{"id":266560,"date":"2025-11-02T08:26:27","date_gmt":"2025-11-02T08:26:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/266560\/"},"modified":"2025-11-02T08:26:27","modified_gmt":"2025-11-02T08:26:27","slug":"health-officials-scrambling-to-fix-new-medicare-directory-after-report-finds-errors-that-could-cost-seniors-even-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/266560\/","title":{"rendered":"Health officials scrambling to fix new Medicare directory after report finds errors that could cost seniors even more"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the midst of Medicare<\/a>\u2019s annual open enrollment period, a government tool designed to look up and compare plans has created massive headaches for older Americans.<\/p>\n

Federal health officials are now scrambling to fix tech issues, first reported by The Washington Post, that are displaying inaccuracies in the new online directory for Medicare Advantage plans on the Medicare Plan Finder (MPF). (1)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Hosted on Medicare.gov, the MPF<\/a> is supposed to make it easy for beneficiaries to shop for coverage, but The Post found the tool frequently showed wrong and conflicting information about whether providers were in-network for a particular plan. Experts fear this might confuse beneficiaries and lead them to pay big health bills if they\u2019re misinformed about their plans, reports the publication.<\/p>\n

Medicare, the government program that provides health insurance to Americans over the age of 65, as well as people with disabilities, serves 60-plus million people, with around 34 million enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, according to KFF. (2) Even a small issue with the enrollment process can have far-reaching consequences.<\/p>\n

A statement from the Department of Health and Human Services<\/a> (HHS) sent to news outlets said the agency is addressing \u201csome user interface and data alignment issues to ensure the best possible experience\u201d for consumers.<\/p>\n

While the HHS is working to fix the issues, beneficiaries should ensure their provider is covered under their any new plan by verifying the information provided in the MPF. That can be done by visiting the plan’s website directly or working with a broker to ensure you’re selecting the right plan.<\/p>\n

Read more: Robert Kiyosaki warns of a ‘Greater Depression’ coming to the US \u2014 with millions of Americans going poor. But he says these 2 ‘easy-money’ assets will bring in \u2018great wealth\u2019<\/a>. How to get in now<\/p>\n

However, experts acknowledge that it can be challenging to verify information manually, which is precisely why the new MPF was designed. Having all the information in one easy-to-navigate tool \u201cis a step toward addressing a long-standing shortcoming for the plan finder,\u201d Jeannie Fuglesten Biniek, associate director for the Program on Medicare Policy at KFF told AARP. (3)<\/p>\n

Medicare open enrollment for 2026 runs from Oct. 15th to Dec. 7. During this time, Medicare users can change their plan, switch how they get coverage or select a new drug plan.<\/p>\n

However, if you wind up choosing a bad plan by mistake, you may be in luck. A memo posted by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) back in September says a special election period will be opened to allow certain individuals who enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans with effective dates from Jan. 1 to Dec. 1 of 2026, to switch plans. Only those who relied on MPF directory information to select a Medicare Advantage plan, enrolled in a plan through the MPF and discovered within three months of coverage starting that their preferred provider was not in the plan\u2019s network may be eligible. To be granted a special election period, individuals must call 1-800-MEDICARE.<\/p>\n

While Medicare officials work to iron out the kinks, consumers shouldn\u2019t wait for fixes to protect themselves. Double-check all information before enrolling \u2014 and if something doesn\u2019t add up, verify directly with the insurer. A few extra minutes now could save you thousands in uncovered medical bills later.<\/p>\n

Join 200,000+ readers and get Moneywise\u2019s best stories and exclusive interviews first \u2014 clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now.<\/a><\/p>\n

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Washington Post (1<\/a>); KFF (2<\/a>); AARP (3<\/a>)<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Moneywise.com<\/a> under the title: Health officials scrambling to fix new Medicare directory after report finds errors that could cost seniors even more<\/a><\/p>\n

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In the midst of Medicare\u2019s annual open enrollment period, a government tool designed to look up and compare…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":266561,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[155,97,252,253,1168,9378,1342,9448,143048,143049],"class_list":["post-266560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health-care","tag-dave-ramsey","tag-health","tag-health-care","tag-healthcare","tag-jeff-bezos","tag-kff","tag-medicare","tag-medicare-advantage","tag-mpf","tag-online-directory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=266560"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266560\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/266561"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=266560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=266560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=266560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}