MANAGED CARE October 2008. ©MediMedia USA
How does Medicare stack up against the typical health plan offered by large employers? Hewitt Associates was commissioned to compare the actuarial value of benefits under the original fee-for-service Medicare program to two prototype large employer plans provided to active employees: the Blue Cross Blue Shield standard nationwide preferred provider organization (PPO) option available to federal employees through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and a typical employer PPO plan.
The researchers found that even with its new drug benefit, Medicare on average provides less generous benefits to seniors than they would receive under a typical large employer health plan or the most popular plan available to federal employees.
Source: Hewitt Associates analysis for the Kaiser Family Foundation, 2008