Medicare health insurance is a program that is federally administered and is made available to people with certain specific forms of disability, permanent kidney failure, or people who are 65 years of age or older. There are several different types of Medicare plans, the basics of which are as follows: • Medicare Part A – provides coverage for hospital care (among institutions that accept Medicare) and has no monthly premium for its beneficiaries, as long as they have been employed and have paid FICA taxes for a minimum of a…
Read MoreTag: article on medicare
Medicare supplemental health plans may be facing new limits
Supplemental health plans for Medicare insurance beneficiaries may soon be facing cutbacks as a result of the major reductions being made in the budget as a result of the special U.S. Congress deficit reduction panel. Medigap insurance plans provide additional coverage for many elderly people who have Medicare. These are individuals often live on fixed incomes. They rely on Medigap to protect them from the many deductibles and expenses for which Medicare does not provide coverage. A lobbyist that has been keeping track of the latest “super committee” developments explained…
Read MoreUnitedHealth launched new initiative to make hearing aids available to more Americans
The UnitedHealth Group, one of the largest health insurance companies in the U.S., has announced that it will begin offering hearing aids as part of its myriad of health care products. The company has introduced four different kinds of hearing aids each made by IntriCon Corp., a manufacturer of small medical devices. UnitedHealth has begun offering hearing aids as part of a way to promote Medicare enrollment. The company will be offering hearing aids for eligible Medicare plan members at retail prices, which will be lower than prices found outside…
Read MoreInsurance Dialogue launched new website to help people obtain coverage from Medicare
Insurance Dialogue, a company serving as a liaison between consumers and insurers, has launched a new initiative to boost enrollment in the federal Medicare program. The company has developed a website that aims to help consumers find the Medicare plans that are best suited to their needs. The website, RightMedicare.com, is part of an overarching endeavor to raise awareness of health insurance amongst those that may need it most. Many of these people may not be aware that they are eligible to receive coverage through the program, especially as health…
Read MoreStandard & Poor’s reports cost of Medicare increasing at its slowest rate in over half a decade
According to data recently released by Standard & Poor’s, over the last year, the revenue increase for hospitals resulting from Medicare patients was about one third over what had been seen from patients who are covered by some form of private health insurance. The S&P Healthcare Economic Index showed that the revenue from Medicare increased by 2.5 percent per hospital patient before June 2011, which is the slowest increase since January 2005, when S&P’s first started to monitor this income. That said, the revenue generated from patients who were covered…
Read MoreMedicare costs return to spotlight following deficit debate
Controversial proposals regarding Medicare expenses have moved back into the forefront of discussions as a result of the federal deficit debates, leading many to voice concerns regarding the increase of hundreds – if not thousands – of dollars to the medical bills of seniors. It has not yet been determined whether any of these new proposals will be enacted in 2011, considering the current impasse faced by the government regarding its spending. The Republicans are currently demanding these proposals so that trillions can be hacked from the federal budget. However,…
Read More