Medicare Poll

[swabby01]

Medigap/Supplemental Plan

My plan, and I'm a 68 year old white male and wife is 65


The company I retired from covers both myself and my wife with the Aetna policy. Was BCBS last year and cost around $340 per month for the supplement. The company switched retiree insurance to Aetna Medicare PPO plan with a drug component
Cost now $00 per month
I hadn't needed my insurance until this year for kidney stone surgery and while I was apprehensive about switch to Aetna so far it has been surprising and amazing.
Total cost of the surgery and follow ups were around $18,000. My share including the annual deductible was a little over $300.

 

[catii]

Humana Medicare PPO. Cost for us is $0. $500 deductible/$1,200 MOOP. Prescription coverage included, with no deductible and $750 donut hole.

 

[Global Wizzo]

Medicare

You need one additional category. Medicare/Tricare for military.

 

[mf15]

F HD for both of us so total is 130/month Cigna, Wellcare .50 cents.
But slapped in the face by IRMAA this year so costing about $1250/month.

oldmike

 

[Lstansbury]

This is interesting, but not all that helpful for you. The plans available to you vary greatly by your state, even by your zipcode.

BTW, I am on Medicare original Part A, Part B, with a AARP/United Healthcare Med Supp/Gap and a Wellcare Part D for scrips. I am also a licensed Medicare agent (not soliciting!...just for street cred on this response)... and a 30 year veteran of the healthcare industry.

Forgot to mention that I pay the $174 and change for the Part B since I am in the IRMAA first tier, just like most of the population, $116 for AARP United Med Supp and $2 per month for Wellcare/Centene PDP. The $2 per month for PDP doesn't mean much either because of how my drugs land in the formulary. Best comparison for estimated annual cost based on your drugs is through medicare.gov. I actually end up paying about $1500 per year on the drugs because I have a 3rd tier formulary drug that I take monthly. The premium means nothing in the comparison.

I also recommend that you call your state's Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) which is paid for by your tax dollars and is free to you.

I recommend SHIIP to you and to anyone who asks me for Medicare advice -- because it is truly unbiased -- they will give you information that covers any plan available. (although they don't have E&0 insurance coverage if they make a mistake in recommendations). I worked with them for years when I was an outreach educator for a medicare beneficiary protection contractor.

I'm appalled at how biased some of my colleague sales agents are from "independent brokers." Some of them talk openly on our weekly sales calls about switching someone to another plan with the same carrier to increase their monthly commission or to qualify for a sales trip. Also, most agents aren't certified with every single plan. If they aren't certified with the plan, then they aren't going to sell it to you, or tell you about it, because they can't get paid for selling it.

If you aren't required, or helped, by your former employer's retirement benefit package, as I am-- then I highly recommend you check out SHIIP in your state, do your own research on medicare.gov/plan-compare and find the two or three plans you like. I prefer to filter at 3 stars or higher and I prefer to look at Medicare Supplements or Gap plans because I don't want to give up my "grandfather" status in Medicare original A/B/D plus Gap plan.

Then call the plans and ask to speak to a captive agent who works for them as a salaried employee.

Just my .02! Cause you asked.

 

[scrinch]

Like many others,

Medicare A & B
AARP/UHC Plan G $125/mo age 65
Part D Wellcare $8/mo

 

[johncasey37]

66, First time signing up. Medicare, Anthem plan G, and Aetna SilverScript Part D
$100

 

[zl55lz]

There has now been as of this post 6 who stated Medicare A and B with no supplement. I interpreted that option for the poll as Medicare A and B and no other insurance AT ALL, but due to the lack of anyone commenting on such a choice I now guess some others must have interpreted it differently?

 

[AudiDudi]

There has now been as of this post 6 who stated Medicare A and B with no supplement. I interpreted that option for the poll as Medicare A and B and no other insurance AT ALL, but due to the lack of anyone commenting on such a choice I now guess some others must have interpreted it differently?

I interpreted it as you did. I have a friend that, at age 65, decided that as he was healthy and took no prescription drugs, turned down Part B so he has no D and no supplement either. We tried to explain it to him. Now that he is 72 and not in the best of health, he can't afford the premiums due to the penalty for not signing up when 1st eligible. Now he is racking up some pretty hefty medical bills.


I am surprised that only 23% of people taking the survey have Advantage vs 45% of the general population.

 

[JoPeter57]

AARP/UHC Patriot PPO Advantage, with no drug Rx. Tricare for Life secondary.(Express scripts for Rx) $0 per month premium. $75 month Part B "buyback". $100 Quarterly OTC allowance. $2000 yearly dental. Many free gyms. Vision.

 

[grayv]

Advantage, with no drug Rx. Tricare for Life secondary.

unusual combination! does the advantage plan automatically forward bills to tricare?

 

[Redbugdave]

Medicare A & B as well as BCBS Federal.

 

[frayne]

I am surprised that only 23% of people taking the survey have Advantage vs 45% of the general population.

Same here and even more surprised that a small percentage have no supplemental insurance at all (if indeed that is the case). And from my way of thinking if you have VA or some sort of federal/state coverage that in and of itself is a kind of insurance coverage regardless of how anyone wants to classify it.

