Medicare Advantage Insurers Made Nearly 53 Million Prior Authorization Determinations in 2024 Authors: Jeannie Fuglesten Biniek, Nolan Sroczynski, Meredith Freed, and Tricia Neuman Published: Jan 28, 2026

https://www.kff.org/medicare/medicare-advantage-insurers-made-nearly-53-million-prior-authorization-determinations-in-2024/?utm_campaign=KFF-This-Week&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--8O3JY4nMLdT5R-CDDlM-c-bzIMOaTQzshykosLE1dQCkxCzmFyLfR7BawlYvuPxrEMwdVjMsfA8eope-h7-cNOEs7fA&_hsmi=401271096&utm_content=401271096&utm_source=hs_email Medicare Advantage Insurers Made Nearly 53 Million Prior Authorization Determinations in 2024 Nearly 53 million prior authorization requests were submitted to Medicare Advantage insurers on behalf of Medicare Advantage enrollees in 2024, of which 4.1 million (7.7%) were denied. Just 11.5% of denied requests were appealed, though 80.7% of appeals overturned the initial denial in Medicare Advantage. Substantially fewer prior authorization requests were made in traditional Medicare, reflecting the small number of services subject to prior authorization requirements.