2020 Medicare Advantage Statistics
Medicare Advantage enrollment has grown rapidly over the past decade, and Medicare Advantage plans have taken on a larger role in the Medicare program.
In 2020, more than one-third (36%) of all Medicare beneficiaries – 24.1 million people out of 67.7 million Medicare beneficiaries overall – are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans; this rate has steadily increased over time since the early 2000s. Between 2019 and 2020, total Medicare Advantage enrollment grew by about 2.1 million beneficiaries, or 9 percent – nearly the same growth rate as the prior year. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the share of all Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans will rise to about 51 percent by 2030.
tage plans; this rate has steadily increased over time since the early 2000s. Between 2019 and 2020, total Medicare Advantage enrollment grew by about 2.1 million beneficiaries, or 9 percent – nearly the same growth rate as the prior year. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the share of all Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans will rise to about 51 percent by 2030.
Nearly one in five Medicare Advantage enrollees (19%) are in group plans offered by employers and unions for their retirees in 2020, roughly the same share since 2014. Under these arrangements, employers or unions contract with an insurer and Medicare pays the insurer a fixed amount per enrollee to provide benefits covered by Medicare. The employer or union (and sometimes the retiree) may also pay a premium for additional benefits or lower cost-sharing. Group enrollees comprise a disproportionately large share of Medicare Advantage enrollees in nine states: Alaska (100%), Michigan (49%), West Virginia (44%), New Jersey (40%), Wyoming (36%), Illinois (35%), Maryland (35%), Kentucky (34%), and Delaware (31%).