August 27, 2025 - CHICAGO — The AMA strongly supports the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) recent decision to upgrade Medicare Plan Finder so patients can choose plans that actually include their trusted physicians and hospitals.
This direction mirrors AMA’s January 2025 advocacy (PDF) calling for HHS to integrate plan network data into Plan Finder. Once this is complete, patients no longer will be forced to click through multiple websites just to confirm if their physicians are in-network.
“When choosing their Medicare plan, patients need easy access to accurate, accessible and actionable information. Informed decision-makers have fewer regrets,” said AMA President Bobby Mukkamala, M.D. “We commend HHS’ intent and commitments—and see this as a clear response to persistent AMA advocacy on behalf of physicians and our patients.”
The Medicare Plan, available at Medicare.gov, helps patients compare different Medicare Advantage (Part C), Medicare Prescription Drug (Part D), and Medigap plans. Patients are prompted to enter their zip code, medications, and preferred pharmacies. The tool then generates a list of plans available in the area, along with estimated costs.
The AMA has heard from patients struggling to navigate the Plan Finder, and we have urged HHS to deliver a one-stop tool where patients can: verify if a doctor or hospital is in network; filter plans by specialty, location, language, and hospital affiliation; and avoid post-enrollment surprises.
To ensure the upgraded Plan Finder is accurate and reliable, the AMA urges HHS to require Medicare Advantage plans to:
- Submit provider network updates within 30 days of any changes
- Provide contracted provider list to HHS annually and whenever changes occur
- Post the lists on the Medicare Plan Finder website in both a web-friendly and downloadable spreadsheet form
- Attest to accuracy of their data with routine audits and meaningful penalties for bad data
- Feed directory information through a standardized, automated data pipeline (no manual uploads)
- Connect Plan Finder to a national, verified source of provider information to reduce errors and duplicates
- Build the user interface to be accessible and in plain language.
“Physicians and patients will benefit if Plan Finder is user-friendly. Getting this right will reduce ‘Are you in network?’ calls, curtail avoidable plan switches, and spare front-desk staff the scavenger hunt across portals,” Mukkamala said. “We look forward to partnering with Secretary Kennedy to implement these practical updates quickly and keep them enforced over time. Bottom line: HHS heard physicians. When HHS makes this happen, patients will finally be able to pick a plan with confidence that their care team is in network.”
About the American Medical Association
The American Medical Association is the physicians’ powerful ally in patient care. As the only medical association that convenes 190+ state and specialty medical societies and other critical stakeholders, the AMA represents physicians with a unified voice to all key players in health care. The AMA leverages its strength by removing the obstacles that interfere with patient care, leading the charge to prevent chronic disease and confront public health crises and, driving the future of medicine to tackle the biggest challenges in health care.
Source: AMA
