Medicare plans resume marketing.

All seven of the private fee-for-service Medicare plans that voluntarily suspended marketing last summer (INTERNAL MEDICINE NEWS, Sept. 1, p. 50) have been found to be compliant with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requirements and may resume marketing activities for the 2008 benefit year, the agency announced. CMS officials expressed concern over the summer that insurance brokers and agents were engaging in deceptive practices, such as telling beneficiaries that private fee-for-service plans are accepted by all Medicare providers. A comprehensive review of the plans conducted by CMS has verified that "vast improvements to their internal controls and oversight processes" have been made. The agency also announced that it has beefed up its oversight procedures, including requiring specific disclaimer language in enrollee materials. "We believe the new requirements and compliance plans build a system that is designed to prevent marketing violations," CMS Acting Administrator Kerry Weems said in a statement. The seven plans are United-Health Group, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee, Humana, Sterling, Well-Care, Coventry, and Universal American Financial Corp.