Today's Women of Age

I didn’t feel officially old until I signed up for Medicare. I could no longer pretend I was still in my 50s. It was sobering. Still on the positive side it was good to get off my husband’s super expensive COBRA plan!

It was a bit of quagmire figuring out all the Medicare options and parts though there are free services that can assist you as well as a plethora of websites. I am not going to even attempt to provide all that information. Suffice it to say there are two main choices Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage. The Advantage program is much more restrictive but many of the free consultation services push you in that direction. (I’m assuming they receive some financial incentive to do so.)

I choose Original Medicare, but there are two topics no one talks about much in relation to this plan.

Many medical groups and doctors in my area (and perhaps in yours) no longer accept new Medicare patients. My group only accepts Medicare if you are a current patient with them, which was a huge relief for me to know I could keep my long-time GP and other docs. That was part of the reason I choose the Original Medicare. (But definitely if I have chosen Medicare Advantage it would have meant going to a different medical facility further away and getting all new docs.)

Even before starting Medicare you can expect every health insurance company to inundate you with offers to signup for their supplemental insurance (or MediGap) and you are encouraged to do so. Health insurance companies will stress that you that you NEED this insurance. But beyond possibly helping pay for your co-pays and deductibles, there is no guarantee that your supplemental insurance carrier will cover costs that Medicare doesn’t. The carrier can still deny your claims, which as we know happens all too frequently in this industry. I think the most troubling cases occur when the insurance company doesn’t believe your procedure was a medical necessity. The doctors deemed it necessary, but a pencil pusher at the company with no medical experience can deny your claim. Some insurers may also refuse to pay for pre-existing conditions for at least six months or may deny a claim if it exceeds “frequency limitations.”

Potentially you could be paying hundreds of dollars a month for supplemental insurance (that’s over-and-above the cost of your Medicare payments) that may not save you any money. Ever.

So what did I do? I opted not to send any more money down the health-insurance black hole and have set aside funds to handle additional medical costs which also includes my dental and vision. No MediGap for me. (Yes, I could have gotten separate dental insurance, but the annual cost is more than my two cleanings a year. It didn’t make financial sense to get this insurance. And if I do need some more extensive work done in the future I have funds to cover that.)

Oddly this gives me peace of mind that but this may not be the right decision for you. Obviously you have to consider your health and financial situation carefully. Choosing your Medicare plan and future health care options requires hours of research. Don’t take this task lightly.

Resources

• Medicare.gov
• USA.gov – How and When to Apply for Medicare
• Kiplinger’s Article – “Problems with Medicare Advantage Keep Mounting”