Medicare's annual enrollment period is officially underway, and, to assist beneficiaries in selecting plans, U.S. News & World Report has released its list of the best Medicare Advantage (MA) and Part D insurers.
The highest-scoring national insurer for MA is Aetna, which earned four out of five stars. U.S. News bases its ratings on 34 quality measures established by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). These measures are then assigned a weight, which doesn't necessarily align each time with how CMS weights them.
Measures include key preventive screenings like those for cancer, chronic condition care and complaints filed by enrollees.
“With so many Medicare Advantage options to choose from, it’s crucial for seniors to have access to high quality, data-driven resources as they make their health care decisions,” said Sumita Singh, senior vice president and general manager of health at U.S. News, in a press release.
The highest overall score in MA went to Devoted Health, which operates in 12 states, as well as Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan. Both earned 4.2 out of five stars, according to U.S. News.
Highmark Health, which operates in 13 states, scored a 4.1.
Three major national insurers made the list of top Part D companies: Elevance Health, Centene and Humana. The highest scorer overall was Medica, which earned 3.9 out of five stars. Medica offers Part D coverage in 10 states.
Elevance Health earned a 3.5 out of five score, and Centene received a 3.2 score. Centene is the largest Part D company in the ratings, U.S. News said, representing 4.6 million enrollee across all 50 states.
Humana, meanwhile, earned three out of five stars.