The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released several updates Wednesday on the website as part of a larger effort to improve transparency for consumers.
“We are committed to listening to the people we serve as we design and deliver new, personalized online resources and expanded support options for people with Medicare coverage and those who support them,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure in a statement.
One of the key new features is to redesign the Medicare.gov home page to add more detailed information on Medigap policies and plan costs. Other new information on the homepage aims to improve how to compare and select drug coverage.
The changes also include new messages on the homepage that highlight the information most requested by people on Medicare, people nearing eligibility or family members.
CMS said the updates are part of a larger effort to redesign the site, including an update last summer aimed at making it easier for people to sign up for Medicare coverage.
“Additional improvements are planned for the next few months to streamline the Medicare Plan Finder landing page and the Medicare Account landing page and align the look and feel with the new home page,” the agency added.
CMS has sought to improve price transparency in recent years as an effort to combat rising healthcare costs, including imposing requirements for hospitals to post certain prices online.