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President Joe Biden’s administration is claiming that Medicare Advantage payments will go up slightly under a plan the administration also says will save billions. However, critics say his plan will cost New Hampshire seniors hundreds in higher premiums and lost benefits and actually constitutes the first cut to the program in its history.

Medicare Advantage, also known as Medicare Part C, covers more than 30 million Americans, mostly seniors. The program offers medical coverage through private companies and is an alternative to the traditional Medicare program.

Despite Biden’s claims, critics say his plans are likely to amount to cutting Medicare Advantage spending by as much as 2.3 percent through a series of changes to the way insurers are reimbursed by the government. He is also planning to cut Medicare Part D, which helps seniors cover the cost of prescription drugs, as part of the changes. The result will be more out-of-pocket expenses for seniors, and less care, according to some health policy professionals.

“If finalized, this proposal to cut Medicare Advantage by 2.3 percent would raise costs and cut benefits for 30 million American seniors who rely on Medicare Advantage, a vital part of Medicare,” said Mary Beth Donahue, president and CEO of Better Medicare Alliance.

The Kaiser Family Foundation anticipates insurers will see a net $3 billion in cuts from the Biden administration.

Biden’s plan will cut the payments the government makes to insurers who offer Medicare Advantage plans. According to healthcare consulting firm Avalere, the insurance companies will pass those losses onto the customers, resulting in benefit cuts worth hundreds of dollars a year per customer.

“Avalere estimates that the decrease in payment could result in a $540 decrease in benefits per member per year,” the company reports.

In New Hampshire, the cuts are expected to see monthly premiums go up from $18.45 per month on average to $23.20 per month. Granite Staters can expect to lose $278.43 per year in benefits as well.

Asked about the Biden proposal, both Sens. Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen declined to comment. They did, however, recently sign a bipartisan letter, along with 60 other senators, urging Biden’s CMS to keep the rates at their status quo. However, the letter did not specifically reject the Biden administration’s plan.

“We are committed to our nearly 30 million constituents across the United States who rely on Medicare Advantage, and to maintaining access to the affordable, high-quality care they currently receive,” the senators wrote. “We ask that the Administration provide a stable rate and policy environment for Medicare Advantage that will strengthen and ensure the long-term sustainability of the program—protecting access to its important benefits on which our constituents have come to rely.”

The cuts come as tens of thousands of Granite Staters are bracing for the loss of their health insurance. Enrollment in the state’s Granite Advantage plan, part of the Affordable Care Act’s expanded Medicaid, swelled to more than 90,000 people during the COVID-19 pandemic under the federal government’s emergency orders.

Those orders are expected to fade in the coming months as Biden has declared the pandemic is over. That is going to mean thousands of New Hampshire residents will need to move to a new insurance plan, and those going to Medicare Advantage will be expected to pay more.

The cuts are also being proposed as Biden has accused Republicans in the House of wanting to cut Medicare and Social Security, clearly making support for the programs part of his 2024 reelection campaign. While a vocal minority of House and Senate Republicans have voiced supporting cuts, most have said Biden is using scare tactics.

Ironically, Hassan repeatedly accused her Republican opponent, retired Gen. Don Bolduc, of supporting cuts to Social Security and Medicare during her successful re-election campaign last year.

Medicare Advantage is the best bet for seniors looking at their options as the open enrollment period begins, according to a new study published by the “Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Health Forum.”

Medicare Advantage, also known as Medicare Part C, gives seniors a choice about how to get their medical services delivered over the traditional fee-for-service Medicare plan. According to the JAMA study, that choice also gives seniors better value and better care.

Examining data from nearly two million Medicare beneficiaries, the JAMA-published study concluded that “those enrolled in MA had lower rates of hospital stays, emergency department visits, and 30-day readmissions.” Additionally, the study noted that “[a]mong Medicare beneficiaries with complex care needs, those enrolled in MA had lower rates of acute care utilization, suggesting that managed care activities in MA may influence the nature and quality of care provided to these beneficiaries.”

Medicare Advantage provides health care plans offered by approved private coverage providers. Unlike government-run fee-for-service Medicare, Medicare Advantage plans can cover additional services that seniors rely on and depend upon, such as prescription drugs and routine eye and dental care.

The option currently enjoys broad bipartisan support in Washington, with all four members of New Hampshire’s federal delegation calling for more support for Medicare Advantage earlier this year. Sen. Maggie Hassan was part of a group of 62 lawmakers who signed off on a letter supporting the program.

“We write to express bipartisan support for the Medicare Advantage program and the high-quality, affordable care it provides to over 27 million older adults and people with disabilities,” the letter read, signed by members as ideologically diverse as Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.)

In September, both Reps. Annie Kuster and Chris Pappas joined the House of Representatives in passing a bill on a voice vote to make it easier for seniors using MA to get approval for treatment and prescriptions.

Traditional fee-for-service Medicare does not limit seniors’ out-of-pocket costs and copays. As a result, beneficiaries pay nearly $2,000 more per year in total healthcare-related costs than those enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans.

Because Medicare Advantage relies on the private sector, some more progressive politicians oppose the option and have tried to limit its expansion or even kill it entirely. The progressive magazine “The American Prospect” wrote about Medicare advantage, and their opposition to it, in a piece headlined “The Dark History of Medicare Privatization.”

Last week, Hassan, Pappas, Kuster, and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen signed a letter urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) to protect eligible New Hampshire Medicare beneficiaries subject to aggressive and potentially predatory marketing tactics related to the sale of Medicare Advantage (MA) plans or other insurance products.

However, based on the data, it appears seniors are satisfied with both the coverage and the quality of care received.

According to the non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation, Medicare Advantage enrollment has doubled over the last 15 years. Currently, 32 percent of Medicare-eligible Granite State seniors choose Medicare Advantage over traditional fee-for-service Medicare.

Reports from the Better Medicare Alliance, a research and advocacy group, indicate 95 percent of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are satisfied with their network of care and a full 88 percent say Medicare Advantage gives them more flexibility and choice.

A separate study published by JAMA found Medicare Advantage beneficiaries received 9.2 percent fewer “costly, potentially harmful” low-value services than fee-for-service Medicare enrollees. In other words, Medicare Advantage beneficiaries received better-quality care.