I guess I should have qualified the poll a bit better and asked if anyone just has Medicare and no other type of coverage. Thanks everyone for participating in the poll/thread as it gives me an idea of all the many types of coverage and what people are paying for their coverage.

 

[Ian S]

Yeah, if anyone suggested it was a "cost saving" measure to skip a MC supplement, I would look at that as an intentional calculated risk. Someone with (previous) good health and little need for health care might roll the dice and skip a supplement. We went into MC KNOWING we needed a supplement. YMMV

Some folks apparently don't even want to spend on Part B: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/medical-debt-medicare-part-b-air-ambulance-cost-81000/

Prichard was enrolled only in Medicare Part A, which is free to most Americans 65 or older. That section of the federal insurance program covers inpatient care, and it paid most of her hospital bills, her daughter said. But Prichard declined other Medicare coverage, including Part B, which handles such things as doctor visits, outpatient treatment, and ambulance rides. Her daughter suspects she skipped that coverage to avoid the premiums most recipients pay

That meant when the bill arrived less than two weeks after her death, her estate was expected to pay the full air-ambulance fee of nearly $82,000. The main assets are 12 acres of land and her home in Decherd, Tennessee, where she lived for 48 years and raised two children. The bill for a single helicopter ride could eat up roughly a third of the estate's value, said Wieberg, who is executor.

Apparently, the air ambulance company is hanging tough so far and won't discount the bill.

 

[AudiDudi]

Some folks apparently don't even want to spend on Part B: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/medical-debt-medicare-part-b-air-ambulance-cost-81000/
Apparently, the air ambulance company is hanging tough so far and won't discount the bill.

Too bad she didn't have MASA. Seemed to be a good investment when we bought it several years ago.

 

[JoPeter57]

unusual combination! does the advantage plan automatically forward bills to tricare?

This is my first time "experimenting" with MA and TFL. So far, with at least 6 occupational therapy sessions this year, I have not rec'd any bills. No action yet on my part. I'm hoping that at least 90% of future claims....go thru smoothly with me having to do nothing. I will re-evaluate my MA during the Oct-Dec open enrollment, and decide to go back to original Medicare. I just went to an out-of-network dentist and have to pay $121 OOP for a $289 periodontal scaling (deeper cleaning then an average cleaning). Normally, I would have standard Delta dental with a $30 monthly and still pay OOP but a lot less.

 

[Sulli]

Definitely NOT Medicare Advantage!

 

[jollystomper]

I am surprised that only 23% of people taking the survey have Advantage vs 45% of the general population.

Perhaps that is the power of TV marketing, and a focus on "no premium payment" which members here tend to be less susceptible to .

 

[euro]

Perhaps that is the power of TV marketing, and a focus on "no premium payment" which members here tend to be less susceptible to .

Agreed. Folkls here tend to be the planning type. The belts and suspender types. No surprise to me that a majority goes with the Medigap option.

 

[sengsational]

Learned All I Needed To About MA Today!!

I needed to call my credit card company today, so I flipped the card over and dialed the number.

I hear some plausible menu tree item and I make a choice. Then the next menu item is about "Do I want to take advantage of an opportunity..." WHAH? No. I have a question about my credit card that I could not do on the web site. So before I knew it someone was talking at me. When they took a breath I asked "who do you work for?" The question was ignored. They kept going on about a great Medicare Advantage Plan. I said "stop....stop....stop" they never stopped. I hung up.

I had dialed 1-866 instead of 1-800.

That is ALL I need to know about MA plans to know I don't want one.

 

[Rianne]

I needed to call my credit card company today, so I flipped the card over and dialed the number.

I hear some plausible menu tree item and I make a choice. Then the next menu item is about "Do I want to take advantage of an opportunity..." WHAH? No. I have a question about my credit card that I could not do on the web site. So before I knew it someone was talking at me. When they took a breath I asked "who do you work for?" The question was ignored. They kept going on about a great Medicare Advantage Plan. I said "stop....stop....stop" they never stopped. I hung up.

I had dialed 1-866 instead of 1-800.

That is ALL I need to know about MA plans to know I don't want one.

A similar thing happened to me. I called WellCare to make sure I had part D coverage for 2024 with a $0 premium. The agent started trying to put words in my mouth like you're interested in WellCare Advantage Plan? I was repeating no, no, no! Do not sign me up for the Advantage plan. I only have part D. Had to repeat it. I hung up. My heart rate zoomed to about 1000 beats/minute.

 

[jayanu]

If you are of medicare age which option or plan are you on ? Medigap/Supplemental Plan or Medicare Advantage Plan ? Also if you care to comment further as to the type, monthly cost, etc. please feel free to do so.

Advantage plan with UHC as Retiree of Nokia (Lucent). Cost $12/month for both of us - includes drug plan. $140 and $400 deductible for doctors and drugs. Max out-of-pocket per person ~ $3,500

 

[Badger]

We have Medicare and Tricare for Life. Since that wasn't an option I didn't vote. I'm just glad we didn't have to deal with other plans.