Get AARP .If you don't travel get their cheapest plan.I have had it for twenty years, granted the plan increased over the years but well worth it.My doctor told me not to get cheaper insurance because they take longer to pay their bills and the doctors don't like them and wont give you the best treatment because it takes them so long to get their money.I love aarp and I never have to pay anything when I go to the doctor but one copay a year of $250.I don't understand the $250. but I pay it and smile.I'm 82 and something is always wrong with me.It's well worth it.

Thanks for all the replies.
I have gone over all the plans with a fine tooth comb on the medicare .gov site.
Sushipup, I will give the state a call to see if there is anything I've missed.
Yes, the whole thing is such a pain. We've always had insurance through employers and so never have had to deal with this.

Azzalea, that is helpful to know what her premium was.
That seems like a lot to me on top of what we pay for Part D and part B medicare. I think there is only state help if you are lower income.

If we don't go with the F--high deductible which has a very low premium but today the deductible is 2000 per person which would not be a hardship for us, then we will go with the N ( through the AARP united) since it is the only community rated plan in my state.
F--- high deductible basically would only be catastrophic insurance. F regular is the most inclusive.
N has a 140 deductible and we would be responsible for the office visit co pay of 20???( is that what it is.) after that deductible is paid.
The premium for it is 40 dollars less a month , so we'd be money ahead to go with that over the regular F.

Anyone else have experience with the AARP United insurance plan?
Also still interested in how much medicare does not pay how much the supplement would then have to pay.

My husband and I tend to be very judicious in our use of medical care and so far our health is cooperating.
I'm a retired RN and so that helps some. I tend to be a real skeptic in too much unnecessary medical intervention.

Of course we're not getting any younger and so we may not have a choice on down the road.

We have used BCBS since 1989, we don't pay a thing (except premiums) even deductibles. No paper work to fill out It is a little more expensive than some supplemental's, but worth every penny. Even with BCBS you need the best policy. Somethings you don't scrimp on, you pay more in the long run.

It took me so long to get my response posted that there were more answers.
Monica, I'll check to see if it is offered in my state. It is not listed as being available on my state site or Medicare.gov site.
Interesting about the docs not liking certain supplements.
My husband is 67 and I'm 66 so I have noticed that his quoted premiums are slightly higher than mine.

If my doctor made a comment like goldy's - I would switch physicians immediately. Doctors are required to provide the best treatment according to medical standards regardless of the reimbursement.

It's perfectly logical that they're not thrilled with certain insurance policies or supplements. In fact medicare has cut back their reimbursements so much many physicians are not accepting new Medicare patients to their practice.

Just a side note if you are considering AARP, at least check out their political affiliations.
While not trying to pry or suggest I know what or who you believe in, just be aware AARP is connected to a certain political group.

No I am not a shill or a spammer, but I really like to know how my money is spent, and on whom.

Here is a link that might be useful: Another option

I've had United Healthcare supplement which AARP endorses, since last Dec. I have Plan F. I've had 2 appts with my Primary, 1 appt with my GYN, bloodwork, a CAT scam & a PAP. I haven"t paid one penny for any of it. I haven't even received a statement. Medicare pays 80% of approved charges, Plan F picks up the rest.

I have the AARP United Health Care supplement. I started out with Blue Cross/Blue Shield, but when their premiums shot up I switched to United Health Care. Exact same coverage, lower premium. I've had surgical procedures, etc., and have paid nothing but the premiums.

My understanding (as told to me by several carriers) is that the government mandates the coverage; that is, all Plan C coverage is the same, no matter who provides it. Same is true of Plan F, etc.

I don't understand Jemdandy's comment about AARP insurance paying only up to 80%. That doesn't make sense to me. Medicare pays 80%, and the purpose of a supplement is to pick up what Medicare doesn't pay: the remaining 20%.

Chloe, have you chosen a Part D (prescription coverage) plan? I take no meds regularly, so I was hoping to put off that insurance, but I had to choose a plan. If you don't, you pay a hefty penalty later if you need drug coverage. I went with AARP/United Health Care.

I think BCBS only offers issue age so I think their plan would go up quite a bit because of age.
AARP is community based so they go by zip code.
They told me that in my zip code it went up 3% the last two years.
I feel as though I need to pick something I can stick with since I have a pre existing condition.

