Why Aren’t More People Comparison Shopping for Health Plans?

Ms. Korsah, 74, and her son had already compiled a list of her eight medications — for blood pressure, cholesterol, acid reflux and glaucoma — and their doses. Using the online Medicare Plan Finder, Dr. Hoadley narrowed the field to three suitable selections.

With the cheapest plan, from Wellcare, Ms. Korsah’s estimated total yearly drug and premium costs (“the magic number,” he said) would be $301 a year if she used a CVS or Giant pharmacy — but $1,125 if she took the same prescriptions to a Walmart. Conversely, a Humana plan would cost $525 a year through a Walmart pharmacy, but more than twice that at CVS. With a Cigna plan, the best deal involved a mail-order pharmacy.

In theory, all beneficiaries who have traditional Medicare with Part D coverage, or who are interested in or enrolled in Medicare Advantage programs (an “all-in-one” alternative offered through private insurers), should be making similar calculations during this annual open enrollment period, from Oct. 15 until Dec. 7. It’s the reason that insurers’ pitches for plans are showing up in their mailboxes and inboxes, and on TV ads featuring Joe Namath and Jimmie “Dyn-o-mite” Walker.

“The idea is that consumers can re-evaluate what coverage is best for them,” said Tricia Neuman, the executive director of the Program on Medicare Policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation. Since each year brings changes to Part D and Medicare Advantage — in premiums, benefits, co-payments and provider networks — shopping around makes sense.

But that’s not what happens.

For 2019, 71 percent of beneficiaries said they didn’t compare plans during the open enrollment period, according to a Kaiser study published last month. The rate was even higher among Black and Hispanic beneficiaries, people over 85 and those with lower income and fewer years of education — precisely the groups most likely to require more medical services and drugs, and least able to pay high costs.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/30/health/open-enrollment-health-insurance.html