Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are less likely to receive intensive treatments or burdensome transfers during the last six months of life compared to those in traditional Medicare, according to a study in JAMA Health Forum. MA enrollees are more likely to receive hospice care and less likely to receive facility-based care post-hospital discharge. Researchers attribute these trends to MA’s cost-control focus, while fee-for-service Medicare incentivizes more aggressive treatment. “Financial incentives in Medicare Advantage, the managed care alternative to traditional Medicare, were designed to reduce overutilization,” the authors wrote.
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