Home-delivered meal benefits drive Part C enrollment
Medicare Advantage programs (MA) are increasingly popular among Medicare-eligible patients. According to Forbes, approximately 28.5 million Americans participate in a Part C plan. That represents 40% of all Medicare enrollees. Part C membership has doubled over the past decade and is expected to grow to include half of Medicare patients by 2026.[1]
An expanding body of literature extolls the range of ancillary benefits offered to members in terms of increased quality of life, decreased dependence on emergency room care, reduced hospitalizations, and hospital readmission rates.
As potential members become ever more aware of the availability of these plans and their benefits, it is incumbent on policy administrators to continually increase the number of member benefits and enhance existing services to remain competitive.
Among them: offering meals for home delivery to your members.
Better nutrition aids member wellness
According to a study published in JAMA, nutritionally sound diets among the over-65 population are on the decline.[2] The CDC reports that poor nutrition leads to and worsens chronic health conditions throughout a patient’s life. These conditions include high-cost and low-quality-of-life morbidities such as heart disease, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers.[3] This is not surprising, as the average American consumes a diet with elevated levels of salt, saturated fats, sugars, and preservatives.
The CDC also notes that meal delivery services for MA members has experienced exponential growth as a health plan benefit. From 2021 to 2022, the percentage of Part C plans offering home meal service grew from 55% to 68%. A key benefit implemented by plan administrators over the past few years is the delivery of medically tailored meals to post-acute patients and members living with chronic health conditions. This benefit meets a vital need for members who often cannot meet the dietary requirements to manage their health conditions, such as those requiring renal diets or diabetic meals.
Medically tailored meal delivery reduces fall risk, depression
Older adults often face challenges beyond managing their chronic conditions. Falls are common and are a leading cause of injury to 1 in 3 Medicare beneficiaries a year. Falls contribute to 800,000 hospitalizations annually, costing over $30 billion to Medicare. Home meal delivery is shown by researchers to prevent falls for several reasons. These include lowered rates of malnutrition, improved weight control, and the addition of light activity that accepting delivery at the door provides. Additional benefits of prepared meal delivery to the home, beyond management of a chronic physical illness, are reduced depression and increased food security.[4]
The LiveWell with Traditions Part C meal benefit difference
Condition-specific diets are often the cornerstone of living with a chronic health issue, long used to help patients avoid preventable hospitalizations. LiveWell with Traditions meal plans for home delivery meet specific dietary needs. These include healthy heart, diabetic-friendly, low sodium, renal-friendly, gluten-free, and vegetarian meals, making nutrition lifestyle changes simple, convenient, and delicious.
LiveWell with Traditions is a market leader in senior meal delivery, dedicated to ensuring those with medical conditions and certain health needs receive the nutrition they require to remain home. And, LiveWell with Traditions ensures Part C partners provide a top-notch service that boasts 97% customer satisfaction.
Every LiveWell with Traditions meal plan benefits health plans and their members because they:
- Comply with strict standards for nutrition and portion size as set by Medicare
- Are created by our in-house chef and designed by our team of registered dietitians
- Promote healing and reduced dependence on emergency care or hospitalization
- Are available to members returning home after an acute-care stay and those managing chronic health conditions
- Meet the needs of a broad segment of MA members
- Are delivered directly to members’ doors from one of 40 distribution centers across 48 states
Direct-to-door service with a warm touch
LiveWell with Traditions is known for its impeccable customer service and courteous meal delivery that spans the continental U.S. As part of that service—and to meet health plan members’ nutritional needs with the utmost care―all meals are delivered to members’ homes direct to their door. When the doorbell rings, members can be assured their meals are hand-delivered by a smiling professional whose aim is to add to the personal touch that LiveWell with Traditions not only promises, but delivers.
For more information on how Medicare Advantage plans can partner with LiveWell with Traditions, visit https://livewellwithtraditions.com/health-plans/
[1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/sallypipes/2022/01/31/medicare-advantage-gives-seniors-an-advantage/?sh=5c4bad202535
[2] https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/payer/avalere-more-medicare-advantage-plans-to-offer-supplemental-benefits-2022
[3] https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/nutrition.htm
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6620777
