MediGap plans comes in basically two different varieties.
They include private insurance plans that manage your healthcare from start to finish, known as Medicare Advantage plans, and then Medicare Supplement plans that allow you to drive your own healthcare decisions and use you own doctors and hospitals.
There are advantages to both types of plans, and this site will help address some of the concerns and provide background of each, in order to help you make the best decision for your particular case.
There are 12 standard Medigap policies to choose from, with the eye-popping names of A through L. Medigap A is the most basic “core” policy. As you move through the alphabet, the plans add more coverage. For example, Medigap E will offer something that is not included in Medigap D, but will lack a coverage provided in Medicare F.
There is no difference in plans offered by different insurers; plan details are all set by the government. (Important caveat: If you live in Massachusetts, Minnesota or Wisconsin, check with your state insurance company or a private insurer who operates in your state. Medigap policies in these states offer coverage different than the plans followed by the 47 other states.)
If you and your spouse want Medigap coverage, you’ll need to buy separate policies; spouses aren’t covered together. The cost will vary depending on where you live, your health and, of course, the specific plan you choose.
To compare Medigap plans, go to the MedicareByPhone site. There, you can get a quote of every plan in your particular zip code but, more importantly, you can get help with MediGap plans and what they mean. While all plans are standardized, there is a big difference in the amount of monthly premium from one company to the next. Having an independent broker shop the market for you gives you the upper hand. It is important that you get the maximum benefit from your healthcare dollar.
Medicare Advantage Plans |
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Medicare Advantage Plans are health plan options that are part of the Medicare program. If you join one of these plans, you generally get all your Medicare-covered health care through that plan. This coverage can include prescription drug coverage. Medicare Advantage Plans include:
- Medicare Health Maintenance Organization (HMOs)
- Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO)
- Private Fee-for-Service Plans
- Medicare Special Needs Plans
When you join a Medicare Advantage Plan, you use the health insurance card that you get from the plan for your health care. In most of these plans, generally there are extra benefits and lower copayments than in the Original Medicare Plan. However, you may have to see doctors that belong to the plan or go to certain hospitals to get services.
To join a Medicare Advantage Plan, you must have Medicare Part A and Part B. You will have to pay your monthly Medicare Part B premium to Medicare. In addition, you might have to pay a monthly premium to your Medicare Advantage Plan for the extra benefits that they offer.
If you join a Medicare Advantage Plan, your Medigap policy won’t work. This means it won’t pay any deductibles, copayments, or other cost-sharing under your Medicare Health Plan. Therefore, you may want to drop your Medigap policy if you join a Medicare Advantage Plan. However, you have a legal right to keep the Medigap policy.
To compare Medicare Advantage Plans, go to the Medicare Options Compare.
There are changes happening for both Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement policies for the 2011 benefit year. You can see some of those options available, as a brief overview in the Medicare & You Guidebook, made available by the government.
Andy Griffith even has a commercial out about it!
Some of the changes happening to MediGap plans are good, while most.. not so good. Obviously, medical cost inflation is going higher, as it always does. This time, though, for the second year in a row, seniors are not getting a cost of living increase with Social Security. This means that while their premiums are going up across the board for seeing their favorite doctors, their incomes are not going up at all to compensate.
Now more than ever, it is critically important to spend your premium dollar as wisely as possible. We will strive to help you in that regard.
