- Medicare Advantage (MA) beneficiaries given home-delivered meals in the four weeks after being discharged from a hospital were not only less likely to be readmitted within 30 days, they were also less likely to die, according to a study in JAMA Health Forum. The 2018 Chronic Care Act gave MA plans greater leverage to address the social determinants of health care. In addition to giving insurers an impetus for launching dietary programs, the act also covers transportation for beneficiaries and other at-home services.The study states that “nearly three-quarters of MA plans offered meals as a supplemental benefit in 2022, mostly driven by expectations of downstream cost savings based on findings from earlier observational studies of community-based nutrition programs, and desires to maintain market parity in an increasingly competitive MA space.” (Article here)
July 12, 2023
Payers | Tea Leaves