ok, so who loves their medigap plan?

[mopinko]

i had a bcbs ppo, a spendy one, but dont feel i got my money's worth.

most of my docs are in a huge group that takes most plans.
need dental, and vision would be nice.
dont take a lot of meds, but ya never know.

the worst thing about the bcbs was that it actually wasnt them. they farmed out the customer service. had billing problems that werent handled well.

i dont know why this shit is so complicated. had insurance of many kinds all my life, and it was never this nuts.

[spooky3]

1. There was an article in the NYTimes in the last day or two

That talked about how it was nearly impossible for seniors to compare plans.

The reader comments were interesting.

[SheltieLover]

5. Call your local Council on Aging for best pricing!

Easy & quick!

[question everything]

9. I am looking at the Medicare & You for 2021

The Official U.S. Government Medicare Handbook and at the end it has a long table comparing the plans in the state.

[dflprincess]

2. When improving Medicare is talked about

I wish they improve Part B to cover 100%. I'm still on my employer's plan which is way cheaper and covers more than Medicare wiil. (When you add up the costs of a supplement, dental, and prescription coverage)

It's a big part of why I don't retire.

[Freddie]

10. That's why I stayed on my husbands work plan

Til he retires (I’m the “older woman” by 1.5 years). It’s way better and a lot less complicated than any Medicare plan or combo. I dread having to do this in 1.5 years when he retires. He has a ton of prescriptions so that will be a priority.

[bcool]

3. We like our AARP United Healthcare Medicare Advantage plan

It has dental & vision, too. We're in Missouri, so your mileage may vary 😀

We don't pay anything extra above the standard Medicare charge, so that's good.

I agree, though...it's WAY too complicated to pick a plan. I'm OK with that now, but I'm not looking forward to the process as I get older 🥵

[Rorey]

7. That's what I have. So far, so good.

I do have some co-pays. Next week I'm having a surgery thing, and I think my co-pay is $275.

[mopinko]

16. yeah, this is up there on my list.

it is, after all, rly the core of aarp. for all the other stuff, they built their coverage around medicare. most of the rest are scaled down, massaged version of their pricier products.
theirs is a purpose built plan to fill the gaps.

[brer cat]

4. I have AARP/United Healthcare.

I've been with them for 10 years through many surgeries without ever a problem or even a hickup. The plan that I have has no deductible or copays and is no longer offered, but existing members can continue to use it. I doubt that I would ever change.

[SheltieLover]

6. I have mine through Farm Bureau - Plan F & way cheaper than others

Called Council on Aging & within 5 minutes, they told me who to contact for the best pricing.

All medicare gap supplements in a category have identical coverage, unlike drug plans. 👍

[question everything]

8. Without it, we would have to go bankrupt

Spouse had a major surgery earlier this year, 10 days in the hospital, three weeks in a rehab, three weeks home visits by therapists, several weeks outpatient cardio rehab, a rush to the ER when the anti coagulant went haywire, colonoscopy, and all the tests and regular visits including expensive asthma shots.

Granted, the insurance company - a non profit, meaning it does not trade on the stock market nor paying $20 million to the CEO - owns a major hospital in town and many associated clinics and thus negotiates good charges.

I just printed the summary of the January - September 2021:

Total claim submitted: $285,000

Total cost approved: $125,000

Plan's share: $121,000

Out share: $3,300 (this is the maximum out of pocket)

I have been wondering whether if we would just taken basic Medicare, which is hospital, where would we be.


Oh, the monthly premium is $136. Worth every penny.

[StClone]

11. Not going to get a medigap policy

Why do we have excellent Medicare with a carve-out easy money for the Insurance companies? Like investing in Wall Street, I will not put my money there in protest, if I can survive without it.

[dflprincess]

13. You may be screwing yourself.

As I understand things, if you pick up a gap policy about the same time you go on Medicare B you save money because they can't look at preexisting conditions. If you find yourself running up a lot of bills and that 20% starts adding up, the insurace companies can really screw you. (Like they aren't already).

Though, confirm this before taking my word on it, it seems everytime I read one thing about Medicare, the next thing contradicts the first.

[Gaugamela]

14. There is a significant difference between Medigap plans and Medicare Advantage plans.

Medigap plans were introduced a few years after the passage of Medicare in the sixties, and offer excellent coverage. The details of what the plans cover are determined by congress, and insurance companies simply set their premiums. There is no difference between a Plan G from one company to the next, except in the premium cost. Insurance companies typically refer to Medigap plans as Medicare Supplement plans. A Medigap plan will be accepted anywhere in the country by any doctor who accepts Medicare.

Medicare Advantage was introduced under George W Bush at the behest of the insurance lobby. Medicare Advantage is seen by many as the first step in an effort to privatize Medicare. With Medicare Advantage the insurance companies can decide what they want to cover, and they can change the plans every year, so something that might be covered when you first join might be dropped a year later. You have to sign up or renew every year, and you are limited to a specific network of doctors in a particular geographical region. The plans tend to be a little cheaper than Medigap plans but over time as you get older they can become increasingly expensive.

Here is an excellent video of Thom Hartmann explaining the Medicare Advantage scam:

[mopinko]

15. i'm compelled to comment here that this is why bernie pushing m4a failed. it's a shit program.

when you need 2 minute ads all over daytime teevee to explain to people that they need to cover their asses when they go on medicare, that is sorta what most people envision when they think of govt run healthcare.

i know a lot of people are very satisfied, but i wonder how many of those people had insurance before they hit 65. i've had good insurance almost my entire life. i do recognize that i had nothing to do w picking out plans in the past. the company admins did that, mostly.
but there were also usually choices, hmo's, ppo's, a couple companies. none of those were bad choices, tho. none glaringly different from another.
like all other ins. car, home owners, whatevs. in none of them can you pick a top level plan and find yourself screwn.

[Lulu KC]

17. Happy with Trans-America n/t