This article is continued from Part 1. Retiree benefits are received by approximately one in every three Medicare beneficiaries, and are a form of supplemental coverage from the retirement health plan provided by their former employers. For these individuals, Medicare began quite simply. They would use both Parts A and B, and then would simply use the insurance from their former employers to cover the out-of-pocket costs such as prescription drugs. The majority of individuals who have this option available to them will take it. However, employers are offering this…
Read MoreTag: Medigap plans
The Medicare Information Solution: part 1
Health insurance can be a concern throughout a person’s entire life, but Medicare helps to ease that anxiety once retirement age comes around. However, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any concerns about Medicare itself. Primarily, this consists of which programs to choose. As a senior citizen, healthcare coverage can be quite complicated, as the system is based upon a number of different forms of insurance, some of which are public, and others that are private. One person may require up to four different insurance programs; each of which needs…
Read MoreHow proper insurance planning can save a financial life
Breast cancer awareness month, October, is reminding people of the importance of proper insurance in order to protect themselves, their businesses, and their financial wellbeing in the case that they should receive a cancer diagnosis. Current statistics show that one out of every eight women will receive a diagnosis of breast cancer in their lifetimes, and the impact on their financial lives can be catastrophic. The Macmillan Cancer Support Charity’s data shows that among all cancer sufferers, 36 percent must face a significant decrease in their household income following a…
Read MoreAn overview of Medicare plans and what they cover
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 MoreMedicare 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 MoreAnswers you should know to the FAQ’s about Medicare
Though it may feel overwhelming when you are faced with the most common questions to Medicare and Medicare Supplement Insurance, in truth, it doesn’t take hours of research to know what options are available to you. The most commonly asked question is regarding the difference between Medicare Advantage (MA) Plans, and the Original Medicare. The fact is that there are a number of important differences between them. The original plan is government Medicare, whereas MA is private Medicare. The two plans involve comparable out-of-pocket expenses. An MA plan is essentially…
Read MoreWhat consumers can expect from Medigap coverage
According to senior Medicare adviser from PlanPrescriber, Steve Zaleznick, consumers with original Medicare have been watching their insurance premiums steadily climb, and it is recommended that these individuals carefully consider their Medigap supplemental coverage in order to make sure that adequate protection under a less expensive plan. According to the director of benefits access policy of the Washington D.C.-based nonprofit advocacy organization, National Council on Aging, Hilary Sohmer Dalin, Medigap plans are designed to function with the original Medicare plan, and “Medigap wraps itself around Medicare and covers some or…
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