behavioralhealth

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have been active this year proposing major new restrictions on Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Many of the changes are in reaction to provider lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill as well as public outcry over misleading tactics by third-party entities who enroll individuals in the popular senior and disabled plans. Let’s start out with the changes effective January 1, 2024, from the 2024 MA and Part D rule finalized earlier this year.  It is important to note that CMS issued a memo that states that it will enforce the 2024 rule beginning January 1, 2024.  Usually, such rules are enforced through the regular program audit process and it takes a number of years before regulatory changes are rolled into the audit protocols.  That seemed fair as major changes take time for plans to implement.  But in the October 24, 2023, memo issued through