Don't let any broker talk you into "Medicare Advantage". It isn't Medicare and it's certainly no advantage.
Mike Allgood 1-405-691-4307 in the City. He'll save you every penny he can and knows the system inside out.
Hmmm. I've heard some say that about the Advantage plans... I've been on an Advantage plan for 15 years now, I've had gall bladder surgery, a knee replacement, a heart attack, and 3 foot surgeries in that time. Each time I only had a co-pay of $250-$300...I have many other benefits as well...Help me understand why it's not for you?
Glad it is working for you. Don't get cancer or otherwise need long term care.
Plenty of discussion of pitfalls on YT about it.
Lack of choice.
Several major hospitals are no longer accepting it due to reimbursement issues.
You're signing away your Medicare rights (sometimes forever) and assigning them to an insurance company to decide your treatment fate.
Limited network.
You already have to sign up for Medicare Part A and B before you can get MA.
Out of pocket surprises.
Medicare is Medicare anywhere you go. With an insurance company, you never know what you're going to get or whether or not they'll cover it (after pre-auth).
I can't find it now but there once was a youtube video of a medicare broker convention. The question about the advantage plan and would anyone there ever enroll in it was asked and almost in unison all said absolutely not.
I think of comes down to OOP expenses. The advantage plan has no monthly fee. So, if the traditional Medicare supplemental has a monthly fee, you have to include that monthly expense when you compare OOP for both plans.
It also has to do with your comordbidities & age.
If you are relatively healthy & aren’t in a hospital frequently, it would prob be cheaper to go the Advantage route. Many healthy younger seniors prefer this. If you are elderly with many health issues, the traditional route might make more sense.
The traditional MCR coverage is more comprehensive if you are hospitalized & need to discharge to a SNF or LTACH. But if I’m looking at going to a SNF or LTACH, I’ve got bigger problems than insurance…..
You still have to pay Part B premium with MA.
Correct, every MCR policy ( both traditional & Advantage) does. So, if both comparing sides have to pay, then it’s a wash. Include it or exclude it in the calculations. Doesn’t matter in the OOP result.
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Medicare Advantage plans (unless they have changed things) don't work for someone that is out of the state in which the MA plan was initiated. When we were living in Colorado back about 9 or 10 years ago, I signed up for a MA plan. When we moved to Oregon to live there for 17 months, MA would do nothing for me. The only way I could get medical coverage was to go to the emergency rooms.
Because we travel so much, the wife and I have plain Medicare and a supplement. Her supplement is a Plan F one and mine is a Plan N supplement. Back in January, I had partial knee replacements on both knees at the same time. Surgeons, anesthesiologists, home health care (for several weeks with roughly 3 visits per week) and clinic follow up visits with all being covered.
In addition, because of Wet Macular Degeneration, I get an eye injection every 3 months, which according to what the wife has seen online, amounts to about $2800 per visit, but I only pay a $20 copay. In addition, since we work and travel out of state, Medicare and the supplement work for us regardless of what state we are in. And, we can pick any doctor we want that accepts Medicare. We just might have to have a referral from our primary physician for specialists or surgeons.