Neither do I understand Jemandy's comment.Perhaps she made a typo.

I have picked a part D. I take one generic daily and then I have one generic I only fill once a year that I take on an as needed basis.
I then fill a branded nasal inhaler for allergies about 4 times a year.
So I picked a plan with no deductible because that is what made sense for me and a plan that had in their formulary the branded inhaler.
My drug costs would not add up to the 320 deductible most plans offer. My cost is 27 a month for that.
My husband takes no prescriptions at this time. He hasn't picked but of course will have to do it within 3 months to avoid the penalty. He will probably go with a 320 deductible.
It seems that it will be easier to change Medicare D so I didn't feel as much pressure to pick the right one right away.
Yes,it's my understanding too that by law every plan F or A or whatever has to be identical from company to company.

Emma , do your premiums go up a lot each year?

I'm kind of interested in knowing how much how much a year the premiums are going to go up.
We initially were going to go with F, but one agent and the woman at AARP mentioned the N as being a good option if you don't go to the doctor all that much.
Hearing everyone's experience is very helpful.
I've been vacillating on what to do .
Thanks everyone.

It went up $7 this year. I really don't pay much attention to it. There are somethings I won't scrimp on and that is one of them. If it goes up I pay it. When you think it about almost everything goes up every year. My cable goes $5. every year, ATT did to. It's pretty common these days. You have to think about a $150,000 surgery bill can cost you with something cheaper. That's about what my husband's cost when he had by pass surgery. We didn't pay anything. Some things are never covered. I had to have a tetanus shot ($12.) and it wasn't.

One person told me that once they hit 70 their premiums began to skyrocket.
I don't know what kind of supplement they had.
But it seems that has not been your experience.
thanks.

Also know that if you get a Plan F now, it's easy. At a later date, it is almost impossible to "move up" from a lower plan, since you will need to pass a physical. You can move down in plans, but not up.

Yes, all this insurance plus unregulated prescription costs do add up, and it gets worse as you age and have additional ills and meds for them! My food budget is less than our medical and dental costs. For the last two years we've had enough to 'earn' a deduction from our federal taxes.

We have been fortunate to be able to have supplementary coverage in a group plan through DH's former employer.

Ours is an Aetna supplementary that pays 115% of Medicare-approved charges. I haven't paid anything out-of-pocket for the three years we've had this coverage. (When I say 115% I mean that they will pay the little bit more that some MD's charge over the Medicare-approved amount for that service.)

My DH and I have Part D coverage from different insurers. One is just a tad cheaper for my single expensive drug, Advair, while another is better for the two hugely expensive meds he only started needing two years ago ($8K/year retail). He had zero prescription drugs until after age 70, so...you never know.

You probably know this, but United Health Care simply pays AARP for the use of its' name. AARP is not the insurer.

I like to drop this little bomb wherever it pertains: Only the USA and New Zealand permit the advertising of prescription drugs. (And I'd always thought so highly of the Kiwis!)

Sushipup, that is my concern, especially since I have a pre existing condition. Even if they would agree to carry the supplemental on down the road, the premium would probably be sky high.
I really need to make the right decision now in this initial enrollment period.

I believe the F and N plans do cover the excess 15% allowable charges that some Docs. charge.
The N would save us 80 dollars a month in premiums. We would have to pay 140 each deductible and then the copay for doctors visits which they told me was 20 dollars.
Is that right about the co-pay being 20 dollars?
Right now we'd be money ahead going this route because we don't make that many Doctors visits. But of course our health is going to decline and so those visits will probably increase.
chisue, I did not know NZ also advertised prescription drugs. I thought we were the only country.
It really annoys me to be bombarded with those ads. Think how much less our drugs would cost if you remove the advertising money.

Have any of you changed Part D plans? How difficult has it been?

I'm so envious of those of you who have supplemental insurance from the employer.:)

I have a friend that has BCBS supplement and every year they offer you a way to save on the premiums. She decided to save, now has to pay for some bills and she can't move back up because she has an existing problem. Sometimes a person can just be two cheap.

Her and her husband both worked at aircraft plants most of their lives and have pensions. When she told me about the insurance problem. I said to her, you are so cautious about your money, where do you think it is going to go. They both have pensions and soc sec. The stock market is the only way you can loose it if you are properly insured. She just looked at me so funny. I told her to enjoy the money she had worked so hard to save.

