General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: On growing older: [View all]lins the liberal
(169 posts)I will also turn 65 very soon, and my husband turned 65 a few years back. So I've spent a great deal of time studying the government website regarding medicare, medicare supplements and Advantage plans.
Supplements you only have 6 months to take out a supplement plan after you turn 65. After that you can be turned down for pre-existing conditions. I thought Obama care might change this, but apparently not. Right now the Advantage plans are great, but most of the cuts to Medicare to help finance Obamacare are to be in the money the government pays insurance companies who offer Advantage plans. A few years ago I believe it was $800 a month being paid to the companies for each person. And it was costing the government more than traditional medicare. With big cuts to the Advantage plans, it is possible that the cost will increase dramatically while benefits will fall. So the safest thing is to go with a supplement even though they generally cost more. The better plans also cover more than the Advantage plans. Also the government website lays out the plans that companies are allowed to sell as supplements. So you know exactly what coverage you are getting. Where as the Advantage plans are all a bit different and it is impossible to tell exactly what they cover.