KFF, The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news. Published: Aug 09, 2023
In 2023, more than half (51%) of eligible Medicare beneficiaries – 30.8 million people out of 60.0 million Medicare beneficiaries with both Medicare Parts A and B – are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. Medicare Advantage enrollment as a share of the eligible Medicare population has jumped from 19% in 2007 to 51% in 2023 (Figure 1).
Between 2022 and 2023, total Medicare Advantage enrollment grew by about 2.3 million beneficiaries, or 8 percent – a similar growth rate to the prior year (8%). The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the share of all Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans will rise to 62 percent by 2033.
Over the last decade, Medicare Advantage, the private plan alternative to traditional Medicare, has taken on a more prominent role in the Medicare program. The average Medicare beneficiary in 2023 has access to 43 Medicare Advantage plans, the largest number of options ever. These numbers exclude employer or union-sponsored group plans, Special Needs Plans (SNPs), PACE plans, cost plans, and Medicare-Medicaid plans (MMPs) that are only available to select populations.
