The undersigned organizations share a commitment to advancing the health and economic security of older adults, people with disabilities, and their families. Together, we represent the 57 million Americans who rely on Medicare for guaranteed access to health benefits. We greatly appreciate the opportunity made available by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to provide comments on the “Welcome to Medicare” packages, and we are writing to share our collective input on these materials.
We are committed to promoting smooth transitions to Medicare for older adults and people with disabilities newly eligible for the program. As such, we believe the primary goal of the “Welcome to Medicare” packages should be to ensure that people new to Medicare avoid the harmful pitfalls, including increased health care costs and premiums, gaps in essential health coverage, and disruptions in access to needed care, often associated with honest Medicare enrollment mistakes. To mitigate such pitfalls and to improve CMS’ existing educational content, we recommend the following:
