he worked for IBM for almost 43 years. because of his years of service i was eligible for their supplemental plans. i took one for $28 a month. it has a $4,000 deductible but also a $4,000 max out of pocket which is important to me. i was able to keep our drug plan which paid 65% of generic drugs.
starting in 2014 that plan is no longer available. i was shocked when i saw the new plans. i have an appointment with an advisor this week. it's a $124 for a plan with $4800 deductible and $4800 max out of pocket. i can get a drug plan for $12.40 with a $312 deductible. the other day i got a letter from IBM saying they'll be contributing $1,187 that i can use toward insurance, co-pays, etc. that makes a big difference.
i didn't take the high cost plans because i don't have large medical bills. when i see my primary it costs me $12.50 -- the pain doc runs around the same -- some times a few bucks more. i saw my dermatologist once and it cost $12.50.
so when you do the math it works for me. if i had to spend $4,000 if i got really sick i do have the money (thank goodness).
my friend is 68. her husband is 65. they both have pre-existing condtions. she had coverage from her employer which cost her $710 a month. she couldn't wait for hubby to be 65 so she could get him covered under medicare thinking it would cost less. well now they're paying $260 each for a supplemental policy plus the $105 for medicare. that comes to $730 a month -- more than she paid through her employer and some of her docs don't take medicare. her therapist is one of them. so now instead of seeing her once a month she can only see her every 3 months. the therapist charges a $120.
everyone thinks medicare is the answer, but it's not. if you don't take a supplemental policy you could be screwed and lose everything you have.
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