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11-22-2022, 08:48 PM #11
- Join Date
- May 2014
- Location
- NW AL/NE GA Mountains
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- 2,083
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I never trust any product that bombards us retirees with telephone salesmen 10 hours a day. And then I've got to look at Joe Willie's mug trying to sell Advantage plans every 5 minutes of every day.
Just because a hospital and their doctors accept Medicare and regular Supplements doesn't mean that they accept Medicare Advantage Plans. Many don't, and patients have had to change doctors and even hospitals outside of their community. And many doctors that are on the Advantage lists are from foreign medical schools.
I would be looking for a national health insurance plan like BCBS Anthem that deals with patients from all over the country. There are others in the market too.
My wife has had about 4 serious health issues (and scares) in the last year, and I'm so thankful that we're on Plan F--the most comprehensive plan without deductibles. We see few bills, but I would think she's had $500K in healthcare expenses spent on her.
You might consider joining Early-Retirement.org and search their site for Medicare Advantage pros/cons. It's a popular subject there.
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11-26-2022, 04:44 PM #12
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11-26-2022, 05:26 PM #13
- Join Date
- Jul 2020
- Location
- Eastern Ks
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- 20
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I don't believe the Advantage plan covers Mexico or Canada. & beware you can go back to the other supplement 1 time, but that has to be used in the first year. Itriedc to go back to plan G after 2 years & was turned down. The Eye glass, Dental, & Hearing aid coverage is not good at all.
Mike & Karen
2021 337 RLS
2022 GMC 3500 DRW Duramax
Anderson Ultimate Hitch
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11-27-2022, 09:03 AM #14
- Join Date
- Sep 2019
- Location
- Where we park our RV
- Posts
- 10
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Medicare Advantage
The provider networks for Medicare Advantage plans is sketchy in the western states. You're much better off staying on a Medigap plan. If the cost is getting prohibitive you could always switch to the high deductible version of the Medigap plan like an HDF or HDG, depending on your age. The cost is much less and if you're reasonably healthy, you'll actual save a lot of money. If you're not then you'll end up paying about what you would have paid for the no deductible version of your plan.
David & Kathy Dillow
2018 Reflection 320MKS
2018 Ford F250 Lariat 4x4 LB Diesel
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11-27-2022, 10:57 AM #15
- Join Date
- Jan 2020
- Location
- Southern Utah
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- 51
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You should truly talk to your Agent. We travel and Specifically asked about being out of our area for healthcare under Medicare Advantage. Our answer was YES you are covered under "EMERGENCIES ONLY" - Hospitalization.
If you can go to an urgent care out of area, you pay a bit more than usual.
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11-29-2022, 04:19 PM #16
- Join Date
- Mar 2019
- Location
- Where ever we park from Texas to Oregon
- Posts
- 42
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We have a Medicare Supplement through Cigna and have had no network issues anywhere we have traveled. We home base in the Dallas area during the winter and campground host in far north east Oregon. We chose to avoid the advantage plans due to the network issues we kept hearing about.
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12-03-2022, 06:36 AM #17
- Join Date
- Dec 2016
- Location
- Somewhere, USA
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- 2,616
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I had really good health insurance through my employment, but when we reached Medicare Age i looked at Part B and the late sign up penalty. So I signed me and the wife up for Part B when we turned 65 and started looking at health insurance. What a quagmire.
I am a full timer who travels extensively in the US. My research, including several hours on the telephone with different insurance salespeople, boiled the Advantage plans down to 2 that would work for me. Aetna Medicare Premier Plus (PPO) and AARP® Medicare Advantage Choice. Both have clauses about leaving your service area. I am domiciled through St. Brendans Isle service in Green Cove Springs, FL; Clay county. The PPO's allow me to use in network services anywhere in the US. They will also pay for out of network to a lesser degree. You are not bound to a physician in your domicile location.
It was rare for me to talk with a salesperson who could comprehend a full timers RV lifestyle, they just don't get it. They deal almost exclusively with fixed address sticks and bricks people. I was fed a lot of bushwa, I finally got on the insurance companies web sites and downloaded the "Evidence of Coverage" booklets. After reading them and comparing the coverages I used their web sites to look for in network medical care in the areas that I planned on traveling over the next year, some are really strong in certain areas and almost non-existant in others, thats what ruled Humana out for me.
Then, with all that information I called the insurance companies directly. Easier said than done, lots of times I was redirected to a contract sales person who was not well trained. Eventually I got to talk to a claims specialist who did understand the "service area" issue. In both of the aforementioned companies they explained to me that the HMO's where definetly area driven, while the PPO's service area was anywhere medicare is accepted, with the in network out of network qualifier. I then looked up several physicians on the insurance companies specific web site, I found that the doctors I saw in Washington, Texas, Utah, South Dakota and Florida all accepted the insurance plans above.
I finally went with AARP® Medicare Advantage Choice through United Health Care insurance company. Partly because I own some of their stock, but mostly because they have facilities in the area I planned on traveling to.
This took me nearly 6 months to wade through. We have only been on the plan since last July when my wife turned 65. I went to the ER once when I took a fall rock climbing in South Dakota, and we have class 1 (i think that's the right term) prescriptions. Insurance paid. Health wellness is a big thing for them, lots of perks like gym membership, getting paid $50 so they will give us a home health check, that should be interesting. We get $40 a quarter to spend on over the counter products like vitamins, blood pressure checkers, lots of other stuff. Good enough dental I cancelled my other dental plan. A little bit on hearing aids.
Only time will tell if I made a good decision or not. But we have pretty good health insurance for our $170 each Part B payment.Dallas
2017 Momentum 376TH, 2019 Ford F450, Dual Rear Wheel, 4x4, diesel.
2015 Harley-Davidson Street, XG750
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12-03-2022, 07:46 AM #18
Last edited by Corky2; 12-03-2022 at 07:49 AM.
2022 Imagine 22RBE
2021 Ram 1500 Big Horn 5.7 Hemi 4X4
USAF Veteran
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