New to medicare

[GlennWest]

I turn 65 next month. Signed up for traditional Medicare. I have to pay for one of them. I am not on ss. I am very healthy and rarely go to doctor. My jobs have insurance but like as much as 3 months waiting period and job sometimes over by then. So that not dependable. I have no idea about where to look. DW used Kyle Henderson but don't believe he in that anymore.

[Barbaraok]

Since you aren't on SS yet, you are paying your Part B premium separately.  When on SS, they just deduct it from your payment before it is deposited.   

You will need a supplement if you don't want to have to pay out the deductible yourself.  If in good health, you might want to just go without a supplement for a year or two and see how it goes.   Since I don't have to pay for my supplement (is part of my retirement package) it is nice to have, but I never have more than maybe $500 a year out of pocket expenses.  Of course, haven't been hospitalized, etc. and usually just annual visits to internist, ophthalmologist, dermatologist and I'm done.    Dave, OTOH, has huge out of pocket expenses since he has heart disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, reoccurring skin cancers, blow retinal veins, and other assorted maladies.   

You do want to get a Part D plan, if you don't take prescriptions, get the cheapest you can find and review each year, but get it NOW because there is a penalty for each year you delay and at home point you will want to have it in place as you age.

 

[Kirk W]

6 minutes ago, Barbaraok said:

Dave, OTOH, has huge out of pocket expenses

Is it safe to assume that you mean expenses covered by his(Medicap) supplemental insurance? I ask because Pam has also had a lot of costs that would have been out of our pocket, but for the plan G supplement we carry. Thanks to plan G, our only cost from our pockets is the annual Medicare deductible. Ours too is covered by my previous employer. 

Edited October 9, 2021 by Kirk W

[GlennWest]

I got A and B. Thought D was a supplement.

Edited October 9, 2021 by GlennWest

[Barbaraok]

1 hour ago, Kirk W said:

Is it safe to assume that you mean expenses covered by his(Medicap) supplemental insurance? I ask because Pam has also had a lot of costs that would have been out of our pocket, but for the plan G supplement we carry. Thanks to plan G, our only cost from our pockets is the annual Medicare deductible. Ours too is covered by my previous employer. 

Correct.  Though we don’t pay any deductible except for prescriptions.

[Barbaraok]

1 hour ago, GlennWest said:

I got A and B. Thought D was a supplement.

Part D is drug plan.  There is no Medicare part for supplemental because that is outside of Medicare.  

[Jaydrvr]

You need the Part D drug plan to avoid the future penalties for not having it. You don't need a supplement. Most of the time, the supplements cost far more than the Medicare deductibles. Jay

[GlennWest]

Well I read all wrong then. I thought I needed only to take b to avoid penalties. So how much does D cost?

[Kirk W]

48 minutes ago, Barbaraok said:

 There is no Medicare part for supplemental because that is outside of Medicare.  

While that is true, just to keep things confusing the supplemental policies are listed as plan A through N with a few missing letters.  😊

So a part is part of Medicare but a plan is part of Medigap.

Just now, GlennWest said:

So how much does D cost?

There is a wide range of plans and costs. It will depend on where you are and what drugs you need covered. Go to Medicare.gov and follow things to the part D section. Generally they are not too costly. Our current drug plans are $7.30/month for each of us.

[GlennWest]

I don't have to take any drugs. Only thing I ever take is some penicillin whenever I do get sick which is rarely.  I just went to medicare.org and it plainly states Part d is optional. 

Edited October 9, 2021 by GlennWest

[Kirk W]

17 minutes ago, GlennWest said:

it plainly states Part d is optional. 

There is a financial penalty if you don't sign up now but wish to do so later. 

Quote

Part D late enrollment penalty

The late enrollment penalty is an amount that's permanently added to your Medicare drug coverage (Part D) premium. You may owe a late enrollment penalty if at any time after your Initial Enrollment Period is over, there's a period of 63 or more days in a row when you don't have Medicare drug coverage or other  

creditable prescription drug coverage

 . You’ll generally have to pay the penalty for as long as you have Medicare drug coverage.

 

[GlennWest]

15 minutes ago, Kirk W said:

There is a financial penalty if you don't sign up now but wish to do so later. 

 

How long is that penalty? Do it stay from day one. or reset each enrollment. I really don't understand this. 

Edited October 9, 2021 by GlennWest

[Jaydrvr]

19 minutes ago, GlennWest said:

How long is that penalty? Do it stay from day one. or reset each enrollment. I really don't understand this. 

The penalty increases for each year you don't have Plan D and it never goes away. Ever. Probably a good idea to get the cheapest plan you can find to avoid the penalties. There are some very reasonable ones available. Jay

[2gypsies]

35 minutes ago, GlennWest said:

How long is that penalty? Do it stay from day one. or reset each enrollment. I really don't understand this. 