Even if one of you has to go to a care home, you do a division of assets with the SRS and the healthy one gets to keep the house, one car and half the assets. And the good thing about about that is you get to live off the spouse half. I bought a new car off from my husband's share. There is a cap on the assets.

It's easy to change Part D coverage. Every year, usually in the fall, there is an open enrollment period. You can review your coverage and make changes then.

Because the Part D program was written by the drug companies, they will change the coverage of different drugs every single year. Best to do a review during the open enrollment and make changes if better. If you sign up for Part D now, understand that the plan's coverage can still change the first of the year, so you still may wish to change come this fall.

Doctors have to live too.They don't work for nothing. Those who pay get the best treatment.If you believe otherwise you are just dreaming.why not all of us stop buying insurance and go through the clinic.? You get what you pay for and that's a fact.

Goldy, not sure what prompted that last comment.
I have always been insured and will continue to be insured with a supplement and part D. My question had to do with buying supplemental insurance, not with how I can get free care from a clinic.
I think the comment was uncalled for.
N pays for all the same things that the best plan-- F does except for the small deductible which is not a hardship for us to pay.
Most of the discussion has been very helpful . Thank you.
I've definitely eliminated the high deductible F and will either go with regular F or N

Part D is prescriptions, right?

Yes, Part D is prescriptions.

Thanks I thought so, but wasn't sure because I don't have it, don't need it.

I may have the plans mixed up, but I thought Plan F was exactly like Plan C except it covers physicians who charge fees in excess of some standard amount. The difference in premium between United Health Care's Plan C and Plan F was less than $2 per month (the higher amount for Plan F), but I chose Plan C because Pennsylvania and New York do not permit doctors to charge the excessive amount, and those two states are where I'd be most likely to seek medical care.

When I got my information from United Health Care, I don't recall any mention of deductibles for C or F. But like I said, I may be confused on the plan names.

EmmaR, if you ever need it and did not get it from the start of when you were eligible, you will pay a very large premium for it.

Unless you are covered by another prescription plan that exceeds Part D coverage, then you can pick it up without a penalty.

alisande , you are not confused.
I was confused.
N does not cover excess doctor charges. The only plan that does is F.
For us there is about $1000 a year premium savings between F and N and so even each of us paying the 140 Part B deductible and then the co-pay for doctor's visits, we would still be money ahead based on how we use Doctors now. Oh for a crystal ball.
After we pay the deductible, we would still have to make 30 doctor visits to equal the $1000 savings in premiums.
of course I have no idea how much the excess Doctor charges would add up to.
It's really hard to make a decision without having any experience with medicare and how it pays and what kind of payment the Doctors agree to.
The safest plan is the F because then you know for sure what your monthly cost will be .

Here is a link that might be useful: Put in your zip code for chart on plans

Oh, for a crystal ball indeed!

My DH and I used to go for medical insurance policies with high deductibles, figuring we could handle all but catastrophic medical bills. My circumstances have changed, and I can no longer say that.

After we pay the deductible, we would still have to make 30 doctor visits to equal the $1000 savings in premiums.

I'm thinking it's not doctor visits that are likely to tip the balance, Chloe.

I don't run to the doctor a lot, so it would be tempting to get a policy that factors this in. But if there's one thing I've learned in life, it's that we can't predict what will happen next. For example, who would have thought I'd get a rose thorn embedded in the back of my hand, resting on a tendon, and requiring surgery? Surgical expenses add up in a hurry. Out of the blue I started having uterine bleeding last year. It turned out to be nothing to worry about, but they have to be aggressive about finding out the cause. This involved an ultrasound, biopsy, D&C, and some surgical procedure whose name escapes me for the moment (or forever). Again, unexpected bills that add up to a lot--and which fortunately I didn't have to pay. So you probably see what I'm getting at. :-)

We used to go with high deductibles as well and in the long run it was cheaper.
But, at our ages :) it is probably not the smart thing to do. We've decided to go with the United Plan F through AARP.

