{"id":47059,"date":"2026-03-06T11:36:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T19:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=47059"},"modified":"2026-03-06T11:36:02","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T19:36:02","slug":"medicare-advantage-is-not-medicare-democrats-proposal-would-unmask-for-profit-fraudsters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/03\/06\/medicare-advantage-is-not-medicare-democrats-proposal-would-unmask-for-profit-fraudsters\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Medicare Advantage Is Not Medicare\u2019: Democrats Proposal Would Unmask For-Profit Fraudsters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Democratic<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Advocates hold signs during a news conference on Medicare Advantage plans in front of the US Capitol on July 25, 2023 in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0(Photo by Alex Wong\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t allow banks to call themselves the U.S. Treasury Investment Fund,\u201d said Rep. Mark Pocan. \u201cWe don\u2019t allow anyone to call themselves USPS Plus. So why allow insurance companies to call private insurance Medicare Advantage?\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Brad Reed<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mar 05, 2026 (CommonDreams.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A group of Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday reintroduced legislation aimed at reining in for-profit insurance companies who use the Medicare<\/a> name to market their plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cSave Medicare Act,\u201d being reintroduced<\/a> by US Reps. Mark Pocan<\/a> (D-Wis.), Ro Khanna<\/a> (D-Calif.), and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), bars private insurers from using the word \u201cMedicare\u201d in marketing their plans, imposing \u201csignificant fines\u201d for any insurer that doesn\u2019t comply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RECOMMENDED…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"U.S.<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While Cost of Living Soars and Healthcare Taken Away, Trump Spending $1 Billion Per Day in War of Choice With Iran<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Trump<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Trump Says He\u2019s \u2018Entitled\u2019 to Illegal Third Term as Allies Draft Voter Suppression Decree<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At issue, the lawmakers said, is that insurers are flooding the airwaves with ads for Medicare Advantage<\/a> plans during open enrollment periods. The ads are deceiving Americans into thinking their plans are just variations of Medicare services offered by the federal government, they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLet\u2019s be clear: Medicare Advantage<\/a> is not Medicare,\u201d said Schakowsky. \u201cThese private insurance plans use Medicare\u2019s trusted name while too often denying medically necessary care, restricting providers, and overcharging taxpayers by billions. That is unacceptable. We have seen insurers exploit the system to boost profits at the expense of seniors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Khanna noted that Medicare Advantage is \u201ca private insurance program that too often boosts profits by limiting coverage,\u201d even as it \u201cmisleads seniors into thinking it\u2019s traditional Medicare.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s wrong,\u201d Khanna emphasized. \u201cThis legislation will stop private insurers from cashing in on the Medicare name. We should be working to protect and expand real Medicare instead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pocan declared that \u201conly Medicare is Medicare,\u201d adding that Medicare Advantage plans \u201coften leave patients without the benefits they need while overcharging the federal government for corporate profit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis bill makes clear what is\u2014and what is not\u2014Medicare,\u201d added Pocan, \u201cand ensures this essential program will continue to serve seniors and other Americans for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pocan also posted<\/a> a video on social media<\/a> where he talked about his elderly mother being unable to see the physician that came to her assisted living home because she relied on Medicare Advantage and the doctor in question was out of network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe would have had to go all the way across town to get that care,\u201d Pocan explained. \u201cThe problem is, she wasn\u2019t very mobile and she never got the medical care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

We don't allow banks to call themselves the U.S. Treasury Investment Fund. We don't allow anyone to call themselves USPS Plus.

So why allow insurance companies to call private insurance Medicare Advantage?

I\u2019m reintroducing the Save Medicare Act with @RepRoKhanna<\/a> and\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/c6dAXpEJqY<\/a><\/p>— Rep. Mark Pocan (@RepMarkPocan) March 4, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote>