Survey shows glaring knowledge gap among Medicare beneficiaries

NORTH MIAMI, Fla., July 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Medigap.com, an online resource that compares Medicare Advantage, Medicare Supplements, and Part D prescription drug plans at no cost, today released results from a proprietary survey designed to glean insights into Medicare beneficiaries' understanding of and satisfaction with their current coverage.

Today, nearly 64 million Americans are enrolled in either original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan, and about 50 million are enrolled in Medicare Part D. As healthcare needs expand later in life and coverage provided by various Medicare plans continues to change, it’s critical that beneficiaries have a grasp on what their specific plan covers and whether it’s the best option for them.

Medigap.com’s “Medicare Basics Survey” polled more than 750 Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 or older to uncover their attitudes and beliefs towards their coverage. The findings show that there is a glaring knowledge gap among beneficiaries on what medical services are and are not covered by their Medicare plan, as well as a desire for wider medical coverage within the program.

Notable survey results include:

• More than one-in-four (26%) respondents said they were only “somewhat familiar” with their plan’s coverage.
• Nearly one-in-three (31%) respondents felt that their plan does not cover all of their medical essentials.
• Over half (56%) of respondents said they were concerned about the cost of their medical expenses.
• Over a quarter (27%) of respondents claimed that they have essential medical needs that are not covered by their plan.
• When it comes to what they wish their plans had better coverage of, 74% of respondents listed dental health services, 52% listed vision health services and 43% listed hearing health services.

From these findings, it’s clear that there needs to be an improvement in education and resources available to Medicare beneficiaries, especially considering nearly two-in-five (37.57 percent) respondents reported having been overwhelmed when trying to understand what is and is not covered by their plans. This unfamiliarity with plan coverage can also make it difficult when considering switching to a new plan, which almost one quarter (23%) of respondents claimed to have considered.

This can result in beneficiaries remaining enrolled in a plan that is not best suited for their needs, which can ultimately result in preventing them from seeking care to avoid out of pocket costs. More than one-in-ten respondents (12%) reported they have not sought out certain medical services because they were unsure if they were covered by their current plan.

“Medicare provides health insurance to over 60 million Americans; it is not easy to come up with a set of covered services that will work perfectly for all of them,” said Lindsay Malzone, Medigap.com’s Medicare Expert. “With this in mind, it is of great importance that we know where the gaps in beneficiary knowledge and service coverage are, seeing as the program is ever-changing and works to amend itself to satisfy the largest number of people at once. We have found that beneficiaries need to better access informational resources to understand not only what their plan covers but also whether or not there is another plan out there that might better meet their medical and financial needs.”

Survey Methodology
This poll was conducted on May 24, 2022, among a national sample of 756 Americans ages 65 and over. To download the full survey results, please click here.