If You Are Over 65 There Are Health Insurance Options For You

By Ethan Kalvin

If you are over the age of 65, under 65 but have a specific disability or permanent kidney failure and have been a legal us citizen for at least 5 years, then you are eligible for medicare. Medicare has come as a product of a law passed by Congress in 1965. Since it is a federal program you are required to contribute to medicare through your paychecks during your working years, you will also discover that the guidelines for eligible are similar from state to state.

Medicare consists of two parts:

Medicare Part A - If you are a patient in a hospital, nursing home or hospice this is the part that helps cover the cost. It also covers care in your home under certain conditions. Because this was paid through taxes, that you paid while working, many do not need to contribute this part.

Medicare Part B - This helps to pay for doctors services and outpatient care that is medically necessary. It pays for preventative services like the flu shot and for some services to keep illnesses from worsening. In 2008, the standard monthly premium was $96.40.

During the first seven months after your 65th birthday, medicare enrollment is free. Individuals covered by medicare as called beneficiaries and will have help paying for most of their medical needs. Medicare does not cover care given at home, or in a nursing facility, for those with recurring disability or longtime illness.

Medicare does provide Advantage Plans where the plan can be customized to fit medical needs. This is not available in all areas. Some of these plans offer prescription programs and there are some private insurance companies who cover some of these programs. Details of the Advantage Plan depend on the certain program chosen and the eligibility of the patient.

You will receive your Medicare card, in the mail, three months before your birthday. If you are receiving Social Security benefits before you turn 65, you will be enrolled in Part A and Part B automatically the month you turn 65. Signing up for Medicare is simple, as long as you are aware of the different plans and enrollment periods. - 32502

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Medicare Supplements Made Easy

By Richard Cantu

There is a confusing time that all senior citizens must endure. It is full of unexpected twists, turns, tunnels, and loops all complemented by confusing jargon. What is this maze? It is the task of becoming enrolled in Medicare and choosing a Medicare supplement policy to ensure future well-being.

Not being aware of the basics of finding Medicare supplementary coverage will most likely increase your chances of making a decision which could come back to hit you in the pocket book. It is of utmost importance to take the time to research Medicare, its components, and supplemental coverage. After doing your research, you should make a better decision regarding your healthcare coverage, and you should be able to navigate that Medicare supplement maze in a jiffy.

When you get involved in Medicare supplement research, the most common confusion will be the differentiation between 'plan' and 'part'. As a Medicare patient, Part A and B refer to hospital and doctor or other medical services respectively. Part C is known as the Medicare Advantage plan, and Part D is prescription coverage. These are essentially parts of your medical care that is covered.

Plans refer to the 12 plans that are out there for supplemental insurance. Each plan has different levels of coverage for Part A and B coverage, and offers different deductibles, co-pays, coinsurance, and premiums. Speaking of premium, that is the cost that you will pay each month for your supplemental insurance, and it is determined by the insurance company.

Medicare supplement plans are also commonly referred to as Medigap plans, which can confuse some people. The words are interchangeable and both point to the 12 plans that you can get to supplement your existing Medicare coverage.

Co-pays and co-insurance are essentially the same thing, although some policies will define them differently. It's the expense that you'll pay out of pocket for your medical care, and is something that is important to know.

Taking the time to research the technical terms associated with Medicare and the 12 standardized Medicare supplemental plans should enable you to cut through the maze of choosing one with ease. You should allow yourself time to decipher the meaning of these terms then apply those to your decision of a Medigap policy. Find the one that will be the best for you. Rushing through this maze may cause problems in your future. Do your research, prepare, and be informed. Make a decision that will ensure your future health and wealth. - 32502

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How To Remedy Being Discharged From A Hospital Prematurely As A Medicare Patient?

By John Harvey

Perhaps you have an individual within your family who has been hospitalized, though they will be discharged rather soon. What does one do in this situation? Maybe you're not sure about assisted living, home health care, or even nursing facilities. Chances are you didn't even know that the person would be released from the hospital in such a short amount of time.

