Maximize Your Medicare Newsletter March 27, 2015 “Doc Fix” Will Affect Beneficiaries Most of the attention is on the fact that the cost of the “Doc Fix” is to be paid by the providers. By and large, that may well be true, but... What isn’t getting publicity, and is “probably” a case of the elected officials attempting to avoid criticism, is that he proposed changes to Medicare will affect beneficiaries, both future and current ones. Here are two vital points that I have not explicitly seen on the internet or any other source. A. Medigap plans that offer first-dollar coverage will not be available beginning in 2020. That means Medigap Plans C and F are going to be discontinued, and that no new enrollees will be allowed. Existing policyholders should be able to keep their outstanding policies. B. ACOs (Accountable Care Organizations) will affect original Medicare and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. The reason the legislation will affect beneficiaries is notably complicated. The question will be how one, fixed-price for a therapy will feed down through Medicare Advantage plans. It is my view that Medicare Advantage will become more complicated, not less, as ACOs allocate to physicians, hospitals, etc. that means that the co-pays will be more confusing, not less. C. The daily cost of coinsurance for Skilled Nursing Home Care will increase. The lack of public outcry over these proposed changes is notably absent.
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From a client: Dear Mr. Jae Oh, My husband and I are so thankful for your help. We were in need of a special insurance program and could not figure out how to meet the government’s December 7 deadline without finding ourselves locked into the same program we had last year. You phoned after I had searched the Internet for an answer, heard my distress, and created a course of action to solve our concern. This was amazing since you know you would not receive any financial reward for this kindness. We are grateful to you. Thank You! Sincerely, Robert and Phyllis Nulty Northville, MI
FREE ANDROID APP: You enter Date of Birth, and check some boxes. Depending on your answer, out comes a checklist of issues to consider. A perfect place to start for those new to Medicare.
Maximize Your Medicare Newsletter March 27, 2015
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Medicare ABCs, Bay City MI, April 20, 10:30AM Riverside Friendship Senior Center, (989) 893-7070
Medicare ABCs, Miami FL, May 18, 3PM Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, University of Miami I am not asking for sympathy, but you will get the point: A. People aren’t informed correctly about Medicare, for a variety of reasons. B. People make Medicare decisions based on that faulty understanding, costing money, and creating fear, that could have been reasonably avoided, in many cases, C. People wrongly think that they are “all set.” D. Adult-age children, even if well-intentioned, use non-Medicare understanding and attempt to apply it to Medicare. E. Financial/retirement planning doesn’t include proper understanding of healthcare costs because all of the attention is paid to asset accumulation, but much larger downside exists if Medicare is neglected. F. Faulty understanding leads to cost overruns, and communities, hospitals, healthcare providers, and you, end up paying for it. If you do not fit one of the above, then please accept my highest compliments. For the rest of you (the overwhelming majority), there is Medicare ABCs.
SEND JAE YOUR PERSONAL QUESTIONS and REQUESTS Jae [at] maximizeyourmedicare [dot]com or CLICK THE ICON FREE ANDROID APP You enter Date of Birth, and check some boxes. Depending on your answer, out comes a checklist of issues to consider. A perfect place to start for those new to Medicare.
Maximize Your Medicare Newsletter March 27, 2015
Connect and Share Maximize Your Medicare everywhere:
Subscribe to the Maximize Your Medicare Podcast! You can listen on your Apple or Android device, or on your computer. SUBSCRIBE BY CLICKING HERE.
Online Medicare Supplement Fact: gaining permission to assist you isn’t difficult. We will be able to assist you enroll, and help you configure your prescription drug benefits. Steps: A. Send me an email (jae@maximizeyourmedicare.com), and we will reach out to you. We will be able to find the best price/ benefit combination. That will depend on your residence. Rates will vary, and in some cases, widely. That said, the market is competitive, so the top 2-3 carriers will be very close in premium dollars. B. Rx is actually more complicated. The best plan will vary based on your location, and most importantly, due to the medications that you require. C. DO NOT send me any identification numbers of any sort. This will be reviewed privately, for your protection. It is inevitably the case that this is the way the world is going. If you require a FaceTime or Skype call, because you have a number of questions, then that is entirely possible.
SEND JAE YOUR PERSONAL QUESTIONS and REQUESTS Jae [at] maximizeyourmedicare [dot]com or CLICK THE ICON FREE ANDROID APP You enter Date of Birth, and check some boxes. Depending on your answer, out comes a checklist of issues to consider. A perfect place to start for those new to Medicare.