Medicare HMO's Cutting Benefits for the Elderly

Yahoo - Reuters -- Seniors enrolled in Medicare HMOs this year are facing more cost-sharing and tighter limits on supplemental benefits like prescription drugs, marking a continued erosion of the perks they get by opting out of traditional Medicare, according to report released Thursday by The Commonwealth Fund.

The new research adds grist to the rancorous national debate over a White House plan to lure Medicare beneficiaries into private health plans to squeeze program costs.