Basics Of Medicare You Should Know About

The national health insurance program is geared primarily toward seniors and those who are permanently disabled. Medicare is an extremely important part of many people's lives since it is often their only insurance option.

But like most other government programs, gaining a good understanding of Medicare's basics can be difficult, especially since various rules and regulations change almost every year. 

If you are preparing to enroll in Medicare or have a family member who needs to understand it in more detail, here are some Medicare basics, you should know about from day one.

Medicare is Not Medicaid

Remember, Medicare and Medicaid are not the same programs. If you are eligible for Medicare, your assets and income play no part in determining your eligibility for the program. Being a federal program, Medicare procedures do not vary much if state to state.

Parts A and B

The two major coverage components of Medicare are known as Parts A and B. Part A will cover your inpatient hospital care, inpatient care in a skilled nursing facility, such as a nursing home, hospice care, and home health care services. 

Part B will cover visits to a doctor's office, various types of outpatient care, the most durable medical equipment, and other related services.

A and B Don't Pay Your Total Cost

One of the biggest mistakes many new to Medicare make is assuming Parts A and B will cover 100 percent of their medical costs, which is not the case. 

A and B only cover 80 percent of your costs, meaning you will still need to pay some on your own. To offset these costs, you may consider adding a Medicare Advantage plan to your coverage. 

Often known as managed care plans, Medicare Advantage will require you to pay premiums but will offset what may be very expensive medical costs.

You Don't Have to be Retired

Finally, you need to realize that you do not have to be retired from your job to be eligible for Medicare. Even if you do not plan to retire at age 65, you can still sign up for Medicare. 

To do so, you will enroll online during your Initial Enrollment Period, which will be three months before turning 65 or the first three months after you turn 65.

By knowing what is involved with Medicare coverage, you can make informed decisions to ensure you have the best possible health care in the years ahead.

Costs That Medicare Won't Cover and How to Find the Right Supplemental Coverage for You

Three months before you turn 65 years old, you’re allowed to sign up for Medicare, either Part A, Part B, or both. Medicare Part A pays for surgery, hospice care, hospital stays, and skilled nursing facilities. 

Medicare Part B pays for preventive services, outpatient care, some medical equipment, some medical supplies, and visits to the doctor. However, below are some costs that Medicare won’t cover that you will need to find supplemental coverage for.

Deductibles and Copays

With Medicare Part A and Part B, you still have to pay for deductibles and copays. With Part B, you have to cover the $233 deductible, plus 20% of the costs for lab tests, x-rays, and doctor services. 

With Part A, you have a deductible of $1,556 before your coverage kicks in. Medicare supplement plan C is the most comprehensive Medigap policy and covers hospital insurance and costs up to 365 days after you exhaust your original medicare benefits.

Dental Care

Your oral health is an important part of your overall wellness. However, Medicare doesn’t cover dental visits, dentures, fillings, extractions, or cleanings. However, some Medicare Advantage plans, often called Part C plans, may offer additional coverage, including dental care.

Hearing Aids

While Medicare supplement plans C and F may cover a hearing diagnostic test coinsurance, they likely won’t pay for hearing aids. A Medicare Advantage plan might cover the cost of some hearing aids. 

Some insurance companies don’t often offer coverage as they don’t consider hearing aids to be essential devices and that hearing aids are elective.

Long-Term Care

One of the largest expenses after retirement is long-term care costs. Medicare does cover some skilled nursing services, but it does not cover custodial care. For long-term care needs, you may need to turn to a combination of long-term care and life insurance policy.

Overseas Medical Care

If you need medical care overseas, Medicare doesn’t usually cover this expense except for limited circumstances. However, up to a certain limit, Medigap plans C, D, F, G, M, and N cover 80% of the costs (up to a certain limit) of emergency care. 

Travelers’ insurance covers some medical expenses overseas. Even if the country in question has universal healthcare or even free healthcare, visitors typically must pay for care, even if it is cheaper than in the US.

Prescription Drugs

While Medicare doesn’t provide coverage for prescription drugs, Medigap Part D, or the Medicare Advantage Plan do.

Vision Care

Medicare doesn’t cover glasses or routine eye exams unless you have diabetes and need an annual eye exam. Some Medicare Advantage plans do provide vision coverage, or you can purchase a supplemental policy for only vision care.

There are many different Medicare supplement plans available. Some of them are through Medicare while others are through third parties, like Silver American. You can shop around to find the right coverage for you.

When planning for retirement, it’s important to stay knowledgeable about changes to Medicare and Medigap plans to avoid surprises. Once you retire, you want the money you saved for retirement to go towards enjoying your life, not towards medical bills that Medicare won’t cover.

Learn the Benefits and Features of Medicare Supplement Plans Before You Have to Use Them

Insurance, a means of savings, is the most helpful thing for the modern human being. It has very much integrated into the modern life style that almost all human beings without failure has some sort of insurance policy to cover their expenses. 

State mutual insurance, Medicare, is the best one among the many insurance policies available today.

Medicare is the health policy available with many plans and supplements. The federal government has standardized all supplement plans and hence there cannot be any confusion in the structure of features among the various plans. 

Medicare and its supplement plans start from A and ends in N. Before purchasing the suitable plan, it is mandatory to know the features and benefits in order to select the most suitable one. 

Benefits and features of Medicare plans:

• State mutual insurance offers plans A, B, C, D, F, G, M and N. Plans K and L are not offered by state mutual. 
• Even after the benefits are used up for the normal period, Hospital cost for additional 365 days is offered by Medicare Part A Coinsurance. 
• Medicare Part B is applicable by all the available plans. 
• First three pints of blood is offered by all plans 
• Hospice care co-payment of Part A by all plans 
• Co-insurance of nursing care which is a professional care is applicable by plans C, D, F, G, M, and N. This is charged in the billing amount from the 21st day to 100th day of the hospital stay. 
• Medicare part A is deductible by plans B, C, D, F, G and N. This is applicable 50% by plan M and is only after the first sixty days. 
• Medicare part B is deductible by plans C and F only. The amount set by Medicare for a year is applicable for many services like outpatient and inpatient services, physician services, supplies and surgical services, speech and physical therapy. 
• Additional Charges of Medicare Part B is applicable to plans F and G only. This covers all the differences 100% that arise in between the actual billing and Medicare Part B Charges. 
• Travel emergency to foreign countries is applicable to C, D, F, G, M and N. 80% of charges in excess to $250 is provided in a foreign country for one year. It can be utilized maximum up to $50,000 during the policy holders’ lifetime. 
• Co-insurance of part B for Preventive care is applicable for all plans. 
• Plan F is a highly deductible plan. Up to $2,110 is deductible and hence the Medicare costs covers the remaining amount. 
• As far as plan N is concerned, it pays 100% coinsurance of part B. However, policy holders need to pay $20 for office visits and $50 for unexpected emergency visits. 

Thus, insurance, especially for health, has become very beneficial to the policy holders to enable sudden and unwanted expenses regarding health care treatments. The only thing for the people is to study their various aspects of a plan and find out the most suitable and beneficial one for him.