Glenn, now is the time for enrollment for everything and there are usually many free Medicare question and answer groups on the subject.  We get notices of these free seminars all the time; some even include lunch.  They're usually Medicare Advantage plans though - which we don't use. Watch for ads in your town.  Or... go to the Medicare.gov website and explore it thoroughly to learn of differences.

We have Medicare A and B and a supplement - not Medicare Advantage plans (different from standard Medicare supplements).  We have always had Plan D (prescription). We pay absolutely no deductibles; no co-pays and honestly, never pay anything - even though we've had hospitalizations and surgeries.  Everything is completely paid for.  Of course, we do pay for the supplement of our choice.  We got our supplement many years ago - Plan J.  No one can get it anymore but it's comparable to Plan F.  It covers co-pays and deductibles.  It also allows us to use a doctor who doesn't accept Medicare although we've never run into that.  We can freely travel and use it.  If we bought plan F nowadays we'd be paying a LOT more for it.  

Plan D - prescription:  Once you choose one you can always change during the October/November enrollment period.  If you don't take drugs now just get the cheapest.  We pay $6.60/month and we're on various drugs.  You choose one based on the drugs you take.  Each plan is different as to what they'll pay for your drugs.  Some of ours are even free.  The Medicare website has a place where you can compare drug costs to you using various plans.  If you don't take anything just enter '0' and the cheapest plans will appear.  Then just choose one and sign up for it.

It's very confusing when you first get on Medicare so seek out help via the popular seminars going on right now in your town to answer your questions.

Edited October 9, 2021 by 2gypsies

[GlennWest]

Ok. Added D thru etna

Edited October 9, 2021 by GlennWest

[Zulu]

8 hours ago, GlennWest said:

I turn 65 next month. Signed up for traditional Medicare.

Congratulation! One of the few benefits of getting old.

Part A, B, D, etc, etc. Confusing as sh** isn’t it?

When you need medical care, especially major care — and you will — Medicare saves you zillions.

For example, my wife just had cataract surgery and paid ZERO for it. When she saw the hospital bill, it was five figures. BTW, she is sooo glad she had the procedure — has 20/20 vision back.

 

[GlennWest]

9 minutes ago, Zulu said:

Congratulation! One of the few benefits of getting old.

Part A, B, D, etc, etc. Confusing as sh** isn’t it?

When you need medical care, especially major care — and you will — Medicare saves you zillions.

For example, my wife just had cataract surgery and paid ZERO for it. When she saw the hospital bill, it was five figures. BTW, she is sooo glad she had the procedure — has 20/20 vision back.

 

Yes, I have the beginnings of cataract in my right eye. 

[GlennWest]

Thanks everyone. You saved me right many dollars

[Barbaraok]

It gets easier once you get set up.   We were lucky that our supplement and drug program were part of our retirement package.

[Bill Joyce]

18 hours ago, GlennWest said:

Ok. Added D thru etna

Probably the same Aetna Silverscript Part D I have.  My cost is $6.30/month and it runs through Caremark and I get 90 day supplies through Costco Pharmacy. 

[GlennWest]

3 minutes ago, Bill Joyce said:

Probably the same Aetna Silverscript Part D I have.  My cost is $6.30/month and it runs through Caremark and I get 90 day supplies through Costco Pharmacy. 

yes, that's it. got cheapest i could. use no meds. Mine is $7.30. 

[Jaydrvr]

1 hour ago, GlennWest said:

yes, that's it. got cheapest i could. use no meds. Mine is $7.30. 

Sounds like a great move. Jay

[lappir]

Well I tried to sign up today, but apparently answered one of the questions wrong and have been directed to call the Social Security office for assistance.  Might just try to visit the local office today since I'm just waiting on my truck to get fixed and not working. 

My birthday is a little over 3 months away, but with Glenn's comments I thought I might as well do it. 

I think I know what I did wrong, but I'll wait for them to tell me for sure. 

 

Rod

[Kirk W]

21 hours ago, GlennWest said:

yes, that's it. got cheapest i could. use no meds. Mine is $7.30. 

That is what we have and also what we pay, located in Dallas Co., TX. 

[docj]

On 10/10/2021 at 9:43 AM, Bill Joyce said:

Probably the same Aetna Silverscript Part D I have.  My cost is $6.30/month and it runs through Caremark and I get 90 day supplies through Costco Pharmacy. 

With all due respect, choosing a Part D plan on the basis of just the month premium is isn't wise unless you have very few prescriptions and/or no expensive ones.  We use an analysis website  to calculate the annualized cost of each plan including premiums and co-pays.   For the meds we take there can be thousands of dollars of difference in the total annual costs across all available plans.   It's my understanding that a similar comparison can be created using just the tools available on the Medicare website.