / 2005
Medicare & You: 2007
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Highlights what's new, what's covered, health plans, prescription drug plans, and your rights.
Date: 10 / 2006
Medicare Advantage Fact Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Provides an overview of the Medicare Advantage (MA) program. Includes information on MA benefits, premiums, enrollment, and future issues.
Date: 03 / 2007
Medicare Advantage in Rural Areas
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
Chapter from the 2007 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Service Issues. Addresses Medicare Advantage (MA), a program that provides health care benefits for elderly Americans through private insurance companies, and the impact that MA may have on rural beneficiaries and providers.
Date: 01 / 2007
Medicare Advantage Payment Policy
Author(s): Mark Merlis
Sponsoring organization: National Health Policy Forum
Discusses Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, which are an important source of supplemental benefits for many Medicare beneficiaries. Also, discusses rural issues regarding Medicare Advantage plans.
Date: 09 / 2007
Medicare Advantage Plans in Rural America
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller, Rebecca T. Slifkin, Mary K. Wakefield
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI) Rural Health Panel
Identifies key policy issues and questions concerning the impact of Medicare
Advantage (MA) in rural areas.
Date: 10 / 2007
Medicare Advantage, Fact Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Provides an overview of the Medicare Advantage program, describes program changes made by the new drug law in plan participation and beneficiary enrollment, presents data on benefits and premiums and explains changes in Medicare payments to participating plans.
Date: 02 / 2007
Medicare at a Glance, Fact Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Provides a basic overview of the Medicare program, including characteristics of people on Medicare, Medicare's structure, beneficiary cost sharing, role of private plans in Medicare, and data on current and future Medicare spending.
Date: 02 / 2007
Medicare Billing Information for Rural Providers, Suppliers, and Physicians
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Medicare rural billing charts for Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), skilled nursing facilities, home health agencies, and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Provides information on where to submit claims for different services.
Date: 05 / 2007
Medicare Chart Book, Third Edition
Author(s): Juliette Cubanski, Molly Voris, Michelle Kitchman, Tricia Neuman
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
More than 80 charts and tables with data on the Medicare program and Medicare beneficiaries. Includes rural-specific and state-specific data for selected topics.
Date: 2005
Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital Fact Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Overview of the Medicare Disproportionate Share
Hospital adjustment and how a hospital can qualify to receive it.
Date: 03 / 2007
Medicare Drug Coverage under Medicare Part A, Part B, and Part D
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Overview of drug coverage under Medicare Part A, Part B and Part D, with information on what drugs are covered under each part of the Medicare program.
Date: 08 / 2007
Medicare Guide to Rural Health Services Information for Providers, Suppliers and Physicians: Errata Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Errata updates applicable to the print version of the Medicare Guide to Rural Health Services Information for Providers, Suppliers and Physicians.
Date: 08 / 2007
Medicare Guide to Rural Health Services Information for Providers, Suppliers, and Physicians
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Offers Medicare providers, suppliers, and physicians rural health information and resources including Ambulance Services, CAH's, FQHC's, HPSA, Home Health, Hospice, Medicare, Prescription Drug Plan, Quality Improvement, RHC's, Sole Community Hospital, Swing Bed, and Telehealth.
Date: 02 / 2007
Medicare Home Health Care in Rural America
Author(s): Sheila J. Franco
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Describes results of a study evaluating the degree to which Medicare beneficiaries received home health care from agencies outside of their county and the extent to which urban agencies served rural beneficiaries.
Date: 01 / 2004
Medicare Part D: Early Findings on Enrollment and Choices for Rural Beneficiaries
Author(s): Timothy D. McBride, Tanchica L. Terry, Keith J. Mueller
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Early information on enrollment in the Medicare prescription drug program in rural and urban areas. Includes findings from an
analysis of plans available to rural persons under
Medicare's Part D program.
Date: 04 / 2006
Medicare Payment Basics: Outpatient Hospital Services Payment System
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Overview of Medicare payments for outpatient hospital services. Includes information on how payment rates are set.
Date: 09 / 2006
Medicare Payment Basics: Part D Payment System
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Overview of the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit. Includes information on Medicare subsidies, Medicare payments to plans, and the calculation of enrollee premiums.
Date: 09 / 2006
Medicare Physician Payment: Impacts of Changes on Rural Physicians
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Overview of the effects of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003 on physician payment rates in rural areas. Discusses the impact of creating a floor of 1.00 in the geographic practice cost index (GPCI) for work expense and the effects of the Medicare incentive payment (MIP) for providing services in shortage areas and of the bonus for practicing in a physician scarcity area.
