Strong consumer protections are a cornerstone of any good health care system. The release today of regulations that include a Patient's Bill of Rights-made possible by health reform-marks a major step forward in transforming our health care system to one that is centered on the needs of patients. Many of the protections announced today already exist in Medicare, which demonstrates how much we can learn from the experiences of Medicare consumers and the program overall.

The Medicare Rights Center has long supported reforming the private health insurance market to help consumers better access care. New protections included in health reform assure that a higher share of premiums paid to plans, including Medicare Advantage plans, will be used for actual care and health services rather than for other purposes, such as administrative costs, marketing and profits.

Source:
Medicare Rights Center