Ali Bers

Exclusive | Seniors Paid Billions in Extra Premiums Due to Alleged Medicare Overpayments A congressional committee found that controversial practices like adding diagnoses in Medicare Advantage triggered higher bills for America’s seniors.

WSJ Ed Board should read their own talented reporters work on MA.

www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Because Social Security administers Medicare enrollment, these issues have affected Medicare beneficiaries too.

A less responsive Social Security Administration also meant more work for claimants and advocates.

As one respondent told us, "The amount of resources spent just to get basic information is phenomenal."

And using that level of resources on routine matters strained organizational capacity. 17/x

In 2025, Social Security also made a push to move clients to online platforms. Those are great...for some people.

But many SSA clients face barriers to operating online, ranging from “someone who's in their 20s, but unhoused” to “someone who's in their 70s and having issues with memory loss.” 10/x

The impact of the changes at Social Security in 2025 landed hardest on those who were already marginalized.

For instance, the phone system rolled out an AI chatbot. Lots of people found it annoying--but for people with speech and communication disabilities, it was a barrier to services. 9/x

New A.C.A. Plans Could Increase Family Deductibles to $31,000

My latest: New A.C.A. Plans Could Increase Family Deductibles to $31,000 www.nytimes.com/2026/02/26/h...

Masked ICE arrests drive 12,000% uptick in Mass. lawsuits challenging detainments Massachusetts courts saw a 12,000% increase in habeas corpus petitions in 2025, which both the U.S. Attorney and immigration lawyers attribute to ICE arrests.

“The number of people in #Massachusetts contesting their detainments after masked men and women seize them off the streets has risen sharply over the past year … [with] a staggering 12,000% surge in habeas corpus petitions filed in Massachusetts federal courts in 2025.”

“a 25% increase in the steady state flow of immigrants to the US would result in 5,000 fewer deaths nationwide. We identify reduced use of nursing homes as a key mechanism driving this result.” - The Effect of Immigration on Older Adult Mortality in the United States

“a 25% increase in the steady state flow of immigrants to the US would result in 5,000 fewer deaths nationwide. We identify reduced use of nursing homes as a key mechanism driving this result.” - The Effect of Immigration on Older Adult Mortality in the United States

This is huge.

Massachusetts is home to tens of thousands of hardworking Haitian TPS recipients who enrich the culture of our state, contribute to our economy, and help ensure we meet the needs of elders and patients in our health care and elder care industries - this victory belongs to them.

HUGE. A victory for more than a quarter million Haitians with Temporary Protected Status. A significant majority of them entered the United States legally and have never been out of status since.

Even the Trump admin isn't saying Haiti is a safe country for them to go back to.

Folks blame government, but: "new work requirements for Medicaid highlight the profits to be made from adding complexity to the safety net. Since Georgia implemented work requirements in 2020, they have spent twice as much on Deloitte consultants & administrative costs as on healthcare for people."

i think this MLK day the thing to focus on is the strategic focus and tactical brilliance of the civil rights movement and the way it was laser focused on a set of achievable goals

Clark’s Dairy in New Haven - the grilled cheeses and ice cream of my childhood’. The best.

Minnesota residents delay medical care for fear of encountering ICE

“Parents are making impossible choices: declining surgery for their children, delaying emergency care, and refusing specialty referrals because they have calculated that the risks of deportation or family separation exceed the medical necessity."
www.cidrap.umn.edu/influenza-ge...

Experts Alarmed by USPSTF Work Slowdown 'This is going to be a recipe for disaster'

Experts Alarmed by USPSTF Work Slowdown www.medpagetoday.com/primarycare/...

CMS to stop requiring states to report childhood vaccination levels

CMS to stop requiring states to report childhood vaccination levels www.cidrap.umn.edu/childhood-va...

“About a third of the staff at one Miami nursing home lost their jobs after the Trump administration ended the programs letting them work legally.”

§1395. Prohibition against any Federal interference Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed to authorize any Federal officer or employee to exercise any supervision or control over the practice of medicine or the manner in which medical services are provided, or over the selection, tenure, or compensation of any officer or employee of any institution, agency, or person providing health services; or to exercise any supervision or control over the administration or operation of any such institution, agency, or person.

By doing so here, the Trump Administration runs smack into the prohibition on Medicare and Medicaid regulating the practice of medicine (as opposed to deciding what they'll pay for). Congress recognized regulating the practice of medicine is a state function, not one for Medicare/Medicaid.

I am not aware of another Medicare/Medicaid condition of participation that bars a provider from using clinical judgment to provide a particular treatment to patients *not* paid for with federal dollars.

Under the proposed rule issued by the Trump Administration today, any Medicare- or Medicaid-participating hospital would be barred from providing gender-affirming care to *any child*, even if the care is not paid for by Medicare or Medicaid.

public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2025-23465.pdf

With no extension of enhanced tax credits, ACA enrollees are going to start the year with premium payments increasing by an average of 114%, or over $1,000 a year per person. Some will find a way to pay it, some have switched to higher deductibles, and some have dropped coverage.

Medicare Scammers Are Calling Seniors 50 Times a Day, Trying to Trap Them

Scammers often purport to offer private Medicare Advantage plans; confusing array of enrollment options/procedures creates opportunities for fraudsters.

Complaints About Gaps in Medicare Advantage Networks Are Common. Federal Enforcement Is Rare. - KFF Health News Health systems drop out of Medicare Advantage plans all the time. Yet government documents obtained by KFF Health News show that federal regulators rarely warn plans that their networks of health providers are so skimpy they violate legal requirements.

Complaints about gaps in Medicare Advantage networks are common. Federal enforcement is rare.

Thousands of Washington state Medicare users could soon have claims denied by AI Starting Jan. 1, traditional Medicare recipients in Washington state will face a new hurdle to get certain procedures covered — private AI companies that get paid based on how many claims they deny.

Starting Jan. 1, traditional Medicare recipients in Washington state will face a new hurdle to get certain procedures covered — private AI companies that get paid based on how many claims they deny.

www.kuow.org/stories/thou...

‘The government is subsidizing corporate profits’: Who employs the most SNAP recipients in Massachusetts? - The Boston Globe In Massachusetts, 74 percent of working-age SNAP recipients have jobs.

In Massachusetts, 74% of working-age recipients of food stamps are employed, half of them full-time. Nearly 2,500 work for Amazon and another 2,300 work for Walmart. Uber, DoorDash and Tempus Unlimited each have more than 1,400 workers who rely on SNAP www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/28/m...

Not out yet, but my forthcoming book Coverage Denied is available for preorder! www.amazon.com/Coverage-Den...

Ain't No Party Like an Administrative Burden Party You are cordially invited to Admin Night - bring your paperwork

We're drowning in passwords & multi-factor authentication & chatbots & "unusually high call volume" & robots ignoring "representative!"

We should think more carefully about how Social Security uses these tools with our parents & grandparents.

donmoynihan.substack.com/p/aint-no-pa...

I decided to convert dollars to centimeters. That allows us to visualize, for example, the distance between having no money and being at poverty level — about four city blocks.
2/8

Alice Wong was such an amazing activist. I had the honour of meeting her when she spoke as part of the Disrupting Disruptions series that I organize. May we continue to honour her work by working towards a more socially just world.