Tricia Neuman

Many pandemic-era flexibilities around Medicare coverage of telehealth are due to expire in December 2024. There is bipartisan support for proposed legislation to extend these provisions for another two years, and Congress is weighing the potential benefits, risks, and costs of permanently expanding Medicare coverage of telehealth services. These FAQs provide answers to key questions about the current scope of Medicare telehealth coverage, including both temporary and permanent changes adopted through legislation and regulation, and policy considerations that lie ahead.

On October 8, 2024, Vice President Harris has proposed to expand Medicare to provide home care to help families who are struggling with the costs of long-term care. If enacted, this would be the first major expansion of Medicare since the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 that added a prescription drug benefit to the program.

On October 8, 2024, Vice President Harris proposed to expand Medicare to provide home care to help families who are struggling with the costs of long-term care.

A review of the 2025 Medicare Advantage plans available for individual enrollment shows that the total number of plans declined by 7% (from 3,959 to 3,699). The average Medicare beneficiary will have the option of 34 Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MA-PD) plans in 2025, just 2 fewer than the 36 options available in 2024. Since 2018, the number of plans available to the average beneficiary has doubled.

This brief presents facts about Medigap, including the characteristics of Medicare beneficiaries with a Medigap policy, variation in Medigap enrollment by state, and Medigap premiums.

This issue brief analyzes federal and state guaranteed issue rules and how they impact beneficiaries’ access to Medigap, including the implications for Medicare beneficiaries with pre-existing conditions and those under age 65 with long-term disabilities. This brief also explores a recently finalized rule: Nondiscrimination in Health Programs and Activities regarding Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act that may have implications for the Medigap market.

This brief provides an overview of the Medicare Advantage plans that are available for 2025 and key trends over time. The average Medicare beneficiary will have the option of 34 Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MA-PD) plans in 2025, 2 fewer than the 36 options available in 2024. The average Medicare beneficiary can choose among plans offered by 8 firms in 2025, the same as in 2024.

This brief provides an overview of premiums and benefits in Medicare Advantage plans that are available for 2025 and key trends over time. Two-thirds of all Medicare Advantage plans with Part D prescription drug coverage (MA-PDs) (67%) will charge no premium (other than the Part B premium) in 2025, similar to 2024 (66%). Nearly all Medicare Advantage plans (97% or more) are offering vision, dental and hearing, as they have in previous years. However, the share of plans offering certain benefits has declined, such as over-the-counter benefits (85% in 2024 vs. 72% in 2025), remote access technologies (74% in 2024 vs. 53% in 2025), meal benefits (72% in 2024 vs. 65% in 2025) and transportation (36% in 2024 vs. 29% in 2025).

Employer and union-sponsored retiree health plans play an important role in providing supplemental benefits to about a quarter (24%) of all people with Medicare or 14.5 million Medicare beneficiaries.

In Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Final Rules from recent years, the administration made changes to Medicare payment policies for certain dental services, in addition to other payment and policy changes. The 2023 rule clarified CMS’s interpretation of when medically necessary dental services can be covered and codified certain payment policies, and the 2023, 2024, and 2025 rules define new clinical scenarios for which Medicare payment can be made for dental services. This brief describes current law related to coverage and payment for dental services under Medicare and the rationale for changes to current policy, explains changes to dental payment and coverage included in these rules, and discusses the impact on Medicare and beneficiaries. While these changes are projected to benefit a small number of Medicare beneficiaries, they do not represent a broad expansion of Medicare coverage of dental services.