Advocates place focus on need for 'seamless transitions' between Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance

A Medicare Rights Center report cautioned that seniors will face coverage gaps unless officials streamline enrollment for Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance under the health law's state exchanges.

The Hill: Patient Group Wants Seamless Transitions Into Medicare
An activist group representing Medicare patients urged state and federal officials to overhaul their Medicare enrollment systems as they implement the Affordable Care Act. In a report Monday, the Medicare Rights Center warned that seniors will face harmful gaps in coverage unless officials streamline enrollment for Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance under the health law's state exchanges. "The complexity of eligibility determination and enrollment processes for Medicare, Medicaid and related subsidy programs, both now and after implementation of the [Affordable Care Act], is daunting," the group wrote (Viebeck, 1/14).

CQ HealthBeat: Advocates Want Seamless Medicaid To Medicare Transition
Individuals that get health insurance because of the overhaul law could see coverage gaps and unnecessary costs as they transition to Medicare if state and federal officials don't make proper preparations, according to a report released Monday by the Medicare Rights Center. The report emphasizes the importance of developing "a thoughtful and comprehensive plan" that provides consumers with seamless coverage as the transition occurs, and it lays out recommendations to accomplish that goal. The health care law creates brand-new transitions to Medicare, beginning in 2014, as individuals who obtain coverage because of the overhaul become eligible for the program, the authors note (Attias, 1/14).