Medicare Advantage Companies Focus on Profits Over Care as Open Enrollment Ends

"Low or $0 premiums plus supplemental benefits that traditional Medicare is not authorized by Congress to cover - dental, vision and hearing care - have attracted increasing numbers of seniors. The many disadvantages, including the need to get preauthorization for procedures or medicines your doctor has prescribed or the narrow group of health professionals that are in-network in many MA plans, are not mentioned in advertisements by brokers hired to recruit members."

"During the pandemic and for a time following it, seniors put off seeking medical care because of a concern that they would be vulnerable to COVID-19 or other viruses that might be circulating in hospitals. The insurance companies that sponsor MA plans - UnitedHealthcare, Humana, Elevance, Centene, Molina and others - were happy to collect premiums from Medicare and report high profits to Wall Street."

Open enrollment for Medicare ends on December 7, and turmoil in the privatized Medicare Advantage market has left many enrollees confused and potentially uninsured in 2026. Insurers marketed low or $0 premiums and supplemental benefits—dental, vision and hearing—that traditional Medicare cannot cover, drawing growing numbers of seniors. MA plans often require prior authorization and limit in-network providers, constraints omitted from broker advertisements. In 2025, 54 percent of Medicare beneficiaries (34.1 million) were in MA plans, with UnitedHealthcare covering 9.9 million. During the pandemic seniors deferred care while insurers continued collecting premiums and reporting strong profits. As delayed care resumed, MA profit margins began to shrink and investors reacted negatively.

Read at Truthout