Brett
Guest
8 Things to Know When Choosing a Medicare Plan
https://www.wsj.com/articles/choosing-medicare-plan-11634049214
1. Supplemental insurance is usually the best option for people who can afford it or who have health issues.
2. Having Medicare alone is risky.
3. Medicare Advantage plans are cheaper for seniors in good health.
If you’re not going to the doctor a lot and usually stay in-network, Medicare Advantage is a less-expensive option than Medicare with a supplement. Not only do many Advantage plans have no monthly premiums, but they often include a drug plan and extra benefits like dental, vision or hearing care not covered by Medicare. Some offer gym memberships.
The catch, and it’s a big one: Medicare Advantage patients must use in-network providers or face copays that are substantially higher than what people with Medicare supplemental insurance customarily pay. So if you need to go to the top cancer hospital, and it isn’t in your plan, you might incur thousands of dollars in additional costs.
4. Not all Advantage plans are created equal.
5. Supplemental plans are the better option for people who travel.
Medicare Advantage plans usually have a network of doctors in a certain state or portion of a state. If you’re traveling, they generally will cover treatment for medical emergencies, but not for routine or chronic problems. There are exceptions. Some Advantage plans do have national networks in which you have access to certain hospitals and doctors outside your service plan.
6. Supplemental plans usually get more expensive as you get older.
7. It can be difficult switching to Medicare with supplemental insurance.
8. Don’t forget the “nuclear option.”
For people who don’t live in one of these states and are in desperate need of affordable health coverage, Ms. Caughill of 65 Inc. will sometimes recommend what she calls the “nuclear option.” Such patients can get a redo by moving outside their Advantage plan’s service area. Any time you move out of an Advantage plan’s service area, which could be a county, several counties, or an entire state, you have the right to get supplemental insurance in the new service area as if you were just entering the market. The insurer can adjust the price based on age, gender or smoking status, but it can’t charge more because of existing conditions.
“You get a Medicare enrollment do-over,” she says.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/choosing-medicare-plan-11634049214
1. Supplemental insurance is usually the best option for people who can afford it or who have health issues.
2. Having Medicare alone is risky.
3. Medicare Advantage plans are cheaper for seniors in good health.
If you’re not going to the doctor a lot and usually stay in-network, Medicare Advantage is a less-expensive option than Medicare with a supplement. Not only do many Advantage plans have no monthly premiums, but they often include a drug plan and extra benefits like dental, vision or hearing care not covered by Medicare. Some offer gym memberships.
The catch, and it’s a big one: Medicare Advantage patients must use in-network providers or face copays that are substantially higher than what people with Medicare supplemental insurance customarily pay. So if you need to go to the top cancer hospital, and it isn’t in your plan, you might incur thousands of dollars in additional costs.
4. Not all Advantage plans are created equal.
5. Supplemental plans are the better option for people who travel.
Medicare Advantage plans usually have a network of doctors in a certain state or portion of a state. If you’re traveling, they generally will cover treatment for medical emergencies, but not for routine or chronic problems. There are exceptions. Some Advantage plans do have national networks in which you have access to certain hospitals and doctors outside your service plan.
6. Supplemental plans usually get more expensive as you get older.
7. It can be difficult switching to Medicare with supplemental insurance.
8. Don’t forget the “nuclear option.”
For people who don’t live in one of these states and are in desperate need of affordable health coverage, Ms. Caughill of 65 Inc. will sometimes recommend what she calls the “nuclear option.” Such patients can get a redo by moving outside their Advantage plan’s service area. Any time you move out of an Advantage plan’s service area, which could be a county, several counties, or an entire state, you have the right to get supplemental insurance in the new service area as if you were just entering the market. The insurer can adjust the price based on age, gender or smoking status, but it can’t charge more because of existing conditions.
“You get a Medicare enrollment do-over,” she says.
