You have choices in how you receive your Medicare coverage when you first enroll in Medicare and each year thereafter. Your two main choices are Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan. The amount of health care covered and the types of benefits (like vision, dental, hearing, or more) you receive depends on whether you choose Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan for your hospital and medical needs. See the chart below for a summary of some of the benefits covered by Original Medicare versus Medicare Advantage plans:
There is one last option to consider. Supplements (or Medigap plans) are an alternative to Medicare Advantage plans and works alongside of Original Medicare. Like Medicare Advantage plans, Medigap plans provide additional coverage that Original Medicare doesn’t. There are several supplement plans to choose from including Plan A, B, C, D, F & F- high deductible, G, K, L, M, N. What’s offered by these plans varies widely and can possibly include $0 co-insurance for Part B or $0 deductibles for Part A. However, these plans do not usually cover long-term care, vision or dental care, hearing aids, eyeglasses, private-duty nursing or prescription drug plans like the Medicare Advantage plans do. Generally, these policies do not provide any added benefits. In other words, Medicare Advantage plans supplement Original Medicare as well as provide benefits whereas Medigap plans only supplement Original Medicare to help reduce the out of pocket 20% that Original Medicare does not cover. So, in choosing a supplement, be aware that you will need to find an independent prescription drug plan. Unlike Medicare Advantage beneficiaries, Medigap policy holders can have a separate prescription drug plan to complement the supplemental plan.
Be mindful that there are many supplemental plans, both Medicare Advantage and Medigap, to choose from. If you decide to go with a supplemental plan instead of Original Medicare only, make sure you’re researching and choosing the plan that most closely match and meet your needs. If you need help deciding on the plan that fits you, give me a call (602.644.1240) or send me an email (info@centsabledollar.com) to set up an appointment to discuss your options.
