Rising costs and tighter regulations are forcing changes across Medicare Advantage that could impact seniors directly, from higher premiums to reduced benefits. (Source: MarketWatch)
Key Takeaways
Source: MarketWatch
Nearly 3 million seniors are losing coverage as insurers exit Medicare Advantage markets nationwide, with rural areas facing the highest disruption rates. (Source: Washington Post)
Key Takeaways
Source: Washington Post
Can You Be Turned Down for a Medicare Supplement Plan?
The short answer is yes, except during your Medicare Supplement Open Enrollment period, which starts the first day you are enrolled in both Parts A and B of Original Medicare and ends six months later. Outside of this period, Medigap plans are allowed to use medical underwriting and deny you coverage or increase your premium if you have pre-existing health conditions.
Do I Have to Wait for Coverage?
Even if you enrolled during the open enrollment period, you can be denied coverage for pre-existing conditions for up to six months.
Saving on Prescription Drugs While on Medicare
If you are on Medicare, you probably spend an average of $581 per year, out-of-pocket on your prescription drugs, over and above your Part B premiums and any Medicare Advantage, Medigap, or prescription drug plan premiums that you pay. For some, it can be much more.
87% of adults aged 65-79 use prescription drugs, and the average number prescribed per person is 20.
How can you save? Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D plans are required to provide a mail-order pharmacy option. When you use mail order, you are avoiding a retail pharmacy, prices are generally somewhat lower than in-person pharmacy service, but not always: it depends on the plan and the drug in question.
If you compare the full retail pharmacy price, using a discount card like GoodRx versus the mail-order cost, you may occasionally find that using the discount card is cheaper.
Another option has recently become available…
Billionaire Mark Cuban has started a mail-order pharmacy called CostPlusDrugs.com. Around 100 generic medications are available from this site, all at cost plus a 15% markup. You may find that the price from this site, assuming your drug is available, is far less than the mail-order price with your Medicare Advantage or prescription drug plan. New drugs will be added each month. At present, the plan is to offer only generics, but this may change. You can check if a generic is available for your prescription drug by asking your doctor’s office or googling “generic for name-of-prescription drug.” Currently, CostPlusDrugs.com does not accept insurance to keep administrative costs down. This may change in the future.
If you are considering ordering from other mail-order pharmacies, Blink Health has been rated best, it accepts most insurances and is available 24/7. Blink has most drugs available in addition to generics.
More than ever now, it pays to shop around for your prescriptions, as it true with so much else.
Dental Coverage Under Medicare
Medicare covers almost no dental services. Not exams. Not cleaning. Not dentures. Not drilling. Not filling. Zip. Zero. Nada. The exceedingly rare situations in which Medicare covers dental services are those in which dental services are an integral part of care for a non-dental problem, such as a jaw injury or bone cancer.
That being said, the only way that you will obtain dental services under Medicare is to enroll in a Medicare Advance Plan that offers dental services as an extra benefit or enroll in a dental plan for seniors on Medicare. With Medicare Advantage Plans, precisely because they are an extra benefit, they tend to be limited, but some coverage is certainly better than none. Coverage in separate dental plans may be more generous.
Because both Medicare Advantage Plans and dental plans for seniors on Medicare are both private businesses not affiliated with the federal government, you must deal with a Medicare agent in order to get them. The Social Security office or Medicare can only refer you to an agent if you have questions about these plans.
When Can I Enroll?
For Medicare Advantage Plans that offer dental services as an extra benefit, your Original Enrollment period starts the third month before your 65th birthday and runs for seven months. There is also an open enrollment period from January 1 to March 31 of each year. You also have a special enrollment period if you lose coverage because your plan shut down, or stopped offering services in your area, you lost employer-provided insurance that you were using as evidence of creditable coverage, you were given wrong information about enrollment by a Federal employee, and a few other situations.
Open enrollment for stand-alone dental plans for seniors is usually year-round, but this may vary in some states and localities. Again, your Medicare insurance agent is your best source here; Medicare cannot help you.
How Much Does It Cost?
As with American health care in general, prices vary widely and wildly. Premiums for Medicare Advantage Plans with dental services range from $0 per month to around $100 per month; premiums for stand-alone dental plans range from $0 to $100 per month. That being said, why, you may ask, does not everyone pick the zero-premium plans? The answer is coverage. You get what you pay for, and higher-cost plans generally, but not always, offer lower deductibles and copayments and a wider range of services.
About half of adults on Medicare do not have dental coverage. It is not advisable to be one of them.
There are plenty of changes that come with getting older, both physically and mentally. Aging seniors have been known to find out very quickly that the later years can bring a change in mental health and wellness. Getting older isn’t always easy, and for a lot of seniors, it comes with a healthy dose of isolation. This can be devastating, but it is not inevitable. In this article, we will discuss the ways that seniors can combat depression and increase overall wellness through fitness.
Seniors and Mental Health
Our mental health can change throughout the years for a variety of reasons. As we get older, those reasons have a tendency to show up more often than we might expect. Aging can come with decreased physical health, unpleasant limitations, personal struggles, and loss. It is normal for seniors to see their social circles getting smaller throughout the years. For this reason and countless others, seniors can find themselves feeling isolated and even depressed.
How Fitness Influences Our Overall Wellness
There are many different ways to improve how we feel about ourselves and the lives that we lead. Fitness is one of the biggest influencers when it comes to improving our health and wellness, and that doesn’t go away just because we get older. If anything, fitness can become even more important for wellness as we get older.
Physical Benefits
Fitness brings our bodies a great deal of assistance when we embrace it. The physical benefits that are associated with exercise can be plentiful, and a lot of them are great for helping us to age with more comfort. When we actively embrace fitness and live more active lifestyles, we encourage our bodies to thrive by offering additional support.
In general, exercise is good for the body. It helps to strengthen our muscles, and it can also have positive impacts on how the systems in our body work. This can help us to experience less pain and to maintain independence and higher activity levels over time. Active seniors are more likely to spend time with friends and family, and to feel more independent, even as they age.
Mental Benefits
While the physical benefits of exercise are wonderful, the mental benefits are nothing to scoff at. Physical activity can go a long way when it comes to giving your mind a boost. It encourages our bodies to share more of the good chemicals, which can help to decrease instances of depression or anxiety. People who are physically active are generally happier, and this becomes more important during our later years.
The Takeaway
Too often, we normalize the idea that aging has to be an unpleasant experience. In reality, it often becomes an indicator of how you treat your body. Seniors that get exercise are more likely to live healthy and fulfilling lives, even as the years tick by. Exercise can help you to maintain mobility, empower you to head out to lunch with friends, and make it possible for you to see your grandkids grow up too. Choosing to be more active can help you to live a happier and more positive life, so remember to make decisions that push you towards that brighter future!
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