Medicare Supplemental Insurance
If you are an American citizen, or you live in America, then you have probably heard of Medicare. Medicare is a government funded program that offers health insurance. Since Medicare is federal health insurance, it is offered to all American citizens who meet the requirements. Medicare is one of the most popular and most important federal programs available to citizens, and it plays a vital role in the wellbeing of some of America’s less fortunate citizens.
Medicare is usually viewed as a program that’s normally for the elderly, but there are exceptions. Citizens who are age 65 or older are the main beneficiaries of Medicare, but some young people also can qualify for Medicare if they have certain disabilities. Also, if the citizen has ESRD (End-Stage Renal Disease, which is permanent kidney failure that requires dialysis or a transplant) they could also qualify for coverage with Medicare.
Medicare Coverage
Medicare Coverage is typically split into two parts: Part A and Part B. There are two more options, Part C and Part D that give citizens service bundles or additional services. These fall under the category of Medicare Supplemental Insurance. Part A covers citizens’ inpatient expenses, or hospital stays, nursing facilities, and even covers hospice care. Part B offers citizens coverage on doctor’s visits, most of the outpatient care services out there, medical supply costs, as well as a variety of preventative services. Part D is a more recent addition to the Medicare Coverage package, and it covers prescription drug costs, and can also be added to both Part A as well as Part B. Part C, or Medicare Advantage, more so functions as an “all in one” bundle, which is ultimately an alternative to Medicare, and it allows you to receive the benefits of Parts A, B, and D all at once. However, the Medicare plans do not cover everything. This is when Medicare Supplemental Insurance can come in handy.
Medicare Supplemental Insurance
Medicare Supplemental Insurance plans (which are also known as Medigap Plans) are basically additional plans that help Medicare beneficiaries cover the costs that accrue that are not covered by either Medicare Part A or Part B. Medicare Supplemental Insurance plans are now standardized across most of the states, and they come in ten different forms (Plans A, B, C, D, F, K, L, M, and N. It’s important to note that Plan A and Plan B are not the same thing as Medicare Part A and Part B. Each of these Plans has a different amount of coverage. Almost every state in the country has these different supplemental insurance plans. The states that do not (Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) each have their own standardized plans available.
Medicare Supplemental Insurance Plans
Any health insurance provider that is available which sells any type of Medicare Insurance Supplement Plan must offer citizens the standardized plan, which means that it doesn’t matter which company is offering the plan, the benefits must stay the same. All health insurance providers that offer any form of Medicare Insurance supplement plan are required by law to also offer citizens Plan A.
