What’s the Part B late enrollment penalty?
If you don’t sign up for Medicare Part B when you’re first eligible and don’t qualify for a Special Enrollment Period, you may have to pay a late enrollment penalty. This penalty is added to your monthly Part B premium and lasts for as long as you have Part B. The penalty is 10 percent […]
Medicare and Hearing Aids
It is your responsibility to cover the full cost of your hearing aids since Medicare does not cover hearing aids or hearing health services. In addition to the type of hearing aid you select, the price of your hearing aid will depend on whether you choose to bundle it with audiology services and the cost […]
What is the Medicare Qualified Disabled and Working Individuals (QDWI) Program?
The Qualified Disabled and Working Individuals (QDWI) Program is a Medicare Savings Program that helps pay the Medicare Part A premium for certain individuals with disabilities who have returned to work. You may qualify if you’re under 65, disabled, and no longer eligible for premium-free Part A because you returned to work. You must not […]
Medicare and Long Term Insurance
Medicare and Long-Term Care Insurance work together to protect your health and financial security, but they serve very different purposes. Medicare provides limited coverage for long-term care services, covering skilled nursing facility care only after a qualifying hospital stay of at least three days and only for up to 100 days per benefit period. Medicare […]
Why your Medicare premium might jump and what you can do about it
Medicare recipients can find themselves in a Social Security/Medicare loop that causes their Medicare premiums to increase due to a one-time influx of cash, such as selling a home. This is called an IRMAA or “Income-related monthly adjustment amount,” which is based on your income two years previously and can significantly raise premiums for Medicare’s […]
Medicare and home health care – defining the care Medicare buys
Medicare home health care covers skilled services for homebound beneficiaries who need part-time or intermittent care. To qualify, you must be confined to your home, meaning leaving requires considerable effort or assistance. Your doctor must certify that you need skilled nursing care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, or speech therapy, and must establish a care plan […]
“Skinny Labeling” and Medicare
“Skinny labeling” is a practice by which follow-on drug manufacturers seek approval for some but not all indications for which branded drugs are approved. Medicare saved $1.5 billion between 2015 and 2020 as a result of competition between five biologic drugs and their skinny-label biosimilars. Recent judicial rulings are threatening these savings for Medicare and […]
What are Medicare Special Enrollment Periods?
Medicare Special Enrollment Periods (SEPs) allow you to make changes to your Medicare coverage outside of the annual Open Enrollment Period. SEPs are triggered by certain life events, such as: – Moving to a new area – Losing other health insurance coverage – Getting married or divorced – Turning 65 or becoming eligible for Medicare […]
How to buy a Medigap policy?
In Original Medicare, you generally pay some of the costs for approved services. Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) is extra insurance you can buy from a private company that helps pay your share of costs. Step 1 – Decide which plan you want. Medigap policies are standardized, and in most states are named by letters, Plans […]
What is the Medicare Summary Notice ( MSN) ?
It’s not a bill. It’s a notice that people with Original Medicare get in the mail every 3 months for their Medicare Part A and Part B-covered services. The MSN shows: – All your services or supplies that providers and suppliers billed to Medicare during the 3-month period. – What Medicare paid. – The maximum […]