Medicare
Medicare Information
Why do you need Medicare?
• Seniors are in the most need of health care, but once retired monthly premiums can become hard to maintain. Enrolling in the Medicare program allows you to get the care you need for a minimal charge.
What is Medicare?
Original Medicare is a fee-for-service health care program for seniors, in which the government pays health care providers directly for services that fall under Parts A and B of Medicare benefits.
Original Medicare is divided into four categories. This allows you to customize your personal coverage when shopping for a comprehensive policy.
• Part A (hospital insurance): Covers hospital care, emergency services, nursing home care, home health services and hospice.
• Part B (medical insurance): Covers medically necessary services and supplies used for diagnosing and treating medical conditions, and preventative services for illness prevention and/or early detection. Examples include ambulance services, mental health care, outpatient procedures and clinical research.
• Part D: Offers prescription drug coverage.
• Medicare Advantage Plans (optional Part C): Combine Parts A, Part B and often part D
How do I get Medicare?
If you're over 65 (or turning 65 in the next 3 months) and not already getting benefits from Social Security, you won't get Medicare automatically. You need to sign up to get Medicare Part A and Part B. You can sign up for Medicare online or by contacting Social Security.
If you already get benefits from Social Security, you'll get Medicare Part A and Part B automatically when you're first eligible and don't need to sign up. Medicare will send you a "Welcome to Medicare" packet 3 months before you turn 65.
How do I customize my coverage?
People get Medicare coverage in different ways. Original Medicare – Includes Part A and Part B. You can use any doctor or hospital that takes Medicare, anywhere in the U.S. Original Medicare offers coverage for services and supplies that are considered to be medically necessary, such as doctor visits, lab tests and durable medical equipment.
• If you want drug coverage, you can join a separate Medicare Prescription Drug Plan (Part D) .
*If you don't get Part D when you're first eligible, you may have to pay more to get this coverage later. For Part D, this could mean a lifetime premium penalty.
What if I want more coverage than original Medicare?
We can help you review and select from one of our Medicare Advantage Plans – An "all in one" alternative to Original Medicare. These "bundled" plans include Part A, Part B, and usually Part D.
Each plan must offer at least the same coverage as original Medicare, while many plans offer additional coverage and perks not covered by Medicare – like vision, hearing, dental, and more.
• Plans may have lower out-of-pocket costs than Original Medicare.
• In most cases, you'll need to use doctors who are in the plan's network.
Contact us today to learn more about coverage options. We are happy to work with you to determine which Medicare options works best for you.
1 - This is not a complete listing of plans available in your service area. For a complete listing please contact 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY users should call 1-877-486-2048), 24 hours a day/7 days a week or consult www.medicare.gov.
Medicare has neither reviewed nor endorsed this information.
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