Medicare-related News

This brief analyzes out-of-pocket limits in Medicare Advantage plans in 2026, variation by plan type, the distribution of enrollees facing different out-of-pocket limits, and trends over time.

This brief presents key facts and analysis about affordability of health care costs among people with Medicare, including younger adults with long-term disabilities, drawing on data from various sources.

This brief compares the prices paid by private insurers for hospital care to increases in Medicare payment using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Producer Price Index (PPI), finding that hospital prices have risen much faster for private insurance than Medicare since 2019.

On May 22, the House passed a reconciliation bill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which would partially pay to extend expiring tax cuts by cutting Medicaid. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the bill would reduce federal Medicaid spending by $793 billion over ten years and 10.3 million fewer people would be enrolled in Medicaid in 2034, including 1.3 million people with Medicare, otherwise known as “dual-eligible individuals”.

This brief describes current coverage of GLP-1s in Medicare and Medicaid, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) efforts to expand access and lower costs for GLP-1s through temporary demonstration programs including the BALANCE Model, and potential impacts on beneficiaries and program budgets.