NJ BUSINESS GROUPS TO CONGRESS: SUPPORT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE

State’s Largest Employer Groups Call on Congressional Delegation to Support Healthcare for NJ Seniors

TRENTON, NJ – Representing tens of thousands of New Jersey businesses, a coalition of the state’s largest employer organizations today called on members of Congress to support full funding for Medicare Advantage, which provides healthcare benefits to over 700,000 New Jersey seniors and disabled individuals. 

The letter -- which was signed by Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey, Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey, Meadowlands Chamber, New Jersey Association of Health Plans, New Jersey Business and Industry Association, New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, and New Jersey Jewish Business Alliance -- asks New Jersey’s congressional delegation to take action to ensure Medicare Advantage remains “strong, stable, and accessible, to New Jersey’s senior citizens.”

The letter reads as follows:

Dear Members of the New Jersey Congressional Delegation:

On behalf of the New Jersey businesses we represent, we are writing to express our support for the Medicare Advantage program and to strongly encourage our state’s Congressional delegation to protect this vital resource for senior citizens across the state of New Jersey.

Medicare Advantage is a public private partnership that offers enormous value to its beneficiaries and the businesses that serve them. Program benefits, including affordable prescriptions, transportation, and wellness services help seniors remain independent. In fact, over 700,000 New Jersey seniors currently rely on Medicare Advantage for their healthcare coverage.

The program's focus on preventive care encourages them to be vibrant, energetic members of their surrounding communities – shopping at local businesses, eating in local restaurants, and participating in community events. In turn, local companies thrive when the communities they serve feature healthy, active, diverse citizens, including seniors. As you know, preventative care is critical to improving early detection and treatment, reducing emergency room visits, lowering the risks of chronic diseases, and reducing overall healthcare costs in our state.

Because it offers high-quality care with affordable premiums and low, out-of-pocket costs, it is no surprise that Medicare Advantage is the top Medicare choice for seniors nationwide, with over half of the Medicare population opting for Medicare Advantage. Studies show that 95% of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are satisfied with their health care quality, and 97% are satisfied with the ease of getting to the doctor.

However, despite its many clear benefits, Medicare Advantage's future is often uncertain. Cuts to the program loom every year. Cutting preventative care and wellness services to senior citizens—the population most in need of them—could have long-reaching impacts, not only on those seniors, but on our state’s economy, and the businesses and communities that serve and care for our seniors as well.

Our entire state benefits when our seniors and retirees have access to stable, affordable healthcare coverage. With that in mind, our New Jersey businesses support—and urge New Jersey's seniors to support—lawmakers who prioritize protecting and strengthening the Medicare Advantage program and all its preventative health benefits.

We strongly encourage the New Jersey Congressional delegation to take action to ensure the Medicare Advantage program remains strong, stable, and accessible to New Jersey's senior citizens.

Sincerely,

Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey

Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey

Meadowlands Chamber 

New Jersey Association of Health Plans

New Jersey Business and Industry Association

New Jersey Chamber of Commerce

New Jersey Jewish Business Alliance