Changes to Medicare supplement insurance
that take effect in 2020 are sowing confusion among many seniors already
bewildered by the array of choices they face during Medicare’s open enrollment
season, which ends Dec. 7. That sense of confusion can sometimes extend to
senior physicians who get conflicting advice on their options for 2020.
The biggest change that has caused confusion
among seniors derives from the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization
Act of 2015 (MACRA) that bars Medigap plans from offering first-dollar coverage
of the part B deductible starting in 2020. That first-dollar coverage is
available through Medicare supplement plans C and F, which cover 100% of the
part B deductible, while plans A–B, D, and G–N don’t offer that
coverage.
However, the change barring Medigap plans C and
F only applies to people turning 65 in 2020. So if you turn
65 next year, then C and F plans are not options for you. But if
you are already 65 or older, then those plans are ones you can still
avail yourself of.
This change affects all insurance carriers. It
is worth noting that Massachusetts, Minnesota and Wisconsin
offer nonstandardized plans. These states also bar the sale of any
plans that reimburse the part B deductible to residents who are newly eligible
for Medicare in 2020.
Plan F is the option most popular among
physicians enrolled in Medicare. That plan offers 100% coverage for:
·
Medicare part A
coinsurance and hospital coverage.
·
Medicare part B
coinsurance or copayment.
·
Part A hospice care
coinsurance or copayment.
·
Skilled nursing facility
coinsurance.
·
Medicare part B
deductible.
·
Medicare part B excess
charges.
·
Foreign travel emergency
(up to plan limits).
If you are turning 65 in 2020 or
later, then consider plan G. That offers the coverage benefits
that are most similar to C and F. The only difference between F and G
is that G does not cover 100% of the part B deductible.
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