Crazy Advertising for Medicare Advantage/Supplement Plans

[Another Reader]

This year, very few Part D plans have Safeway Pharmacy as a preferred pharmacy. Most have CVS, Walmart and/or Walgreens. I received a letter from Safeway inviting me to find a plan that that includes Safeway by contacting an insurance broker that could also help me find an even better, less expensive total plan (i.e. an Advantage plan). Ummm...no thanks!

So this week I will try to work through which Part D policies Via Benefits offers that have Safeway on their preferred pharmacy list. I'm better educated than most people on this subject and I can only imagine all the people that get conned into an Advantage plan when all they wanted was to continue to use Safeway pharmacy.

 

[ivinsfan]

Can I ask again...... What's with the "get bent" stuff? That seems a little heavy.

I agree that changing A and B so that no supplement or D would be required would be good. And that would also eliminate the hawking of private policies at this time of year. And it would eliminate the need for non-gov folks to review and often change one or both policies every year.

Like bent out of shape or annoyed.. I admit I'm bent out of shape over the expensive mess Medicare has been turned into.

 

[aja8888]

Like bent out of shape or annoyed.. I admit I'm bent out of shape over the expensive mess Medicare has been turned into.

Tell me about it.....

I have a handicapped DW that needs a dozen drugs and she has maybe 5 doctors, plus she's on oxygen 24/7. Keeping this straight is a full time job.

 

[youbet]

Like bent out of shape or annoyed.. I admit I'm bent out of shape over the expensive mess Medicare has been turned into.

OK. My geezer vocabulary includes "bent out of shape" but I was a little confused when you said "get bent." As in "hey ivinsfan - get bent!" But I think I understand now.

 

[Turbo29]

This was an interesting article
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...grams-don-t-save-government-money-critics-say:

 

[ivinsfan]

This was an interesting article
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...grams-don-t-save-government-money-critics-say:

Interesting it literally makes me sick to my stomach. It's obscene that we pay decades into Medicare made part B payments only to have our government throw us to the insurance wolves. ..I'm really bent now. The kicker is so few people seem informed.

 

[Amethyst]

Interesting. Husband uses "get bent," very occasionally, as a near-curse. "He can get bent for all I care." I never heard this phrase growing up, but then, I grew up near NYC, while he is from western PA and his speech is slightly different from my family's.

I try to keep in mind that this forum attracts members from all over the world, and that even within the U.S., regional differences in English meanings abound.

Like bent out of shape or annoyed.. I admit I'm bent out of shape over the expensive mess Medicare has been turned into.

 

[athena53]

My friend works for a hotline for Medicare beneficiaries who call with questions (government contractor). He hears from the people who selected Medicare Advantage and are very unhappy with the limitations. Yes, some provide dental, vision and hearing coverage but the amounts are limited. Yes, you CAN get a zero-premium plan but you have to be very low-income. I've somehow escaped the phone calls (don't be jealous- I get plenty about my car warranty) but get plenty of snail mail and e-mail. There's even a chain near me (Partners in Primary Care) that takes ONLY Medicare Advantage.

Must be a big moneymaker for some people.

 

[VanWinkle]

My friend works for a hotline for Medicare beneficiaries who call with questions (government contractor). He hears from the people who selected Medicare Advantage and are very unhappy with the limitations. Yes, some provide dental, vision and hearing coverage but the amounts are limited. Yes, you CAN get a zero-premium plan but you have to be very low-income. I've somehow escaped the phone calls (don't be jealous- I get plenty about my car warranty) but get plenty of snail mail and e-mail. There's even a chain near me (Partners in Primary Care) that takes ONLY Medicare Advantage.

Must be a big moneymaker for some people.

I find just the opposite from the counseling I do as a SHIP counselor.
Many areas have zero premium Medicare Advantage plans but they
may be HMO plans that have good local networks, but limited national
exposure. The PPO plans cure the national network problems for
many insureds, but they will usually cost 29-49.00 per month in addition
to Part B premium. If you do the cost vs payment on the Medigap vs
Medicare Advantage, many healthy seniors will save money over their
lifetime. This is not true for those with Medical concerns that require
repeated treatment over many years. I may feel different if I am denied
medical treatment due to a decision by an Insurance company. For the last
48 years with private insurance, that has not happened.

Medicare Advantage is not only for the poor, they have dual coverage
of Medicare and Medicaid.

As is the usual answer, it is a decision based on individual facts and
not a clear choice for everyone.

