The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, although new to some Medicare beneficiaries, has been around before. In 2011, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period was altered and changed to the Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period. The disenrollment period took the open enrollment period’s place from 2011 until 2018.
In 2019, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period
Medicare
Mistakes are part of the human condition; it’s impossible to avoid them 100% of the time. But financial mistakes are in a class all their own — they tend to have a snowball effect and get worse over time. A seemingly small money mistake in your twenties can have outsized consequences in your thirties, forties,
Your Medicare eligibility date impacts the coverage that you qualify for. If you are eligible for Medicare before 2020, then your options will be different than those of Americans who become eligible from January 1, 2020 on. Since Congress passed the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) in 2015, the plans with no
Have you ever enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, just to discover in January that your doctor doesn’t accept your new coverage, or to realize you should have stayed in a particular network? As a result, you had to remain in a plan that was less suitable for your specific needs for an entire year.
If you’re a Medicare beneficiary, check your mail very carefully. You’ll be receiving a new Medicare card with an important new identification number that you’ll need soon.
Your current Medicare ID card contains a Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN), which is the same as your Social Security number. Your HICN serves as your identification for
Millions of Americans choose to supplement their Original Medicare benefits with additional coverage that helps to cover the gaps. Medigap plans in America are standardized, and for decades, Medigap Plan F has been a top seller. This is largely because it covers all of the deductibles, coinsurance, and copays that would normally be your responsibility
Nearly 4 million people turn 65 every year here in America and many of them are looking forward to retiring soon. There’s a lot of financial planning that goes into retirement, such as when to apply for Social Security benefits and when to begin distributions from retirement accounts.
It’s also important to plan for your
Every year, thousands of Medicare beneficiaries enroll in Medicare Advantage plans during the fall Annual Election Period. With low premiums and ancillary “extras” built in, these plans on paper appeal to many individuals. However, in all the election period excitement, people sometimes overlook aspects of Medicare Advantage coverage that are important. All too often, January
How much money do you think that you need to retire? There are many assumptions involved in answering that question, but one assumption is the greatest of all: how much money will you need for your health care costs? Fidelity projects that a 65-year old couple who retired in 2016 should expect an average cost
If you are closing in on retirement age, you are keenly interested in how the three remaining Presidential candidates — Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders — plan to deal with the fiscal challenges of Social Security and Medicare. If you are not close to retirement age, you should be even more interested, as
Whether you believe it is a good trend or a bad one, the number of households that receive benefits from the Federal Government has almost reached the halfway mark.
Welfare Dependence Keeps Growing According to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 152.9 million out of 308.9 million total Americans received some form
MoneyTips Are you planning on pushing your retirement age out as far as possible, or continuing to work part-time during your retirement years? A growing number of people are following this path, driven partly by enjoyment of their work and partly by economic necessity. In addition, since people are living longer in general, retirement may
If you want to file a complaint with Medicare, you are not alone. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMMS), the agency reviews over 100,000 complaints each year. Complaints cover the quality of care, hospital discharges, home health services, nursing homes, and Medicare Advantage programs, among other things.
The Process of Filing
Medicare cost increases are not uncommon, but in 2016, they will have an uncommon effect. Thanks to quirks in the Social Security system, approximately 30% of Medicare beneficiaries are going to experience huge increases in their Medicare part B costs (up to 52%) while others are not affected in the same way.
Medicare has three
Get ready for another round of battles over medical coverage and payment systems between the government, health care providers, and consumers – or is it really just one continuous battle?
The government has been attempting to switch Medicare payments from the traditional fee-for-service format to a plan that compensates health providers based on outcomes. Such
Medicare has one important difference when compared to most other health plans – Medicare Parts A and B do not have a cap on out-of pocket costs. These costs can add up quickly, especially for chronic or long-term illnesses. Premiums and most deductible and co-insurance situations are straightforward, but some costs are not. These Medicare
Along with Social Security, Medicare plays a powerful role in protecting the health and welfare of seniors in the United States. While Social Security provides vital retirement income, Medicare ensures that citizens aged 65 and older receive a reasonable standard of health insurance coverage. Participants in both Social Security and Medicare have earned these benefits