Chloe45, I don't think that you will be sorry. You didn't mention being offered a discount. When I signed up last Dec I got a 30% discount for enrolling. The discount will be decreased by 3% every yr for 10 yrs. I will only be getting a 3% discount in the 10th yr. It's still significant. I live in Pa, it may not apply in other states. Just thought I'd mention it. I had an agent, who didn't cost me anything and made it easy to enroll. I did everything by mail and phone, very painless. You could check online for agents or call to see if you're eligible for the discount, if one hasn't been offered to you.

One time during a strike a young friend of ours couldn't afford to pay the medical insurance even for one month if the strike lasted a long time and it did. He took out hospitalization only and they paid for their office calls themselves. This isn't applicable here, but it does help younger people who have trouble paying for insurance.

I would urge you to take the most comprehensive supplemental you can afford. For one thing, you will not be worrying about it -- or spending hours doing the patchwork bookkeeping of who pays what, when.

We are quite conservative about seeking medical care, but if we think there is a need, we don't stew over getting it. I'm as certain as anyone can be that our supplemental coverage makes us welcome patients.

The only record keeping I do is to match and file the Medicare statements with the Aetna supplemental statements; usually Aetna's come in first. (I have twice had to notify both that I was not the patient whose hospital-based bill they paid!)

I haven't written a check to an MD, lab or hospital for three years. I don't receive calls or statements saying a bill hasn't been paid. I don't spend hours on hold contesting a bill. I know that whatever is owed has been or will be paid. I know that our costs each year will be our premiums -- period.

EmmaR -- When you DO need Part D you will pay a penalty on top of the premium. (Or you will pay the full, inflated retail cost of your prescriptions.) My DH thought he didn't need Part D because he took no prescription drugs at the time Part D became available. He pays a $7 penalty per month now. He will always pay one. It can increase. You might want to find out what your penalty is before open enrollment begins in November.

mare,
we did get the discount but not the 30%
I think it starts at age 65 with a 30% discount. I am 66 and I got a 27% discount and my husband was 67 the end of June and so he got a 24% discount.

I'm expecting my premiums to go up about 6% a year.
They told me the rate increase in my zip code was 3% the last 2 years and with a 3% loss of discount each year it should be about 6% total. Of course it would be nice if it was less. :)
Chisue, realizing that I would know with certainty what our medical costs would be each month if I chose Plan F was what finally made me realize that we should go that route.

At first I was kind of shocked at how much our monthly insurance bills would be. I guess we had a really good deal with our BCBS through my husband's work because we will be paying about 200 dollars more a month now.

However now we should be close to 100% covered (other than perhaps for some drugs) and with BCBS we had co pays for office visits and many procedures were just covered at 80%. So perhaps adding in our out of pocket costs and then the insurance premium it may be close to the same monthly costs we will have now.
My husband doesn't take any drugs however he still signed up with the cheapest plan D so that he wouldn't be penalized down the road.

I think you'll be happy with your choice, Chloe. I, too, pay more for insurance now than before I went on Medicare, but my coverage is much better.

Good decision!

Is there a place to sign up for controling the costs of prescription medication, or do I have to change my nationality?

It makes me angry to be forced to buy Part D insurance *because* the pharmaceutical companies are allowed to chage whatever they darn well please. We could be so done with all this insurance rig-a-marole! The way it is, they make money and the insurance companies make money. Our role is to PAY it.

Glaxo has had a dozen years to reap the benefits of their discovery of Advair, but retail is still $3500/year for my prescription, with no generic in sight. (Shortly after they marketed it they took a cheap alternative off the market, leaving no substitute.)

Chisue you'd have to change your nationality :)
I'm a naturalized citizen. Canada is where I was born and lived until I was 18.
Parents retired in the Vancouver area .End of life care for them was excellent. Contrary to all the scare tactics we heard here about rationing of care for seniors up there we had the opposite experience.My father had brain surgery at 84. We had agreed not to put him through it but then the Surgeon felt he should have it because he had been a vigorous 84 year old.

Do you have to use Advair. No other asthma med would work, something that comes in generic?
I've read some rather negative things about advair actually making a person's asthma worse and they have a rebound situation when they try to get off of it.
Have you researched it?
I find that so many Docs push the "latest " when often something else would work just as well and often with fewer side affects.

