Responses to Public Comments

CMS Responses to Public Comments Received for the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS), CMS-P-0015A

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) received three comments related to the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) information collection request. This is the reconciliation of those comments.

Comment:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) received a comment from Anthem, Inc. requesting that CMS share survey results at the aggregate level for Medicare Advantage (MA) and Part D beneficiaries to enable health plans to further improve person-centered outcomes.

Response:

CMS appreciates the suggestion and interest in using MCBS data to benchmark trends and implement strategies to improve the quality-of-care delivery in the MA and Part D programs. Key estimates, such as satisfaction with care, for beneficiaries participating in MA programs are publicly available via the MCBS Chart Book. With a Data Use Agreement (DUA), researchers can access more detailed data for analysis. CMS will reach out to Anthem to understand the level of detail they are looking for and to answer any questions about data access.

Comment:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) received a comment from the Movement Advancement Project (MAP) requesting that CMS add questions about sexual orientation and gender identity to the demographics section of the survey.

Response:

CMS appreciates the suggestion. Recently, CMS had determined that adding sexual orientation and gender identity is needed on the MCBS to improve measures of health equity. CMS agrees with the commenter and the request for OMB approval of a revision to the MCBS proposes to add sexual orientation and gender identity items currently fielded on the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) and the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey.

Comment:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) received a comment from an individual asking for more information about how MCBS data will be used and whether data collected can be used to retaliate against those who participate.

Response:

CMS appreciates the question. Respondent materials included in Attachment 1 include advance letters, brochures, frequently asked questions, and outreach materials used when first gaining cooperation with respondents. These materials—as well as the MCBS website found at mcbs.norc.org—state that participation is voluntary and that Medicare benefits will not be affected in any way based on a decision to participate in the survey or not. Survey responses are aggregated and used for research and statistical purposes to help inform policy decisions.

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