What are the best Medicare Supplemental Insurance companies and why?
Taking into consideration:
Cost of premiums
Coverage
Rx Coverage
Anything else?
Let me over-emphasize “coverage”; we’ve had a terrible time finding a primary care physician for my MIL. Now have to travel many miles for routine appointments b/c no close physicians are taking new Medicare patients.
depends on your state residence. When you say supplemental, or you clarifying Original Medicare, or do you include Medicare Advantage plans?
Yup, docs don’t have to accept original medicare and many restrict the number of new patients that they will take each year.
My mother has been very happy with UHC through AARP. Her policy provides full gap coverage for a reasonable monthly premium. She’s had no problem finding lots of very good doctors in network.
It’s not just restrict; quite a few don’t take Medicare at all.
You may wish to ask your current MDs billing offices if they have preferences. They may have strong preferences based on experiences.
I second AARP, mom had “0” out of pocket after we paid the highest level of supplement. In her final years, she was in and out of the hospital and doctor’s office like going to a supermarket. It was almost a weekly routine, yet, AARP covered it all. The difference in premium was not that much, maybe $100-200/mo, but the Healthcare side of the payment was a big difference.
However, you need to have the basics with them to start with.
AARP advertises heavily so it is popular, but any Plan F will have zero out of pocket. In other words, the United Plan co-sponsored by AARP won’t be any better/worse than say, your major Blue Cross/Shield Plan F. btw: Plan F is being phased out so will it will be closed to new enrollees.
Moreover, take a look at Plan G, which is the exact same coverage as Plan F plus a deductible of $185 (in 2019). Right now in my state of CA, the monthly premiums for some carriers’ Plan G are more than $185 less than the premiums for Plan F. (So, G is a much better deal.)
It depends on your needs, wants, and resources. My mother had a wonderful plan that had a very low maximum out-of-pocket. She paid next to nothing for triple bypass. But, her monthly fee, worked out over a number of years, was higher than I wanted to pay.
I’d strongly suggest you consider making an appointment with your local office on aging at your state department of health. They should have a Medicare office that can help you choose among available options and help you understand pros and cons. They are unbiased and trained to help the public. They have “no dog in the fight.”
They can even share info about special programs to provide extra assistance to low income/low asset folks. The programs can vary by state.
When I do switch from DH’s insurance to Medicare B, I will probably take USAA’s supplemental plan. Anyone use it? Happy with it? The bigger challenge will be the drug plans.
Yes, if folks are taking Rx, it’s good to check formularies of the Plans considered (tho they can change at any time).
I’m happy with UHC/AARP, BC, United American, USAA, and many others. Some people chose a plan that requires the office to send in Medicare statement before the secondary will pay. The patient saves $20 a month, but it takes time to file. People can also use a less expensive plan where they pay up to $2200 (@). And the secondary kicks in.
I have referred people to a local woman who does Medicare plans for a business. Her husband does LTC
She showed me how United American gave women a $50 deductible, so I chose that plan.
Using a broker is fine since they get paid by Medicare, but just understand that a local broker might not offer all plans available in your area. (hint: a lower cost plan = lower commission.)
The office on aging can have phone or in person appointments, depending on availability of staff & trained volunteers. They don’t get any commission.
AARP offers multiple plans in our area, not just Plan F.
yes, but to be clear, United Healthcare is really the insurer. (So you get UHC’s network, claims processing, etc.) AARP just collects a fee from them for product endorsement.
lol… TBH…I don’t know what I mean. We’re currently on H’s company’s insurance…he retired a few years ago. His retirement package includes covering our insurance until we’re 65. H will be 65 next year, but his company will continue to provide health insurance for me until I’m 65.
anyway, I really know ZERO about any of this and hope that y’all will share info that will make me better informed.
so, a year from now, H will be on Medicare. Im assuming he’ll need some sort of supplemental insurance since he has several Rx and a number of doc visits each year.
The advantage of having a supplement or gap policy is that provides a max out of pocket. Original Medicare has NO cap—you can pay 20% of however huge the bill is. For many of us, that’s a very scary prospect.
There is no national, or even state-level, answer to this. It is entirely dependent on where you live, what hospitals you want to access, what services you need, and what scripts you need covered.
Contrary to some of the posts at the top, our best health system in the state - the U of M system - takes medicare and medicaid patients without a problem. This, again, will vary from area to area.