Medicare Supplements
Medicare doesn’t have to be complicated, but it sure seems that way sometimes! You’ve got Parts A, B, D. You’ve got Medicare Advantage plans and Medicare Supplement plans. Is your head spinning yet? If you’re approaching age 65, your mailbox is probably already exploding and buckling under the wait of all the marketing materials you’re getting!
Diving Into Medicare. You’ll get Medicare Part A (think: hospitals) automatically, and most people will enroll for Part B (think: doctors, etc.). You probably know that basic Medicare contains various gaps in coverage (such as the infamous “doughnut hole”) and out-of-pocket costs. There are several ways you can address these. We recommend you consider a Medicare Supplement plan (sometimes called a Medigap plan) that is designed to fill in the gaps in original Medicare. Unlike Medicare Advantage plans, which replace original Medicare completely with a private plan, a Medicare Supplement plan keeps the standard government Medicare coverage in place and provides coverage for the gaps in that coverage. The gap coverage is provided by a private health insurance carrier such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, Mutual of Omaha, United Healthcare, or any number of other companies.
The Benefits. Medicare supplement plans include a pre-determined set of benefits that meet government criteria. Each plan is called by a letter of the alphabet, as in Plan F, Plan G, etc. When you purchase Plan F (the most popular plan), you can be assured that the benefits are the same regardless of whose policy you buy. The biggest considerations, therefore, involve your comfort level with the carrier, the monthly premium and, potentially, the network.
The Process. AC Forrest will walk you through the process of finding the Medicare supplement plan that best fits your needs, preferences, and budget. We’ll show you some quotes and make sure you understand the benefits. We will not pressure or push you at all – our goal is to help you find a plan that you’ll be happy with for a long time. We can help you get your application and enrollment information done on traditional paper applications or, where available, with secure and efficient online application.
Contact us now to learn more about your options and see some no-obligation, no-pressure quotes today!