Daily Progress -- Senator Tim Kaine was in Charlottesville to participate in a roundtable discussion with the Jefferson Area Board for Aging, a nonprofit agency that provides services and resources to Central Virginia’s older residents, their families and caregivers. They were joined by representatives from the pharmacy and geriatric departments within the University of Virginia Health System.

Kaine, who is running for his third term, took the opportunity to tout his work on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, or HELP, Committee, where he has pushed legislation reducing prescription drug prices. That includes the Inflation Reduction Act, which established caps for Medicare beneficiaries on insulin at $35 per month, and the Delinking Revenue from Unfair Gouging, or DRUG, Act, which prevents pharmaceutical companies from price-gouging patients.

Those at the table Friday, however, were interested orienting Kaine toward what still needs to be done to address a confusing, convoluted system that permits predatory advertising practices.

Randy Rodgers, the manager of the board’s insurance counseling team, said he has only seen the predatory practices get worse over the past three years. It is now escalating at an alarming rate, he said.

The private companies that contract with Medicare are knowingly offering Medicare Advantage plans that, on the surface, appear to be more affordable with similar benefits, he said. However, the program has “a lot of drawbacks” in Virginia, as its coverage of medical costs and emergencies is not as extensive as it seems and a high number of health care providers do not accept the plan.

“The most common thing I hear from Medicare Advantage beneficiaries is, ‘I liked my Medicare Advantage plan until I had to use it,’” Rodgers told the senator.

Several counselors with the board for aging who advise the elderly on Medicare said they have witnessed firsthand as their clients have fallen prey to deceptive marketing and taken plans that will not cover them in emergencies or after serious diagnoses.

“I think the elderly and disabled, which we do serve a great deal, are very susceptible to aggressive marketing and end up making the wrong decision because of a phone call or TV ad that puts them in the wrong plan. And then they’re stuck,” said Karen Schwenzer, a former physician who now volunteers as an insurance counselor. “We have a vulnerable elderly population and a lot of cognitive impairment. … The people that are most vulnerable tend to get hurt.”

Kaine said it was not the first time he’s heard such concerns, given his position on the HELP Committee.

When it comes to Medicare Advantage, Kaine said, “It’s a lot of advantage but not much Medicare.”

“People pitch these plans as if they’re going to be better,” Kaine said. “All of a sudden, you’re finding that ‘If I just had stayed in the traditional Medicare, it would have been covered. Under the Medicare Advantage plan, it’s not.’” Read more…