LINCOLN- State hospital officials issued a warning to senior citizens: Know what you’re buying when you sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan. Officials with the Nebraska Hospital Association said they often run into patients who don’t realize that their local hospital isn’t in the network for their advantage plan, only to discover big out-of-pocket bills later.

In addition, such plans more often deny coverage for medical care and require lengthy and time-consuming authorization processes that delay needed care or require patients to spend more time in a hospital. “Medicare Advantage will work well for some seniors, especially those who will remain healthy, but for many seniors it leaves holes, which can mean significant out of pocket costs,” said Jeremy Nordquist, the president of the Nebraska Hospital Association.

Medicare Advantage plans, officials said, now cover 51% of all Medicare-eligible individuals, a sharp rise in recent years. But nearly 33% of all Nebraska hospitals decline to participate with “certain” Advantage plans, the Hospital Association said. The hospital officials outlined more than one example of how patient care was denied or delayed.

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