Date: 09 / 2006
Medicare Physician Services: Use of Services Increasing Nationwide and Relatively Few Beneficiaries Report Major Access Problems
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
Reports on Medicare beneficiaries' perceptions of the availability of physician services, utilization of physician services, and physician supply and willingness to serve Medicare beneficiaries. Includes rural-specific information.
Date: 07 / 2006
Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit (Fact Sheet)
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Provides information and data about the Medicare Drug Benefit, including a breakdown of the standard benefit, updates on additional low-income assistance, and the latest 2006 enrollment data.
Date: 06 / 2007
Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-173). A Summary of Provisions Important to Rural Health Care Delivery
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Overview of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-173) as it relates to rural health care. Includes information on how this Act will impact beneficiaries, health care access, and payments to rural health care providers.
Date: 01 / 2004
Medicare Spending and Financing Fact Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Provides an overview of spending on the Medicare program, how the program is financed, and Medicare’s future financial outlook.
Date: 06 / 2007
Medicare: A Primer
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Looks at the characteristics of the Medicare population, what benefits are covered, how much people with Medicare pay for their benefits and the program's overall costs and future financing challenges. Also provides information about the Medicare Advantage program and the Medicare drug benefit.
Date: 03 / 2007
Medicare: Communications to Beneficiaries on Prescription Drug Benefit Could Be Improved
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
Review of the quality of Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) communications on the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit. Includes evaluation of written materials, web-based tools and the 1-800-MEDICARE Help Line.
Date: 05 / 2006
Medicare: Geographic Areas Used to Adjust Physician Payments for Variation in Practice Costs Should Be Revised
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
Describes the method CMS uses to vary physician payments based on practice cost using 89 localities. Examines how CMS has revised the localities, the extent to which they accurately reflect variations in physicians’ costs, and alternative approaches to constructing the localities. Includes comparison of urban and rural physician payments.
Date: 07 / 2007
MMA - Physician Education for the Revisions to the Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) Bonus Payment Processes and Implementation of the Physician Scarcity Area (PSA) Bonus Payments
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Reflects proposed billing and claims processing guidance consistent with the Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) and Physician Scarcity Area (PSA) bonus requirements as discussed in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the 2005 Physician Fee Schedule published August 5, 2004.
Date: 2004
Navigating Medicare and Medicaid, 2005: A Resource Guide for People with Disabilities, Their Families, and Their Advocates
Author(s): Bob Williams, Henry Claypool, Jeff Crowley
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Explains the role of Medicare and Medicaid for the roughly 20 million children, adults and seniors with disabilities. Offers a basic introduction to the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Date: 02 / 2005
Perspectives on Medicare Part D and Dual Eligibles: Key Informants’ Views From Three States
Author(s): Lori Buchsbaum, Janet Varon, Emma Kagel, Randolph T. Boyle, Kathleen C. McGarvey
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured
Provides information on the ongoing successes and challenges that dual eligibles of Medicare and Medicaid faced in the first eight months of Medicare Part D and how different state approaches may affect dual eligibles’ ability to access prescription medications.
Date: 05 / 2007
Premiums and Cost-Sharing Features in Medicare's New Prescription Drug Program, 2006
Author(s): Marsha Gold
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Describes the premiums and selected cost-sharing characteristics of the Medicare drug benefit offered by Medicare PDPs and MA-PD plans in 2006. The latter include health maintenance organizations (HMOs), local preferred provider organizations (PPOs), regional PPOs, and private fee-for-service (PFFS) plans.
Date: 05 / 2006
Preparing for Medicare Part D: An Opportunity for State Offices of Rural Health and State Rural Health Associations
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller, Lisa Bottsford
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Discusses how state offices of rural health and state rural health associations have an inherent interest in helping beneficiaries access necessary health care services, including prescription medications. Implementation of Part D creates an opportunity to help beneficiaries through leadership, by connecting beneficiaries and those who serve them to resources that will help them react appropriately to changes in the program.
Journal citation: RUPRI Rural Policy Brief Volume 10 Issue 2
Date: 08 / 2005
Private Plans in Medicare: A 2007 Update
Author(s): Marsha Gold
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Examines changes between 2006 and 2007 in the availability of and enrollment in Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans overall and in urban and rural areas.
