@GretchJacob profile picture
Gretchen Jacobson @GretchJacob

Vice President of Medicare at The Commonwealth Fund @commonwealthfnd

Joined June 2010
  • Tweets 507
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  • Followers 1,900
111 Photos and videos
Fraud in the Medicare home health benefit has been a recent focus of the Administration's. But how do we eliminate fraud while making benefits easily accessible to those who need them? It's a tough - but essential - regulatory balance. @Health_Affairs healthaffairs.org/content/fo…

Maximizing The Potential Of Medicare’s Home Health Benefit | Health Affairs Forefront

As home-based models of care continue to expand, it is equally important to strengthen and modernize the existing Medicare home health benefit.

healthaffairs.org
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The TrumpRx launch highlights that even Medicare beneficiaries may use sites like this, even though they don't take insurance. About 1 in 5 Medicare beneficiaries said they had used GoodRx or other drug discount site in the past yr - mostly to lower costs. commonwealthfund.org/blog/20…

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Gretchen Jacobson retweeted
NEJM
@NEJM
Feb 3
Perspective by @DavidBlumenthal, MD, MPP, Elizabeth Fowler, JD, PhD, and Gretchen Jacobson, PhD (@GretchJacob): Medicare’s Role in Fighting Chronic Disease nej.md/4t5ZfXS #HealthPolicy #MedicalPractice
A figure showing the prevalence of chronic conditions among U.S. adults, 2013–2023.

ALT A figure showing the prevalence of chronic conditions among U.S. adults, 2013–2023.
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Medicare beneficiaries will be able to choose from 10 prescription drug plans (PDPs), on average, in 2026 -- 4 fewer than in 2025. Fewer plans will be available in every state. Choice matters because coverage is only useful if it makes your drugs affordable at your pharmacy.
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After the ACA, experts predicted Medicare Advantage enrollment would steeply decline -- but the opposite happened. In @Health_Affairs Cori Uccello & I explain why this happened. It's a story of payment incentives, structural barriers & demographic changes. healthaffairs.org/doi/full/1…

Medicare Advantage Enrollment Since The ACA: What The Projections Did Not Foresee | Health Affairs...

After the Affordable Care Act reduced payments to Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, economists and actuaries projected steep enrollment declines. Instead, MA enrollment more than doubled between 2010...

healthaffairs.org
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Gretchen Jacobson retweeted
American Academy of Actuaries
@Actuary_Dot_Org
30 Jul 2025
#MedicareAdvantage defied expectations w rapid growth after #ACA enactment. Today in @Health_Affairs, co-authors @GretchJacob & @Actuary_dot_org Sr Health Fellow Cori Uccello examine why – and explore reform options to further improve MA for beneficiaries. bit.ly/4l9v0u6

Medicare Advantage Enrollment Since The ACA: What The Projections Did Not Foresee | Health Affairs...

After the Affordable Care Act reduced payments to Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, economists and actuaries projected steep enrollment declines. Instead, MA enrollment more than doubled between 2010...

healthaffairs.org
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Gretchen Jacobson retweeted
Melinda B. Buntin@MelindaBBuntin
19 Oct 2024
The Opportunity Costs of Medicare Advantage Plan Rebates | New England Journal of Medicine with ⁦@GretchJacob⁩ and Cori Uccello ⁦@Actuary_Dot_Org⁩ ⁦@JHU_CHSPM⁩ ⁦@JohnsHopkinsSPH⁩ ⁦@JHU_BDPs⁩ ⁦@JHUCarey⁩ nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NE…

The Opportunity Costs of Medicare Advantage Plan Rebates | NEJM

Medicare Advantage rebates fund extra benefits but increase costs for traditional Medicare enrollees. Could other methods of providing extra benefits improve beneficiary outcomes and Medicare’s fin...

nejm.org
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1 in 5 Medicare beneficiaries have said they got their prescriptions last year through online drug discount businesses, like GoodRx, primarily to lower their costs. But do they know this spending doesn’t count toward their Part D out-of-pocket limit? commonwealthfund.org/blog/20…
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"There are challenges that Medicare is facing that will be faced by the [next] administration regardless of which administration."
Richard Eisenberg
@richeis315
11 Sep 2024
Trump and Harris said little about Medicare at the debate. Here’s how Medicare could change under both | Fortune Well fortune.com/well/article/how…
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Gretchen Jacobson retweeted
JAMA
@JAMA_current
28 Aug 2024
In this Viewpoint, @DavidBlumenthal and @GretchJacob explore the affordability of health care services for Medicare Advantage vs traditional Medicare beneficiaries. ja.ma/3T8q8tQ
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Multiple surveys have shown few differences in the affordability of care for Medicare Advantage beneficiaries vs those in traditional Medicare. In our new article, we discuss why this may the case and possible explanations. @DavidBlumenthal @JAMA_current jamanetwork.com/journals/jam…

How Affordable Is Medicare Advantage?

This Viewpoint explores the affordability of health care services for Medicare Advantage vs traditional Medicare beneficiaries.

jamanetwork.com
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Gretchen Jacobson retweeted
BSPH / HPM@BSPH_HPM
26 Jun 2024
"Because of the research and analytical skills I gained at HPM, I was prepared to engage with policymakers in dynamic and rapidly evolving policy discussions,” says HPM PhD ’07 Alum & @CommonWealthFnd VP of Medicare @GretchJacob. Read about her career: publichealth.jhu.edu/2024/fr…
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ICYMI, we looked at survey responses from PCPs and found few differences in how care is delivered for Medicare Advantage vs traditional Medicare (TM) beneficiaries. But it was interesting to see how few PCPs these days only see pts with TM (among those who see any Medicare pts)
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You can see more of our results here: commonwealthfund.org/publica…

Does Medicare Advantage Affect the Way Primary Care Practices Deliver Care?

As Medicare Advantage enrollment continues to grow, the effects on primary care practices will be important to monitor.

commonwealthfund.org
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Gretchen Jacobson retweeted
Jordan Rau@jordanrau
4 Jan 2024
More air talk, this time with WBUR, about our @KFFHealthNews - @NYTHealth series on long-term care costs. wbur.org/hereandnow/2024/01/…

Most Americans are 'Dying Broke'

Long-term care is out of reach for many older Americans.

wbur.org
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ICYMI, @DavidBlumenthal and I discuss the growing and changing landscape of private plans in Medicare for @NEJM We lay out how the program works, how it compares to traditional Medicare, and what this growth means for Medicare and its enrollees. nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NE…

The Predominance of Medicare Advantage | NEJM

Enrollment in Medicare Advantage will soon exceed enrollment in traditional fee-for-service Medicare. The authors discuss the drivers of its growth as well as its performance as compared with that ...

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more replies
We don’t have solid answers to how MA compares to TM across important facets, incl. quality of care for high-need benes & the effects of prior auth and denials on outcomes & spending. We also do not know to what degree plans’ supplemental benefits are used & valued by enrollees.
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The big challenge as Medicare Advantage continues to grow will be to ensure that the Medicare program provides affordable, high quality care, is efficient, honest and free from abuse, and meets beneficiaries’ needs.
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