PUBLISHED TUE, AUG 4 20208:30 AM EDT Sarah O’Brien@SARAHTGOBRIEN
KEY POINTS
·
The majority of
current and soon-to-be Medicare beneficiaries are concerned most about
out-of-pocket costs and unexpected medical bills, a recent survey shows.
·
Medicare comes with a
variety of charges, including premiums, deductibles and copays.
·
At last count, roughly
6 million recipients lacked coverage beyond basic Medicare, according to the
Kaiser Family Foundation.
For some Medicare beneficiaries, the pandemic
means worrying about more than just their increased health risk from Covid-19.
It also raises the specter of large, unexpected medical expenses.
Medicare, the government health insurance
program that you generally qualify for at age 65, comes with costs that can
surprise beneficiaries. And as the pandemic continues rumbling through U.S.
communities, the majority of current and soon-to-be beneficiaries worry most
about out-of-pocket costs (66%) and unexpected medical bills (62%), according
to a survey by
Healthinsurance.com.
More than 1,000 Medicare-eligible individuals
age 64 or older were recently polled to explore their views on a variety of
topics related to Medicare and health care during the pandemic, which in the
U.S. has led to 4.66 million cases and 154,860 deaths.
Some of the results in the survey over costs
echo previous findings from the The Senior Citizens League, an advocacy group
for older individuals.
“There are high out-of-pocket costs involved
with Medicare,” said Mary Johnson, a policy analyst for the group. “And
they start cascading as you age, because you need additional services or you
have new conditions diagnosed.
“And that often takes people by surprise.”
About 36% in the Healthcare.com survey have
delayed seeing a doctor due to cost at some point — not necessarily amid the
pandemic.
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