Press Release

AAF Reviews MA Stars Program

The American Action Forum (@AAF) today released new research analyzing the Medicare Advantage (MA) Stars program. The research examines whether the Stars rating system penalizes plans with high Low-Income Subsidy (LIS) and dual-eligible enrollees. The key findings include:

  • On average, MA contracts with over 30 percent LIS enrollment have a lower rating than other plans by 0.5 Stars;
  • We find a significant penalty in Stars rating for plans with significant LIS enrollment;
  • This implies a financial penalty to those MA plans with significant LIS enrollment, which in turn reduces the resources available to vulnerable low income populations; and
  • A total of more than $470 million in bonus payments could be lost due to reduced ratings. For individuals, our estimates range from a reduction of $380 to $410 per senior.

Click here to read the research.

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