Plan F And Plan N

[RockNRowBoat]

For me I will pay $58 each month for F-hd. I see the doctor 4 to 6 times a year. And in 2020 with luck I will go of G-hd.

There is a G-HD? First I've heard of this.

Newly 65 here and I've been frustrated for 5 months trying rot figure out the Medigap secrets like which companies to avoid because of poor customer relations or high numbers of refusals to pay etc. And so many of the companies offering medigap here in Kentucky I've never heard of before. One even has two slightly different named companies, Bankers Fidelity Assurance Co. and Bankers Fidelity Life Insurance Company. Could that be more confusing? What if I go with a company like that who goes bankrupt or is gobbled up in an acquisition by Pepsi or Amazon someday, what happens to my policy?

I guess I'll be going with G or N, but I hate the hassle of getting more bills in the mail for copays for doctor visits, I'd prefer it be taken care of by insurance so I can do more fishing and less check writing, so I'm leaning toward G.

Any advise or suggestions for someone lost in trying to figure out which of the 50 or so companies who offer Medigap (Medicare Supplement) in Kentucky will treat me like a person? And this decision glues me to this company for the rest of my life, if I read that correctly?

 

[MBSC]

There is a G-HD? First I've heard of this.

Newly 65 here and I've been frustrated for 5 months trying rot figure out the Medigap secrets like which companies to avoid because of poor customer relations or high numbers of refusals to pay etc. And so many of the companies offering medigap here in Kentucky I've never heard of before. One even has two slightly different named companies, Bankers Fidelity Assurance Co. and Bankers Fidelity Life Insurance Company. Could that be more confusing? What if I go with a company like that who goes bankrupt or is gobbled up in an acquisition by Pepsi or Amazon someday, what happens to my policy?

I guess I'll be going with G or N, but I hate the hassle of getting more bills in the mail for copays for doctor visits, I'd prefer it be taken care of by insurance so I can do more fishing and less check writing, so I'm leaning toward G.

Any advise or suggestions for someone lost in trying to figure out which of the 50 or so companies who offer Medigap (Medicare Supplement) in Kentucky will treat me like a person? And this decision glues me to this company for the rest of my life, if I read that correctly?

G-HD becomes available to everyone on 1/1/2020 since those who become Medicare eligible in 2020 will not be able to buy F-HD.

Medigaps generally pay their portion within 10 business days so customer relation issues are highly unusual. Original Medicare decides which services are covered. A Medigap plan cannot refuse to pay their portion of a Medicare covered service as long as you pay the premium.

Once you decide on the Medigap plan letter, just choose a company with a competitive rate and a history of stable rate increases. Some companies start with a low teaser rate that does not last. An experienced local insurance agent or SHIP counselor can help you with the decision.

Find a SHIP Counselor: https://www.shiptacenter.org/

This question is a little tricky to answer, as the best supplemental insurance with Medicare is really whichever plan has the lowest rate and the lowest rate increase history in your area.

After all, benefits are standardized so that the benefits for each plan letter are the same from company to company. Medicare supplement companies also pay your bills like clockwork because Medicare is the decision maker, so we never hear that any of them have slow-pay issues like the Medicare Advantage plans often do.

Source: https://boomerbenefits.com/top-10-medicare-supplement-companies/

Every carrier pays their portion of Medicare approved claims, usually in 3 to 5 business days.

Source: https://www.georgia-medicareplans.com/turning-65-learn-medicare-options/

 

[RockNRowBoat]

G-HD becomes available to everyone on 1/1/2020 since those who become Medicare eligible in 2020 will not be able to buy F-HD.

Medigaps generally pay their portion within 10 business days so customer relation issues are highly unusual. Original Medicare decides which services are covered. A Medigap plan cannot refuse to pay their portion of a Medicare covered service as long as you pay the premium.

Once you decide on the Medigap plan letter, just choose a company with a competitive rate and a history of stable rate increases. Some companies start with a low teaser rate that does not last. An experienced local insurance agent or SHIP counselor can help you with the decision.

