CMS will allow Medicare Advantage insurers to expand supplemental benefits, which could provide a greater opportunity for rideshare companies teaming up with insurers to bring beneficiaries to medical appointments, according to Forbes contributor Bruce Japsen.
In its 2019 Rate Announcement and Call Letter, CMS said it is "reinterpreting the standards for health-related supplemental benefits in the Medicare Advantage program to include additional services that increase health and improve quality of life."
Under the new guidelines, "the agency will allow supplemental benefits if they compensate for physical impairments, diminish the impact of injuries or health conditions, and/or reduce avoidable emergency room utilization," CMS said.
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association's Vice President of Health Policy and Analysis Kris Haltmeyer told Mr. Japsen broadening supplemental benefits could let Medicare Advantage insurers extend services to medical appointment transportation.
Rideshare companies Lyft and Uber have already teamed up with organizations to offer rides to physician appointments. In March, BCBS expanded its partnership with Lyft to give plan enrollees rides to their neighborhood Walgreens and CVS pharmacies, as part of a new company known as the Blue Cross Blue Shield Institute. Ridehailing service app Uber on March 1 announced its intent to team up with various healthcare organizations nationwide to provide transportation for patients traveling to and from medical appointments.
Mr. Japsen writes if Medicare Advantage insurers can include ridesharing services in their policies, it could be a "boon" to Uber and Lyft. Lauren Belive, director of federal government relations at Lyft, told Becker's Hospital Review CMS' guidance "will allow us to partner even more dynamically with [Medicare Advantage] plans, to not just help seniors suffering from chronic health conditions get to their health appointments, but to more broadly leverage our platform to remove transportation barriers, and encourage healthy and active living."