Thousands of Bay Area seniors left scrambling as financial woes strike Medicare Advantage plan

A Southern California insurance company’s financial woes are sending thousands of seniors in Santa Clara and San Joaquin counties scrambling for health care coverage amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. More than 10,000 people in the two counties enrolled in Vitality Health Plan’s Medicare Advantage option — insurance that provides expanded Medicare coverage — after it began serving the area in January 2019, attracted by good benefits and promises of inexpensive medication. But for many, the company’s offerings turned out to be too good to be true.