I am in a similar situation with drugs used for my auto immune disease. But, so far thankfully, I've been able to avoid the big guns that cost thousands of dollars a month. One is an Iv infusion that is given every 2 months at a cost of over $8000 !!!!!! ( I think regular medicare pays for that one)
Others are $2-3000 a month. And of course these are the drugs that are tier 4 with the part D plans and would still cost a lot if I ever would need them.
It is infuriating that we pay so much more for prescription drugs in this country.
I do feel rather annoyed that we are forced to buy Part D now for my husband since he takes no drugs. As far as I'm concerned , right now the premium money for him is wasted money.
And even my drug costs don't add up to the $320 deductible that most plans have.

Chloe -- I've been on Advair since it was first marketed. I've tried Singulair and some other stuff without success. I have had both hips replaced, thanks to all the steroids over the years since I first became asthmatic in 1989 -- shortly after my mother ied of leukemia. I had lots of Pred. before Advair. Lesser of two evils!

Shall we band together and Rise Up -- or move north? LOL

I almost lost my mond trying to figure out the Medicare and the Supplemental. I finally went with United Healthcare (AARP) Plan F and whatever their good drug plan is. The drug plan drives me nuts because I think I pay $35 a month for that and I only take one prescription that I could buy out of pocket for $17. However, I know it is insurance, like car insurance, and if I suddenly need something more expensive, I am covered.

I shell out $300 a month for supplemental and drug. It's killing me!

Wow $300? You just reminded me why I didn't go with AARP for my supplemental.
My supplemental is a Plan F My total cost is less than $200, including a minimal AARP Prescription plan - which I have yet to need, as Wegman's charges me less than the AARP rate for my current prescriptions. I only have it for a "just in case" expensive drug situation.

I don't understand the $300 either. I have the AARP supplement, and pay $135 per month. My Part D drug coverage is around $40, I think. That annoys me, too, because I don't take any drugs on a regular basis. I've had drug coverage for four years now......that's a lot of premiums down the drain. But as we've said, that's what insurance is all about.

Oh, whoops. It's $175 a month for supplemental and $36.60 for drug coverage. I pay another $300 every three months for Medicare part something. Sorry!

Medicare Part B is either deducted from your SS payment or you are billed for it.

Why do you get the prescription plan when you don't need it. I don't have it, I can get it when I need it. I called for answers and the rep just laughed when I mentioned penalty. It's a scare tactic to get you to buy it. The penalty amount depends on how long you have been without it. I have never had it and if I took it now my penalty would be only $2 a month for 5 years. That is a lot less than $30 or $40 a month.

I have never had it and if I took it now my penalty would be only $2 a month for 5 years.

That doesn't sound right, Emma. I don't know whose rep laughed, but when I researched Medicare coverage and asked about Part D penalties, no one chuckled.

The link below (from the government's Medicare website) explains how the penalty is calculated. The amount of the penalty is based on how long a person goes without Part D coverage. I don't believe there's a limit on how long the penalty is in effect.

In the example given at the link, a woman goes 2.5 years without Part D coverage. When she does enroll, her penalty is $9.32 per month, added to her premium. This amount can go up if the national base beneficiary premium goes up. Someone waiting five years would pay $18.64 a month in addition to the Plan D premium.

So to answer your question, this is why some of us get the prescription plan when we don't yet need it.

Late Enrollment Penalty

Emma,

Were you talking to a Medicare rep or an insurance company rep?
I bet you were talking to an insurance co.

Medicare, not an insurance company that's for sure. The penalty thing didn't sound right to me that and curiosity is why I called and checked. Maybe age has something to with it, I don't know. It may have gone up since I called last year, but she said $2 and something a month for as long as you have not taken it out ever. And even at $9 a month, it's still better than $30 or $40 a month for something you don't need.

I do not intend to every take it out ever. Doctors are keeping people alive much longer than ever and sometimes that is not good. My husband was 80 years old when he died and had AZ for 5 years, didn't know up from down. Mom was almost 100 years old and she had dementia, couldn't read or understand TV just sat in her chair and stared at the wall wondering why it was taking her so long to die. I don't do tests, take meds or have surgery. I have a comfort care order that will prevent a care home from giving me meds that prolong my life. I do not want to outlive my memory.

Can you even get prescription coverage when it is not open enrollment time? As I recall, you can enroll within a few months before and after your 65th birthday, but after that only during open enrollment. If you suddenly have a need for it and open enrollment is months away, you are out of luck.

