The Medicare Rights Center (Medicare Rights) welcomes this opportunity to comment on the TennCare Demonstration Waiver Amendment 42. Medicare Rights is a national, nonprofit organization that works to ensure access to affordable health care for older adults and people with disabilities through counseling and advocacy, educational programs, and public policy initiatives. Medicare Rights provides services and resources to three million people with Medicare, family caregivers, and professionals each year. Through our National Helpline, we hear daily from people who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid who are experiencing enrollment issues and barriers in access to care, including bureaucratic hurdles. Given this focus, we have a particular interest in how this waiver would affect Tennesseans with disabilities and who are older.
The Medicaid program, now in its 54th year, is a success story. Through Medicaid, millions of low-income Americans have built well-being and gained greater economic security via access to health insurance coverage. This coverage has guaranteed health care to older adults and people with disabilities who need access to care with less financial burden than Medicare alone can provide. In addition, Medicaid helps millions of children and their families and, in states that have chosen the life-saving and cost-effective option of Medicaid expansion, those who are unable to find work, whose employers or job types do not grant access to health insurance, or who are caregivers, students, or who have conditions that interfere with regular work…
Comments: TennCare Demonstration, Amendment 42
The Medicare Rights Center (Medicare Rights) welcomes this opportunity to comment on the TennCare Demonstration Waiver Amendment 42. Medicare Rights is a national, nonprofit organization that works to ensure access to affordable health care for older adults and people with disabilities through counseling and advocacy, educational programs, and public policy initiatives. Medicare Rights provides services and resources to three million people with Medicare, family caregivers, and professionals each year. Through our National Helpline, we hear daily from people who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid who are experiencing enrollment issues and barriers in access to care, including bureaucratic hurdles. Given this focus, we have a particular interest in how this waiver would affect Tennesseans with disabilities and who are older.
The Medicaid program, now in its 54th year, is a success story. Through Medicaid, millions of low-income Americans have built well-being and gained greater economic security via access to health insurance coverage. This coverage has guaranteed health care to older adults and people with disabilities who need access to care with less financial burden than Medicare alone can provide. In addition, Medicaid helps millions of children and their families and, in states that have chosen the life-saving and cost-effective option of Medicaid expansion, those who are unable to find work, whose employers or job types do not grant access to health insurance, or who are caregivers, students, or who have conditions that interfere with regular work…
Reference
Recent Documents
Medicare Prescription Payment Plan (MPPP) Draft Guidance
2022 Medicare Trends and Recommendations
Statement for the Record on Medicare Revenues and Program Sustainability
Comments on 2024 Physician Fee Schedule
Comments on the Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance Proposed Rule
Comments on Health and Human Services Grants Regulation
Any changes to the Medicare program must aim for healthier people, better care, and smarter spending—not paying more for less. As policymakers debate the future of health care, we will provide our insights here.
Thinking ahead to Medicare's future, it’s important to modernize benefits and pursue changes that improve how people with Medicare navigate their coverage on a daily basis. Here are our evolving 30 policy goals for Medicare’s future.
You can help protect and strengthen Medicare by taking action on the important issues we are following, subscribe to newsletter alerts, or follow along on social media. Any way you choose to get involved is a contribution that we appreciate greatly.