Now you might be panicking, and you might be trying to figure out exactly what it is you should be doing in this situation. Fortunately the hospital will probably give you a list of rehab clinics. Unfortunately they are not going to help you choose a clinic. You might feel like you have no time to render this decision, and you might even feel like you're being rushed. This may push you into making a fast decision, but you really have more time than you think.

Medicare as a government health insurance plan is under pressure from the US Congress to cut expenses and discharging patients too early is one of the most efficient ways to cut cost. In hospitals there is the so called Notice of Non-coverage, which means that the hospital has to let you know 3 days before the patient can be discharged.

If they haven't done that, you should insist that they do. And if you are persistent, they will give you that time. Remember you are here for your loved one and want to get the best care possible. You know that you will need the extra time to choose between the different rehab options and you will come to a much more informed conclusion.

It's going to become clear to you soon enough that hospitals try to discharge their Medicare patients as soon as possible. This has become a growing trend over the past forty years. Seniors have had hospital visits that dropped in time from fourteen days to six days. It will keep dropping if nothing is done.

The problem that hospitals have is the fixed fee system from Medicare. This means that a Hospital will be billed the same amount for every patient, no matter what happens to be wrong with them. The longer a patient stays, the more money the hospital will have to pay. If the stay is shorter, the hospital will be making much more money.

Patient care is no issue in the face of money. So when you enter the hospital there will be a paper that you sign. The paper will acknowledge your patient rights, and one such right is the right to not be discharged on a whim. You need to make a copy of the document: "An Important Message From Medicare -- Your Rights While You Are A Medicare Hospital Patient.".

The rights include the Notice of Noncoverage, and having this will stop the hospital from discharging you early. You will have the three days, and they will not be able to charge you. So long as you have not been provided the Notice of Noncoverage, you will be able to stay in the hospital.

In the meantime, you can appeal the decision of the hospital. This can be done by contacting the PRO in charge of filing appeals, but you need to make sure you do it as fast as possible. The claims take some time to process. Knowing your rights and having some nerve will take you a long way. - 32502

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Medicare's Unfunded Liabilities - What Are They?

By John Harvey

If you turn on the news you will see that some people are starting to discuss the tremendous unfunded liabilities of Medicare, that they prove that government programs typically cost much more than expected, and that they should be placed into the hands of private companies.

According to recent statistics, the current form of the Medicare system cannot be sustained and substantial changes must be made to fix this government health insurance program. So just what are these unfunded liabilities, and what impact will they have on you?

The unfunded liability is basically the gap between what Medicare or Social Security takes in through taxes and the amount they are expecting to payout, It's just a projection, not something that is set in stone.

Many European government health insurance programs, such as Germany's, have struggled for many years and can be thought of as being on the brink of bankruptcy. You know who is paying to keep them alive. The taxpayers.

Medicare and Social Security supposedly have sufficient funds to cover their current expenditures, but I would guess that the government is already printing money to pay Medicare's bills because I don't believe that US Treasury Bonds will sell well in the immediate future. Although we hear that the current administration does not anticipate raising taxes on the middle class, it will be the middle class who will see higher taxes in the form of higher prices and other higher fees and charges.

As who will be the lenders for Medicare. I would say primarily China, maybe Germany (which is funny because Germany is supposedly struggling with it's own health care system), but because of the weakness of the Dollar and the rising disenchantment with Americas spending policies it will probably end up on the shoulders of the American tax payer.

Why can't Medicare be sustained? Some people say that Medicare already was bankrupt in'65, the year it was introduced under Lyndon Johnson. Others expect it to collapse within the next ten years.

When the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 was signed into law by George W. Bush, it was in the name of "honoring the commitments of Medicare to all our seniors," but he might not have realized the consequences for a society which has more elderly people than young. He also probably did not expect that the economy would collapse the way that it has over the last six or seven years. - 32502

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