The majority staff of the Senate Homeland Security & Government Affairs Committee recently released a report detailing how several Medicare Advantage (MA) insurers deny claims for post-acute care at significantly higher rates than they do for other services. This report, Refusal of Recovery: How Medicare Advantage Insurers Have Denied Patients Access to Post-Acute Care, builds off an investigation that began in May 2023.

This report highlights the urgent need for reform of the prior authorization process, particularly under the MA program, and the need for Congress to immediately pass the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act. This bipartisan legislation, endorsed by the Academy, would help protect patients from unnecessary delays in care by streamlining and standardizing prior authorization under the MA program.

Please take two minutes today to advocate for your specialty and your patients on this critical issue. Contact your representatives in the U.S. Congress to urge them to cosponsor this legislation and allow you to focus on providing high-quality healthcare to your patients.