Events
Our events shine a light on how Medicare can serve us better and provide a forum for surfacing challenges and exchanging solutions. Want to be the first to know about future events? Sign up for our email newsletter and get the latest updates.
Upcoming Events
Leveling the Playing Field in Medicare Advantage: The Role of Smaller Plans in a Changing Market
As Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment continues to grow, policymakers face important decisions about how to design payment, marketing and coverage policies in a rapidly evolving market. While large national plans play a significant role, about one-fifth of MA beneficiaries are enrolled in smaller, local, and regional plans—raising important questions about how future reforms can preserve competition and beneficiary choice.
Georgetown University’s Medicare Policy Initiative (MPI) invites you to an in-person briefing, “Leveling the Playing Field in Medicare Advantage: The Role of Smaller Plans in a Changing Market,” featuring perspectives from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), leading MA plans and policy experts. The panel discussion will highlight new research on the role smaller plans play in MA and explore how policy decisions can support a competitive, balanced marketplace.
Date: Monday, May 4, 2026
Time: 8:30–10:00 AM (Breakfast and networking from 8:30–9:00 AM)
Location: Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy, 500 1st Street NW, 9th Floor Convening Space, Washington, D.C.
Speakers include:
- Alec Aramanda, Principal Deputy Director, Center for Medicare, CMS
- Matt Eyles, Executive Vice President of Government & Business Strategy, Alignment Health
- Carrie Graham, PhD (Moderator), Director, Medicare Policy Initiative
- Zack Myers, Corporate Vice President and General Manager, SCAN Health Plan
- Rachel Schmidt, PhD, Research Professor, Medicare Policy Initiative
We hope you can join us for this timely conversation, sponsored by Arnold Ventures.
Read our Related Research:
- White Paper: Reforms to Medicare Advantage: Perspectives of Local and Regional Plans, Molly T. Turco and Rachel Schmidt, West Health, September 2025
- Data Brief: Smaller Medicare Advantage Plans: How Do They Compare?, Rachel Schmidt, February 2026
- Blog Post: Leveling the Playing Field: Why Smaller Medicare Advantage Plans Are Calling for Payment Reform, Carrie Graham and Laura Skopec, February 18, 2026
- Blog Post: An Uneven Playing Field: Why Smaller Plans Are Calling for Stronger Guardrails on Medicare Advantage Marketing, Laura Skopec and Carrie Graham, January 12, 2026
View Our Past Events
Missed our previous events? Watch the recordings on our YouTube channel.
- How Medicare Beneficiaries Choose Plans — And What the CY 2027 Medicare Advantage Proposed Rule Might Change
- Medicare Advantage Policies on the Horizon
- What’s Next for Prior Authorization in Medicare Advantage
- Medicare Advantage Payment and Opportunities for Cost Containment
- Prior Authorization in Medicare Advantage: Balancing Patient Access and Program Costs