A recent study was released on average costs for hospital stays for people in a Medicare Advantage plan. Some of the comments in the article might make someone fear getting a Medicare Advantage plan the way the hospital costs are explained. In short, these plans are good for people who are relatively healthy, whose doctor participates in the plan’s network and enjoy the low premium costs ($0 in some cases). While there is a cap on costs called an Out-of-Pocket-Maximum, some people could hit the caps which range from around $3500 to $6700. Supplements are a good alternative for people concerned about networks and out of pocket costs, but will pay a higher premium. A link to the article is listed below.
If you have questions about Medicare, contact David Higgs at ChoicesInMedicare.com
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2015/06/11/some-medicare-advantage-plans-raising-hospital-nursing-care-copays
In helping seniors select a Part D Drug plan (PDP), I find a lot of people are confused about the Part D Penalty. In short, it is a penalty for those that don’t elect a PDP when they are eligible and don’t have other Creditable Drug coverage. While Medicare will not require anyone to enroll in a PDP, they will assess a penalty of 1% for every month they didn’t have coverage.
For more info on what the penalty is and how it works, you can go to the link below that explains in more detail at Medicare.gov.
http://www.medicare.gov/part-d/costs/penalty/part-d-late-enrollment-penalty.html
For questions about selecting a Medicare Plan, call David Higgs at 804-972-4997 or email: David@ChoicesInMedicare.com.
Helping seniors transition to Medicare