VW

 

[Amethyst]

To be meaningful, it would have to include a comparison of coverages/benefits. I think it would swiftly get very unwieldy.

Maybe someone should start a poll on what everyone spends on Medicare and Fed insurance and include Sup plans, MA and Tricare?

Here's what we spend Monthly on Medicare:

DW:

$148.50 - Medicare premium
$400 - Plan F Sup Ins.
$26 - Part D

we also spend ~$3 K on drugs OOP for here annually.

ME:

$148.50 - Medicare premium
$279 - Plan G Sup Ins.
$26 - Part D

My drugs are minimal cost.

It's a lot for two people over 75. Like over $12,000 annually. Thanks Medicare! So with drug cost its about $15,000. +

 

[Dtail]

Interesting. Husband uses "get bent," very occasionally, as a near-curse. "He can get bent for all I care." I never heard this phrase growing up, but then, I grew up near NYC, while he is from western PA and his speech is slightly different from my family's.

I try to keep in mind that this forum attracts members from all over the world, and that even within the U.S., regional differences in English meanings abound.

Yep, I know the phrase like your DH understands it. Haven't heard it in awhile.

 

[Golden sunsets]

This was an interesting article
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...grams-don-t-save-government-money-critics-say:

Wow. That was an eye opening article, for me at least. Thanks for posting.

I'm the OP. Let me clear the air on one point, I listed our own situation only to clarify the fact that we are not in the market to actually purchase one of these seemingly "too good to be true" plans. I have been seeing these adds on one format or another and was trying to understand, how the advertisements could actually be true. Call me curious. Someone upthread (Time2 & Athena) mentioned in response, that the extra coverage may be available to those on Medicaid, which would make sense, I guess. The whole "risk assessment" machinations are a total revalation to me.

Youbet: You went down a whole different rabbit hole on reforming healthcare in this country, for all retirees, regardless of who their employer is. A singlepayer system of sorts I suppose is what you are advocating for that uses the FEP system as a basis. I don't see that happening. For one thing, the FEP system has literally hundreds of options, including HMO plans, PPO plans, some with high deductible plans, others with lower coverage and lower premiums. It is not a one size fits all sort of program. And vision and dental are separate plans with separate premiums.



Sent from my SM-T510 using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[misanman]

This was an interesting article
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...ey-critics-say:

Is there any way to see the article without subscribing to Bloomberg?

 

[Big_Hitter]

If you go on one of those MA plans and then want to get back on regular Medicare aren't there certain ramifications?

 

[Big_Hitter]

Must be a big moneymaker for some people.

spent a week with my 92 yo mom and we watched a ton of TV - you hit the nail on the head - all you have to see are all those very expensive commercials to know they are spending advertising $$ like liberty mutual

 

[Turbo29]

Is there any way to see the article without subscribing to Bloomberg?

I don't subscribe and it let me read it. I think they limit the number of articles you can read. Try clearing your browser cache.

 

[Amethyst]

I'm curious, too. Perhaps it's my ignorance, but I don't see how people on Medicaid can be sought-after customers for anything. They don't have any money! And if the really good benefits are only for Medicaid, then why do the ads all trumpet "Medicare"? How would the Medicaid recipients even know to call?

Someone upthread (Time2 & Athena) mentioned in response, that the extra coverage may be available to those on Medicaid, which would make sense, I guess. The whole "risk assessment" machinations are a total revalation to me.

]

 

[ivinsfan]

Interesting. Husband uses "get bent," very occasionally, as a near-curse. "He can get bent for all I care." I never heard this phrase growing up, but then, I grew up near NYC, while he is from western PA and his speech is slightly different from my family's.

I try to keep in mind that this forum attracts members from all over the world, and that even within the U.S., regional differences in English meanings abound.

So say he was irate at somebody and said that wouldn't it mean I don't care if it makes you mad or bent out of shape.


To be clear I was using to say "if you want to get mad over something, get mad at this instead"

 

[Amethyst]

Oh, I don't know. The people he used it for, and its sheer rarity, sounded like "bent" was a substitute for a naughtier word.

For the milder version, he uses "get all bent out of shape," just like you meant.

So say he was irate at somebody and said that wouldn't it mean I don't care if it makes you mad or bent out of shape.


To be clear I was using to say "if you want to get mad over something, get mad at this instead"

 

[ivinsfan]

Oh, I don't know. The people he used it for, and its sheer rarity, sounded like "bent" was a substitute for a naughtier word.

For the milder version, he uses "get all bent out of shape," just like you meant.

