Zero-premium Medicare Advantage plans: trends in areas with socioeconomic vulnerability and health needs.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Zero-premium Medicare Advantage (MA) plans are increasingly popular, yet knowledge gaps exist regarding their distribution, enrollment, and quality, particularly in areas with greater socioeconomic vulnerability and clinical need.

Methods

We conducted a serial cross-sectional study of publicly available CMS data from 2019-2024, analyzing 2472 US counties. Annual plan counts and enrollment rates were examined, stratified by county-level socioeconomic and health characteristics (racial/ethnic minority percentage, poverty rate, and prevalence of fair/poor health). Counties were categorized into quartiles for comparison.

Results

Zero-premium MA plans expanded substantially from 2019-2024, rising from 46.02% of MA plans (9.12 million enrollees) to 66.3% (18.76

SUBMITTER: Jiang C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12449130 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature