The Latest: Medicare Advantage Is Close to Becoming the Predominant Way That Medicare Beneficiaries Get Their Health Coverage and Care

Plus, Unraveling the Interplay of Omicron, Reinfections, and Long Covid

View in browser August 26, 2022 The Latest will be on hiatus next week. Look for us in your mailbox again on Wednesday, September 7. Medicare Advantage Is Close to Becoming the Predominant Way That Medicare Beneficiaries Get Their Health Coverage and Care As Medicare Advantage continues to grow, a gradual but significant reshaping of the Medicare program is taking place. Three KFF analyses examine various aspects of Medicare Advantage. The full analyses include: Medicare Advantage in 2022: Enrollment Update and Key Trends Medicare Advantage in 2022: Premiums, Out-of-Pocket Limits, Cost Sharing, Supplemental Benefits, Prior Authorization, and Star Ratings Spending on Medicare Advantage Quality Bonus Program Payment Reached $10 Billion in 2022 Unraveling the Interplay of Omicron, Reinfections, and Long Covid The omicron variant has proved adept at finding hosts, often by reinfecting people who recovered from earlier bouts of covid. But whether omicron triggers long covid as often and severe as previous variants is a matter of heated study. The Inflation Reduction Act is a Foot in the Door for Containing Health Care Costs In this column for the JAMA Forum, KFF's Larry Levitt explores the Medicare drug-price negotiation provisions and other significant drug-price changes in the Inflation Reduction Act and their potential to lead to further efforts to address health care costs. Rural Americans Have Difficulty Accessing a Promising Cancer Treatment  Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy has eliminated tumors in some late-stage cancer patients, but the cost and complexity of care mean rural Americans have trouble accessing the treatment. Also published by NBC News Question of the Week Last week, 37% correctly answered that in the 12 states that have not adopted the ACA's Medicaid expansion, 10 have upcoming gubernatorial elections in November 2022. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of residents living in nursing facilities decreased by what percent? 4% 13% 24%  See how many readers answered this week's question correctly in next Friday's edition of The Latest.   News and Headlines News and headlines from Kaiser Health News (KHN) and California Healthline (CHL). Follow KHN on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and CHL on Facebook and Twitter, for the latest updates. Hospitals Cut Jobs and Services as Rising Costs Strain Budgets (KHN) Wastewater Surveillance Has Become a Critical Covid Tracking Tool, but Funding Is Inconsistent (KHN, South Carolina Public Radio) KHN's 'What the Health?': The Future of Public Health, 2022 Edition (Podcast) With More Sizzling Summers, Colorado Changes How Heat Advisories Are Issued (KHN) 'He Stood His Ground': State Senator Will Leave Office as Champion of Tough Vaccine Laws (KHN) Latest news summaries from the KHN Morning Briefing Data and Analysis The latest policy analysis and data from KFF. A 50-State Review of Access to State Medicaid Program Information for People with Limited English Proficiency and/or Disabilities Ahead of the PHE Unwinding (Issue Brief) Medicaid Postpartum Coverage Extension Tracker - Updated as of 8/25 (Interactive) U.S. Global Health Legislation Tracker (Fact Sheet) The U.S. Government and International Family Planning & Reproductive Health: Statutory Requirements and Policies (Fact Sheet) Global COVID-19 Tracker - Updated as of August 26 (Interactive) U.S. International COVID-19 Vaccine Donations Tracker – Updated as of August 26 (Interactive) KFF Global COVID-19 Vaccine Coverage Tool: Current and Projected Coverage – Updated as of August 26 (Interactive) The Buzz See what's driving health policy conversation on social media. Follow KFF on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest updates and perspectives. Filling the need for trusted information on national health issues, KFF is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. kff.org  |  khn.org Did someone forward this to you? Click here to subscribe to The Latest. This email was sent to albarkahslamet.ssss@blogger.com. Update your email preferences to choose the types of emails you receive. Or, permanently unsubscribe from all future emails.  If you need help or have questions, please send an email to subscriptions@kff.org. Please do not reply to this email as this address is not monitored. KFF 185 Berry Street Suite 2000 San Francisco, CA 94107