Date: 03 / 2007
Report to the Congress: Increasing the Value of Medicare
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Examines issues affecting the Medicare program and makes recommendations to the Congress. Topics covered include care coordination, pricing accuracy in the hospice and physician payment systems, quality measures in home health, gathering data on outpatient therapy, Medicare Advantage, the Part D prescription drug program, and cost-effectiveness analysis.
Date: 06 / 2006
Report to the Congress: Issues in a Modernized Medicare Program
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Examines issues affecting the Medicare program. Addresses Part D, Medicare's new outpatient prescription drug benefit, with some coverage of rural issues. Includes overview of the Medicare Advantage program. Discusses the effects of the Critical Access Hospital (CAH) provisions in the MMA.
Date: 06 / 2005
Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2008
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Discussions of rural aspects of Medicare payment policies are included throughout the report. (Large file)
Date: 03 / 2008
Report to the Congress: Promoting Greater Efficiency in Medicare
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Describes the changing beneficiary profile
in Medicare and its implications for the program. Examines approaches to promote greater efficiency
in the Medicare program. Includes discussion of Medicare Advantage (MA), the wage index, and Medicare coverage of drugs.
Date: 06 / 2007
Report to the Congress: Rural Payment Provisions in the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
Examines the impact of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) provisions on rural hospital payments. Present the effect of eight MMA provisions
on Medicare inpatient and outpatient payments to traditional (non-CAH) hospitals. Summarizes the MMA changes to Critical Access Hospital (CAH) payment policies discussed in MedPAC's interim report. Examines the effects of higher payments on hospital costs.
Date: 12 / 2006
Rural Enrollment in Medicare Advantage Growing Rapidly in 2007, Especially in Private Fee-for-Service Plans
Author(s): Timothy D. McBride, Tanchica L. Terry, Keith J. Mueller
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Provides findings about enrollment in the newly designed Medicare Advantage (MA) program in rural and urban areas, with state and national data. Updates early findings from analysis of the Medicare+Choice/MA program presented in previous RUPRI Center policy briefs.
Date: 07 / 2007
Rural Enrollment in Medicare Advantage Is Concentrated in Private Fee-for-Service Plans
Author(s): Timothy D. McBride, Tanchica L. Terry, Keith J. Mueller
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Provides findings about enrollment in the newly
designed Medicare Advantage (MA) program in rural and urban areas. Includes rural and urban data on enrollment in Medicare Advantage and other pre-paid plans by type of plan. Also provides state-level information on MA enrollment.
Date: 04 / 2007
Rural Health Clinic and Federally Qualified Health Center Manual
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Medicare manual for Rural Health Clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers. Covers agreements and terminations, coverage and exclusions, payment and billing procedures. Available as a ZIP file download.
Rural Referral Center Fact Sheet
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Overview of the Rural Referral Center program, which supports high-volume rural
hospitals that treat a large number of complicated cases.
Date: 02 / 2007
State Updates on Medicare Advantage Enrollment
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
These state-by-state reports compare MA enrollment in December 2005 to that in September 2007, including information on overall and rural enrollment in all MA plans.
Date: 2007
Summary/Chartpack: National Survey of Pharmacists and National Survey of Physicians, Findings on Medicare Part D
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Highlights key data from separate surveys of pharmacists and physicians related to the new Medicare drug benefit.
Date: 09 / 2006
Update on Rural Enrollment in Medicare Advantage: Growth Continues
Author(s): Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Provides findings about rural enrollment in the Medicare Advantage (MA) program and other pre-paid plans, with state and national data. Updates early findings from analysis of the Medicare+Choice/MA program presented in previous RUPRI Center policy briefs.
Date: 10 / 2007
Value of Extra Benefits Offered by Medicare Advantage Plans in 2006
Author(s): Mark Merlis
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Discusses Medicare Advantage Plans. Enrollees are still in HMOs and other managed care plans, and the most rapid enrollment growth has been in private fee-for-service (PFFS) plans, which now account for 22% of Medicare Advantage enrollment. Addresses issues in rural areas.
Date: 01 / 2008
Voices of Beneficiaries: Medicare Part D Insights and Observations One Year Later
Author(s): Michael Perry, Adrianne Dulio, Juliette Cubanski
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Describes the views and experiences of 35 Medicare beneficiaries under the new drug benefit in advance of the 2007 open enrollment period. The report finds that drug plan enrollees generally say that they are satisfied with their drug coverage and have not encountered major difficulties using their plan. At the same time, many of them do not fully understand how their plan works even after almost a year of experience with this new benefit.
Date: 12 / 2006
