New Medicare Program: Full List of Services That Will Need Prior Approval

[Ms. Toad]

69. No. They said they should be banned from using "Medicare" in their names.

Advantage plans are private insurance, and they should be banned from using " Medicare" in their name.

That was the basis of my reaction. They use "Medicare" in their names because they are part of Medicare.

I agree Medicare should not have authorized such plans, but that ship has sailed. Because they are part of the statutory Medicare scheme, the use of the name is proper.

As for being non-profit, the supplement portion of original Medicare is also run by for-profit insurance companies. It's not as obvious because they aren't advertised much because they don't make much profit for the companies offering them (since the insurance companies don't have a lot of control over what is covered.)