Arizona Medicare Advantage Plans or Medicare Supplemental Insurance – What Is The Difference?

As traditional Medicare insurance has many gaps that are not covered, seniors in Arizona can’t speculate about their future and need protection for expenses that are not covered by Medicare.

There are two main options for additional coverage on top of traditional Medicare in Arizona: Medicare Supplemental Insurance plans and Arizona Medicare Advantage plans. So which option is best for you?

Medicare Supplemental Insurance (also called Medigap) is provided by private insurance companies, governed by Medicare. This means, each insurance provider that offers a specific plan (numbered from A to N) must offer the exact same plan benefits. However, the premiums for those plans may greatly vary from provider to provider. It pays for seniors on Medicare in Arizona to shop around before they select a plan.

While Medicare Supplement plans in general do have higher monthly premiums than Medicare Advantage plans, the coverage for doctor and hospital visits is more comprehensive and the insured has lower out of pocket costs. Medicare Supplement plans are designed to reduce your out of pocket costs for those health related expenses. Traditional Medicare will pay its share, and the supplemental insurance plan will pick up the remaining 20%.

As for Arizona Medicare Advantage plans, two different types are available – network-based HMO, PPO plans, where you have to use the services of health care providers that are members of the individual network, and non-network-based plans, so called fee for service plans (PFFS). Medicare Advantage plans are a privatized version of Medicare, so insurance providers that offer these plans can set their own plan benefits and premiums. Therefore, the benefits and premiums of Medicare Advantage plans in Arizona vary widely and it is imperative that you compare your options before you decide. Regardless of which type of plan or provider you choose, it is essential to consider the plan benefits based on your unique health and financial situation.

To help you select between Medicare Supplemental insurance and Medicare Advantage plans, you may want to ask yourself these 3 questions:

Can I manage to pay some out-of-pocket costs throughout the year? Supplements don’t have many, if any, out of pocket costs, but higher premiums, whereas Advantage plans work on a cost-sharing basisWould I rather have slightly higher, but fixed health care costs (Medicare Supplement), or variable cost-sharing based on your individual health during a given year (Medicare Advantage)?Is the security of staying within the government’s regulated Medicare plan important to me (Medicare Supplemental) or am I willing to give up that and go exclusively with a private insurance provider (Medicare Advantage)?

It is extremely essential for Arizona seniors on Medicare to know all their options and the details on Medicare Supplemental insurance and Arizona Medicare Advantage plans, so they can make the selection that is best for them. Visit www.medicare.gov for more information, or talk to your health insurance specialist.

More Medicare Info:

View the original article here