Poll: Boomers, seniors have limited grasp of Medicare

Findings from a recent poll of older adults suggest a majority of Medicare beneficiaries need to be educated on all aspects of the program, including coverage options and even the basics of Medicare itself.

Five hundred baby boomers (age 60-64) and 1,000 seniors (age 65+) were polled via telephone this past July by research firm GfK Roper on behalf of the National Council on Aging with support from UnitedHealthCare.

The results showed 46 percent of respondents have never shopped around for better Medicare coverage because they thought they couldn’t save any money (41 percent), were confused by Medicare (35 percent), or didn’t understand Medicare at all (16 percent). In addition, only 12 percent described their understanding of the health reform law as “excellent” or “good.”

Keeping pace with current talks in Washington surrounding entitlement reforms, only 5 percent of boomers believe that Medicare will “exist as it is” throughout their own retirement years, the survey read.

Click here to read the full poll results (PDF format).