Originally Posted by livecontent
Once you are eligible for medicare, it is in your best interest to sign up for it because you will pay a penalty every year with increased Part B premium when you do sign up for the plan. That also applies to the prescription drug plan, Part D.
You can easily have medicare and have additional coverage for no cost. Many advantage plans have zero premiums for the basic plan and that would include prescription coverage.
How can they do that?? and why are all these companies competing to get you to sign up for their plan, if they charge nothing?? Because they receive money directly from medicare to provide you all inclusive care, even if you receive no care.
Private insurance becomes "second pay" if you have medicare--they are not stupid, if there is other coverage then that will apply. In most cases that is moot because Insurance companies, also, cannot sell, you standard medical coverage, if you are under medicare unless it is an approved supplemental plan under medicare, such as Medigap, Advantage Plans, Fee based plans etc. If you are currently enrolled in a plan, as a employer plan, union, retirement etc. then the plan contract changes when you become eligible for medicare; you may not be aware of the changes but they do change to allow the plan to take advantage of government monies.
Medigap pays the coverage for the gaps in Medicare. Policy are in place to prevent Seniors from being taken advantage of by insurance companies. The governments want people to move away from Medigap and to the Advantage Plans. It is illegal for a company to solicit and sell Medigap if you are enrolled in an Medicare Advantage Plan. In addition, once you drop, medigap, in almost all cases, you cannot reinroll into any Medigap plan. In addition all medigap insurances have the same coverage--the differences are what they charge. That is very clearly stated in the Medicare Literature that you receive. Unless, there is no other supplemental coverage available, these are very bad choices.
Sure, you can sign up for any standard insurance plan, if you choose not to enroll in medicare. However, it would be very expensive because you would be older and in a higher risk category and will be enrolling without group coverage rates. That would be stupid because you can enroll in a fee based plan under medicare, still have all the choices of providers and have a lower insurance rate. In addition, if you are part of a group retirement insurance plan, your plan will change or cease when you become eligible for medicare.
These are my understandings of all this complicated issue. I can be wrong is some points, but not all. I have been under Medicare for many years and I read quite a bit and understand much but it is confusing. I have had government people give me the wrong answers. I have had insurance sales people give wrong information--sometimes through ignorance or sometimes intentionally. It is a very difficult subject and there is much at stack and monies to be lost, by you, and made by others. I have also realized Physicians are not the best source of understanding medical insurance--they have their own agendas and are too busy to understand all the details. Insurance sales agents are some of the worse because they are selling a product to make money and some of them are not too intelligent.
In addition, when you are very ill, that is the wrong time to read your literature, your contracts and all the helpful information that the government provides---and read it every year, because every year there is small changes that you may not realize. For example, my doctor ordered a colonoscopy. This year under my plan, it will cost $225 co-pay but after January 1--it will be free---oh, joy, now I have no excuse to have someone stick a hose up my butt.
Livecontent
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