When choosing what route to go for your Medicare coverage, it’s important to always look at both the positives and the negatives of all available plans. This is meant to briefly summarize the things to look at when you are considering a Medicare Advantage plan.
If you have questions that aren’t answered here, please send us an email or call our office at 877-312-1414, and we’ll be happy to assist you.
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What is Medicare Part C?
Basically, Medicare Part C, or Medicare Advantage, is private companies that contract with Medicare to provide your Medicare Parts A and B coverage. Many of these plans will also provide Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage.
So what are the positives of Medicare Advantage plans?
One positive is that generally the premium cost is quite low. In some places there are even zero dollar premium cost Medicare Advantage plans.
How can they offer $0 premium plans?
The question always comes up: how can that be? How are they giving something seemingly away for free? Well, it’s not free.
You keep paying your Medicare Part B premium to Medicare itself, and whenever someone enrolls in a Medicare Advantage plan, Medicare will give the Medicare Advantage company a certain amount of money to manage that enrollee’s care. That’s how these plans are paid for.
Potential drawbacks of Medicare Advantage plans
What are some of the drawbacks to consider before enrolling? The first one is networks. You have a more limited network of providers and hospitals in a Medicare Advantage plan than you do in the Original Medicare plan.
Instead of going to any Medicare provider, you do need to generally stay within the network of providers who contract with your Medicare Advantage plan, except in the case of emergencies.
Also, the out-of-pocket risk can be much higher than going with Original Medicare and a Medicare Supplement, so when you’re comparing Medicare Advantage plans, you need to look at the plan’s deductibles, co-pays, co-insurance, and the annual maximum out-of-pocket risk. That will give you a better sense of what your costs could be should you need a high level of medical care during the year.
How to choose the best plan
All of these plans do vary by zip code, so a plan that is working really well for relatives or friends who live somewhere else may not even be available where you live. A good place to start to see what plans are available for you is to click on our Instant Quote page and put in your zip code. That will give you a list of most of the plans available in your area. Now there are some that we aren’t allowed to include on that page, so if none of those look like they’re a great match for you, and you’d like to look at other Medicare Advantage plans in your area, please give us a call, 877-312-1414, and we’ll be happy to quote some other plans for you also.
When choosing a Medicare plan, there is no one-size-fits-all. There’s no absolute best answer for everyone. Every person has individual circumstances that need to be taken into account, so that’s why whether you choose a Medicare Advantage plan or a Medicare Supplement, it’s important to understand what your options are, understand what your risks are, before enrolling.
And that’s what we’re here to do. Again, if you have any questions, please reach out or watch our free online video to learn how to find the best Medicare coverage for you. We’re happy to help you!
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