ANDREW LANGER: MedPAC’s War On Medicare Advantage – And Why Republicans Shouldn’t Fall For It

If there were ever a case study in how Washington’s permanent bureaucracy quietly steers policy regardless of who wins elections, it would be the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, better known as MedPAC, whose recommendations could be about to strike a new blow for affordability and health benefits for American seniors.

On paper, MedPAC is an advisory body. It writes reports and crunches numbers. But its findings often become the foundation for congressional action, media narratives, and misleading budget assumptions that now affect the affordability of health coverage of more than 30 million seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage.

That’s why President Donald Trump and Republican leaders in Congress should approach MedPAC’s claims regarding Medicare Advantage (MA) with clear-eyed skepticism. This is even more important today as some at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) are pointing to MedPAC in order to justify “flat” spending on MA next year even as the facts make crystal clear that medical costs continue to rise year over year.

If CMS’ proposal in the recent advanced rate notice is adopted, millions of American seniors will pay more for their health care next year while many benefits will be cut. An artificially constrained growth rate in the face of increased costs will have dire outcomes. It’ll mean less flexibility to offer supplemental benefits like dental, vision and prescription drug coverage, fewer plan choices, and higher out-of-pocket costs for seniors could be right around the corner.

For years, MedPAC has advanced a misleading storyline that Medicare Advantage, created and expanded under Republican reforms, is costing taxpayers more than traditional fee-for-service Medicare, even as many other studies demonstrate otherwise. This unelected commission routinely points to coding intensity, favorable selection, and payment differentials to argue that private plans are overcompensated and that changes should be made to reduce payments or restructure the program.