Centene, Humana, UnitedHealth Lead in Cutting Wasteful MA Services; Others Lag

  • Nov 21, 2024

    One of the biggest benefits of Medicare Advantage, according to its proponents, is its ability to reduce low-value care — the delivery of services that provide little or no clinical benefit — via its capitated payment model and the use of prior authorization. But a new study reveals that while some of the largest insurers are successfully cutting down on unnecessary services relative to traditional, fee-for-service Medicare, others are lagging behind, with rates of low-value care delivery similar to FFS Medicare.

    The research, published this month in JAMA Network Open, shines a spotlight on how major players like UnitedHealthcare, Humana Inc. and Centene Corp. are leading the charge in reducing low-value services, while others like CVS Health Corp.’s Aetna, Elevance Health, Inc. and non-Elevance Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans still have room for improvement.

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    © 2024 MMIT
  • Carina Belles

    Carina has been covering public-sector health care since 2018. As a data reporter for Radar on Medicare Advantage, she creates infographics and data stories on issues impacting Medicare, Medicaid and Part D. She also develops AIS Health Daily, a free daily newsletter that showcases AIS’s strong reporting across our four publications and parent company Norstella’s suite of market access and data solutions. Prior to joining the editorial team, she managed Medicare and Medicaid data for the Directory of Health Plans, AIS’s industry-standard health coverage database. She graduated from Ohio University with a B.S. in Journalism.

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