Medicare Advantage is Counting on At-Home Care to Attract New Members says Cavulus CEO

PITTSBURGH, April 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Within two months Medicare Advantage (MA) health plans must file their 2023 benefit packages with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. While each insurer's details will not be made public until October, Patrick Phillips, CEO of Cavulus, a leading technology firm in the industry, anticipates an increase in "at-home care" benefits offered to beneficiaries.

"The pandemic was an accelerant for home health care", notes Phillips, "but the winds have been shifting in this direction for several years." In 2019 Phillips told Home Health Care News that MA plans offering mobile nursing units, in-home visits and virtual monitoring would become a positive disruptive force in the health care industry.

"Transportation and mobility issues are hurdles, especially among our older Medicare population," points out Phillips. "Overcoming these challenges has become a key focus for MA insurers. They receive monthly reimbursement for managing a beneficiary's coverage in lieu of Traditional Medicare along with a reasonable expectation that better health outcomes will outperform the original government program."

Phillips cites a recent Washington Post article about some MA health plan's utilization of Papa Pals, an organization that "provide [s] companion care services and support for everyday needs to members of Medicare Advantage, Medicaid and other commercial health plans."

"We're seeing real health value in such services," stated Phillips. "These in-home services don't just provide needed companionship, the care-givers are checking to make sure prescriptions are filled and refrigerators are appropriately stocked."

But as the Post article points out, the health plans themselves stand to benefit by sending Papa Pals into members' homes. Phillips says the in-home companions "can help plans obtain incentives via quality programs by encouraging beneficiaries to complete wellness exams, screenings and assessments – something I have no issue with if there are positive measurable outcomes."

Phillips said: "Time will tell what value adds are meaningful and which ones will attract new members, but there's certainly a growing trend in high-touch and individualized benefits that seem poised to succeed." 

ABOUT CAVULUS - Cavulus is a technology driven specialist in Medicare Advantage insurance solutions. The Cavulus Cloud-based MA Platform (Cavulus MAP™) unifies marketing, sales and enrollment operations, and is utilized by many of America's top insurers, including several BlueCross/ BlueShield companies, UPMC Health Plan, Johns Hopkins, Lumeris and United Healthcare. For details: www.cavulus.com. Media Inquiries: 800-760-6915. Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Cavulus