I'm not collecting SS yet, so I pay directly for Medicare Part B.

chisue, understand the lesser of two evils.
They use prednisone for my disease too. Thankfully, I've never been bad enough to have to use it on a daily basis. I'm allergic to one of the main drugs to treat my disease so if my current drugs really stops working I will have no choice but to take those awful , dangerous and expensive drugs. Hopefully it will never come to that.

I have one older brother that did not move to the States when my family moved and so I've really been thinking about how much easier it was for him to retire in Canada. No jumping through all these hoops to figure out how to get his health care needs covered.

Emma, what I understand is that they don't have to insure you if you have had a gap in insurance and are outside the 6 month open enrollment.

Our situation was a little confusing to these insurers because our medicare part A automatically kicked in at 65 and our B took effect two years later when my husband turned 67.
So they carelessly were just looking at the date part A kicked in and assumed we'd had a two year gap in coverage.

Some asked if we'd been on cobra.

They were asking for proof of insurance until I reminded them that medicare B was just starting and we were within the 6 month open enrollment. The drug plan still said that if I had not been covered they would have raised my premium.Not sure if that is legal under the 6 month open enrollment, but I didn't research it anymore sine it didn't apply to me.

In my case, if I went without and then ended up going on one of those $3000 a month drugs and then decided at that time to get part D, no one would be too excited to insure me .
And you can bet if one of my drugs was $3000 a month and they agreed to insure me, my premium would be pretty hefty.

Our total costs for the two of us are around $480 a month

United(AARP) is $116.78 for me, $121.94 for my husband.
It is community based which means they can't raise your premium just because you are a year older. It goes up according to your zip code.
In my state there were only two options for community based or issue age --the two that can't be raised because you are a year older.
All the others were attained age which will go up for each year older you get.
Then medicare B is $99.90 for each of us.
I'm paying $27 for my part D and my husband picked the cheapest for 15 a month. I didn't figure it was as important to get the perfect plan with drug because it apparently is easy to change at the end of the year if what you picked didn't work out so well.

It just seemed to me that there was a real learning curve to getting this all arranged.

Dedtired, I'm confused why you would be paying 300 a month for medicare part B or something else??
something doesn't sound right.

It is absolutely crazy-making!

I do better figuring expenses on an annual basis. I really have to do that, since our Meicare supplementary is through DH's former employer, where there's one rate for just "Retiree" and a slight addition for "Retiree + Spouse".

Medicare Part B for us both = $2398
Aetna Supplemental for two = $744
Dental for two = $396 (Barely pays to have this.)
Part D for two = $958 ($92 of that is DH's penalty.)
Prescription Meds for two (out of pocket) = $3800
Dental Care = $8500
Medical Care = $0

That's almost $17,000. My food costs are half that much. Yes, the two 'biggies' are my terrible teeth and our expensive prescriptions. But...we have really cheap supplemental! La-la-la!

It galls me to pay almost a thousand dollars a year for Part D so that our prescriptions cost us 'only' $3800. (And why is that? Because the retail cost of our three major meds is $8900/year, and because of 'the gap' -- which is supposed to be phased out before long.)

Our ages average to 72. The insurance and pharmaceutical industries can get many more years of money out of us. They must be rolling on the floor with glee over the Baby Boomers who are coming of age to contribute!

Grrrrrr.

How about limiting federal legislative campaigns to three months before an election? News travels much faster today than it did in 1776. We don't need such long campaigns. (Wouldn't it be a relief?)

How about limiting federal legislative campaigns to three months before an election? News travels much faster today than it did in 1776. We don't need such long campaigns. (Wouldn't it be a relief?)

It would indeed, Sue. I don't watch TV very often, but already I'm tired of the political ads.

dedtired
I should have read more carefully. You said medicare 300 for 3 months. sounds right.

chisue, do you live in a swing state?
I don't and it is bad.
I can't even imagine what it must be like to live in a swing state.
I keep thinking about all the good that could be done with all that campaign money. For starters it could be used to improve our schools.
sigh, it will never happen. Each election the amount of money spent increases. It is absolutely ridiculous

Chloe -- I'm 'Chi' (for Chicagoland) + 'Sue' (jus' me). We live 30 miles north of the city. At least we are out of Cook County; Lake County is less corrupt -- or better at hiding it!