I can see I need to be more careful.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

This year, very few Part D plans have Safeway Pharmacy as a preferred pharmacy. Most have CVS, Walmart and/or Walgreens. I received a letter from Safeway inviting me to find a plan that that includes Safeway by contacting an insurance broker that could also help me find an even better, less expensive total plan (i.e. an Advantage plan). Ummm...no thanks!

So this week I will try to work through which Part D policies Via Benefits offers that have Safeway on their preferred pharmacy list. I'm better educated than most people on this subject and I can only imagine all the people that get conned into an Advantage plan when all they wanted was to continue to use Safeway pharmacy.

I got good advice from a private health insurance broker on Part D and our Wisconsin version of supplemental. The broker actually advised against opting for an Advantage plan, and his other advice going back to Obamacare has been solid. Not all private-sector health insurance salesmen are out to milk the elderly. And his services come at "absolutely" no cost to you, to quote Broadway Joe.

I see George Foreman has taken up the MA cause recently, BTW.

 

[Another Reader]

I got good advice from a private health insurance broker on Part D and our Wisconsin version of supplemental. The broker actually advised against opting for an Advantage plan, and his other advice going back to Obamacare has been solid. Not all private-sector health insurance salesmen are out to milk the elderly. And his services come at "absolutely" no cost to you, to quote Broadway Joe.

I see George Foreman has taken up the MA cause recently, BTW.

I'm required because of the retiree reimbursement to use Via Benefits, which so far has been neutral in the MA wars. I was skeptical of them at first, but I really can't complain about anything they have done. I will call them later in the week to pick a Part D.

 

[Telly]

If you go on one of those MA plans and then want to get back on regular Medicare aren't there certain ramifications?

Yup! Getting back on Original Medicare is not a problem... It's trying to get back on a Medigap Plan. To get into a Medigap Plan, other than initial enrollment or special enrollment, the Medigap Plan company will run you through health underwriting. Have to be pretty squeeky clean to make it. Or else they say NO!, or put you into a high $$$ premium class forever. An exception: For some one who WAS on Original Medicare, then went to an Medicare Advantage Plan for less than a year, and wanted to come back to Original Medicare in time, I think they have that option with no $ damage, but I wouldn't trust my memory alone on that detail.

There are a few states that have their own rules for Medicare Plans, someone living in one of those states should check their state info before doing anything. I assume the rates are higher in those states to cover the flexibility wrt picking up sick people. I don't live in one of those states, so I don't know the details.

 

[aja8888]

To be meaningful, it would have to include a comparison of coverages/benefits. I think it would swiftly get very unwieldy.

Everything is covered except dental, glasses/contacts and hearing aids. All medical visits, procedures, etc are covered and we can "pick our doctors". Full Plan F means all deductibles are covered. Plan G is $200 annual deductible. No co pays, no upper limits on coverage.

Part D drug coverage is pretty similar for most plan coverage. All have annual deductible, low generic med costs, but Tier III and IV drugs are high cost.

What we have is considered "the Holy Grail" of Medicare coverage, although Part D is designed by Government to screw us as they didn't negotiate drug prices with drug companies.

 

[Another Reader]

Everything is covered except dental, glasses/contacts and hearing aids. All medical visits, procedures, etc are covered and we can "pick our doctors". Full Plan F means all deductibles are covered. Plan G is $200 annual deductible. No co pays, no upper limits on coverage.

Part D drug coverage is pretty similar for most plan coverage. All have annual deductible, low generic med costs, but Tier III and IV drugs are high cost.

What we have is considered "the Holy Grail" of Medicare coverage, although Part D is designed by Government to screw us as they didn't negotiate drug prices with drug companies.

What I have discovered by having Long Covid is everything is NOT covered. If you have a well known heart condition or a broken arm, a lot of treatments (but not all) are covered. What is not covered in well hidden, but the doctors know what they can and cannot prescribe based on the codes. Hanging out in doctors' offices, I have heard doctors tell nurses and PA's no you can't prescribe that under Medicare, the alternative is x (something less effective but a lot cheaper.) It's almost impossible to get the neurological testing I need, because there is no diagnosis and corresponding code for this. But I can get a sleep study and a CPAP machine, which are routinely approved.

I have original Medicare and AARP/UHC Plan F. The so-called gold standard. My treatment across two different health care organizations has been more like Medi-Cal (California Medicaid) than what I expected from Medicare. The supplement pays with no argument, but only for tests and procedures approved by Medicare.