MedPage TodayCMS Puts the Kibosh on Misleading Medicare Advantage Sales Pitches

In a three-page letter, Kathryn A. Coleman, director of the agency’s Medicare Drug and Health Plan Contract Administration Group, stated that CMS is immediately stepping up its examination of marketing materials, which are required to be submitted in accordance with its legal “File and Use” authority for Medicare Advantage and Part D drug plans, and “may exercise its authority to prohibit” their use. As of right now, Medicare Advantage marketing materials are allowed to go live five days after being submitted, as long as the company submitting them “certifies the material complies with all applicable standards.” Starting January 1, 2023, however, no television advertisements will be eligible for submission under its “File and Use” authority, meaning that the advertisements will not air until CMS approves them.