Finding Your Way In Medicare
This post is sponsored by Sivan Social. All comments and opinions are my own.
I’m a few years away from signing up for Medicare, but my husband is older. He signed up for Medicare when he retired at 67 years old. It was a very stressful time because we didn’t know what we were doing. There are books, pamphlets, television infomercials, and brokers who want to tell you all about Medicare.
Whether you’re signing up for the first time or have been on it for a long time, the Medicare Annual Enrollment comes up every year and it’s almost here. If you are new to Medicare, the initial paperwork can be done. If you want to drop your plan or want to change to a different plan, this is the time to do it. The dates for Annual Enrollment are October 15 – December 7.
The main thing that I learned when I helped my husband search out the plan for him was that Medicare doesn’t cover everything. It’s also much more expensive than I thought it would be. First, you have to pay premiums for original Medicare. But this doesn’t cover all the bills. 80% of medical bills are covered, but then the rest would have to come out of our wallet. When you’re retired, medical bills can drain your bank account pretty quick.
This means that you need a supplemental insurance policy, too. The insurance premiums for the supplemental policy aren’t cheap either. After all this, you find that it doesn’t cover dental bills, eye doctors, or prescription drugs.
My husband had never been sick or on medications until this past year, when he was diagnosed with cancer. We are so glad that he already had plans to cover everything. He got Part D to pay for his medications.
The reason that there is an Annual Enrollment is because insurance companies change the policies every year. This is frustrating, because seniors have to read all the stats and the fine print to see if they’re getting the best deal and policy for them. What’s a person to do?
I would suggest getting advice from a few experts to learn all you can. This is the best way to protect yourself and a loved one from future medical bills. SeniorLiving.org is a site that can help you make really good decisions about Medicare.
If you go to this website, you’ll see a helpful phone number at the top of the page. This number is for QuoteManage, which will give you a free consultation to help you make decisions during the Annual Enrollment period. There is no obligation and no cost to talk to their expert. It’s always good to get some advice.
I hope you or your loved one stays healthy and won’t need all the insurance benefits. But if you’re like my husband, you could need really good coverage so that you can afford to get all the treatment you need.
@2021, copyright Lisa Ehrman
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- Lisa has been blogging since 2013, and loves sharing resources and ideas for living a simple life. To get free printables, bonus words, and more - sign up for the newsletter.
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Thoughtful insight, always important to have a plan.
This is very helpful advice, thank you so much for sharing! It definitely seems like a hard and stressful process. My dad will probably be looking into getting this in a couple more years.
Good tips in this post. I have Medicare Advantage and it’s worked well for me.
I will be signing up in 5 years and I hope it is easy to understand then.
My mother had a stroke and head on car collision 3 weeks before her Medicare enrollment. After this, I learned that she had yet to make a decision on her options. One tip I can give is to make sure that you check prices and coverage for supplemental and Part D plans for specific zip codes. At that time, we were not sure if she would stay in Virginia or move to North Carolina. We wanted to make sure there would be an easy option to update her location without losing the benefits that would best help her. Also, check the prescription coverage for every single medication. For example, my mother was diagnosed with diabetes and was prescribed two brands of insulin. By taking the time to make sure her insulin was covered, it saved her thousands. Based on her family history, we were also able to check coverage for medications she would likely take. Also, your suggestion to talk to a few experts to learn more is good advice!
Thank you for sharing your experience and tip! There is so much to consider!