Find a SHIP Counselor: https://www.shiptacenter.org/

Thank you for the excellent answers, very helpful. I called SHIP here in Kentucky and it's nearly impossible to actually get to speak with anyone. You have to leave your number, which I did, and about 2 weeks later I luckily just happened to be home when they called but I didn't get much helpful information at all about the various companies. It's as if the person from SHIP was afraid to say anything good or bad about any of the companies. She did finally send me a list of the companies that sell Medigap plans here.

I've decided to go with G, so it's just a matter of chosing a company. The list she sent to me shows their entry price per month and some of the companies listed have something called an "AM Best Rating" but no where does it tell what that rating means.

How do I find out about their history of rate increases? I think you're right; finding out who raises rates the least over time is key to choosing the best company to be anchored to the rest of my life.

 

[MBSC]

I've decided to go with G, so it's just a matter of chosing a company. The list she sent to me shows their entry price per month and some of the companies listed have something called an "AM Best Rating" but no where does it tell what that rating means.

How do I find out about their history of rate increases? I think you're right; finding out who raises rates the least over time is key to choosing the best company to be anchored to the rest of my life.

The "AM Best" rating is suppose to be a measure of the parent company's financial strength. For example, a company with an 'A' rating is suppose to be more financially stable than a company with a 'C' rating. There have been reports that companies can buy a better rating so I would not place too much emphasis on that.

The SHIP counselor or an insurance agent should be able to give you historical rate increases but they all get their information from the same source. If you don't want to deal with them, you can subscribe to the same Medigap quote engine they use. In order to get historical information, you would need to order the $30/month Silver Plan from the website below. Just remember to cancel before the first month ends so you are not charged for another month. It also lets you change the age so you can see what current enrollees ages 70, 75, 80 etc. are paying.

CSG Actuarial: https://www.csgactuarial.com/software/market-advisor/pricing/

As for being anchored to a plan for the rest of your life, that only applies if you are not healthy enough to pass medical underwriting. You can change Medigap plans anytime if you can pass the underwriting.

 

[RockNRowBoat]

The "AM Best" rating is suppose to be a measure of the parent company's financial strength. For example, a company with an 'A' rating is suppose to be more financially stable than a company with a 'C' rating. There have been reports that companies can buy a better rating so I would not place too much emphasis on that.

The SHIP counselor or an insurance agent should be able to give you historical rate increases but they all get their information from the same source. If you don't want to deal with them, you can subscribe to the same Medigap quote engine they use. In order to get historical information, you would need to order the $30/month Silver Plan from the website below. Just remember to cancel before the first month ends so you are not charged for another month. It also lets you change the age so you can see what current enrollees ages 70, 75, 80 etc. are paying.

CSG Actuarial: https://www.csgactuarial.com/software/market-advisor/pricing/

As for being anchored to a plan for the rest of your life, that only applies if you are not healthy enough to pass medical underwriting. You can change Medigap plans anytime if you can pass the underwriting.

To MBSC, Thank you for the tip on the CSG Actuarial site, that was a tremendous help. I’d spiken to our state’s SHIP person again, and again got no help on where to get more information on medigap insurance carriers other than the Best ratings which only indicate whether the companies have the financial resources to cover claims. I know very little about the confusing medigap process but I apparently know more than our SHIP people do. They didnt seem interested in offering any help or information, so I’m not sure what’s going on there unless it’s part of our corrupt governor’s long time plan to make Medicare look dysfunctional. Had I thought about it I should have asked if the person at SHIP was appointed by the governor. They were of absolutely no help at all, in fact, they’re giving out bad advice by telling people to choose a company based on those Best Ratings which isn’t true.

Anyway, your information pointing me toward that site was very helpful. I went with plan G through CSI, one of Warren Buffett’s many companies.

thanks again for letting me know about the site with the actuarial info. I’m glad to have this chore behind me now so I can get back to the countless other things that doing or fixing or mowing. I don't know how I kept up with everything while working 40 to 60 hours a week too. So far, being retired is a lot of work.

May we all live long, happy and healthy lives, with extra helpings of the happy part..