Study: Low-income Medicare enrollees more likely to report food insecurity

Nearly one in 10 Medicare enrollees aged 65 or older, and four in 10 younger Medicare enrollees with long-term disabilities, experience food insecurity, according to a study reported today in JAMA Internal Medicine. Lower-income enrollees in both groups were more likely to report food insecurity, based on data from the 2016 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey. “The findings highlight the appropriateness of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services intensifying focus on social determinants of health, exemplified by the Accountable Health Communities model, which targets [Medicare and Medicaid] dual enrollees, and the recent expansion of allowable supplemental benefits in Medicare Advantage plans,” the authors said.