Before attending one of our many workshops, Rich and Rachael were astounded by the amount of misinformation they had been told by friends, relatives, and medical staff about Medicare and their choices. Some of this misinformation included; 1) That you had to sign up for Medicare no matter what at age 65! 2) You can never switch plans after you sign up for one. 3) You can’t keep your employer plan. 4) You can have as many plans for coverage as you want. 5) You don’t need a Part D drug plan, because it’s optional. 6) Doctors don’t take Medicare anymore. 7) My friend has a great plan and I want that one. 8) I thought that no one can ask medical questions anymore. 9) Medicare covers me anywhere in the world.
After attending our Medicare workshop and then having a one-on-one meeting with a Licensed Advisor to research their specific doctors, hospitals and prescription needs, they were pleased to find out that Medicare wasn’t the big bad bugger-bear that they thought it was going to be. After finding out that none of the above was true they could not b
elieve all the rumors and false information all of this bad information such an issue”? Of course the answer was simple. Most folks are not trained as certified professionals and just repeat gossip or other tales from friends or acquaintances like it was the gospel.
The other issue was that their doctors’ offices were confusing them about which Medicare Advantage networks their doctor was participating in, and which ones the doctor wasn’t. The doctors’ staff kept confusing Advantage Carriers with Medigap Carriers and plans. With over1400 combinations of Medicare plans available it’s no surprise! “With all the news and politicians saying scary things about Medicare we just thought for sure that signing up for Medicare and the coverage we would experience was going to be terrible”! Rich stated. As part of our initial review of coverage that was available to them, we found that Rich had access to an Employer Retirement Health Plan from his company. What he could not believe was how expensive it was and how much the deductible and co-pays were in addition to the monthly premium he had to pay for coverage for the both of them. It was going to be over $1,000.00 dollars a month! They were thrilled when they found a Medicare Medigap plan for only $145.00 a month each and the plan had no co-pays and $0 deductible. They could also go to any doctor they wanted to go to, even any specialist without a referral! “In truth, the Medicare Health coverage plans we selected are even better than our employee coverage plans that we’ve had for years!” added Rachael. Needless to say, there was an extremely happy ending after they left the State of Confusion! So don’t be afraid to ask questions about “What do I do”? We’ll take it from there and guide you through all of your available Medicare Healthcare options!
(Previous published in the July 2015 Edition of the American Retirement Advisor Newsletter)