Medicare Humana Gold Plus?

Question

Have any of you have Medicare Humana Gold Plus for your insurance? If so, are you happy with their services? Do you have HMO or PPO? I am going to be 65 years old in Aug.

Is there another insurance company that is better than Humana?

I am so confused with which Medicare plan I should choose (Advanatge plans vs Gap plans). Thanks so much for helping me be less confused!

Answer 1

You are right about the choices with the new Medicare Part D benefit being confusing! If it brings you any comfort, you are not alone in your confusion...

The answer to your question depends on several factors, including what kinds of prescription drugs you take, what kind of plan you are willing to accept, and whether the plan you want will pay for the specific prescription drugs you need. The way Part D Medicare is structured is definitely not a "one size fits every senior" deal. Each individual--even husbands and wives, need to go through the process to determine what plan is going to meet their needs and will be the "best deal,"

I do not know about the Humana Gold Plus plan benefits where you live--but I can tell you that if you live in the USA or one of its territories, there are objective professionals not far from where you are who can help you sort out your options based on what you need and want so you can make the best decision possible--the folks at your Area Agency on Aging.

Area Agencies on Aging are one of the best kept secrets around for folks who need information about consumer issues and Medicare Part D . They work with a lot of seniors everyday, so they are great resources who probably know the "scoop" on the different plans. (And they are not trying to sell you anything!) So, you might consider calling your local Area Agency on Aging. If you live in the United States or one of the territories, there is one serving your area. You can call toll-free 1-800-677-1116 to find how to contact the one serving you. Each Area Agency on Aging has professionals available to answer questions like this one. You will most likely find the people there friendly and very helpful.

If you do contact your local Area Agency on Aging and like the help that they give you, let your local county officials and your folks in Congress know. Area Agencies on Aging don't have big budgets for advertising and certainly don't have budgets that support campaign contributions!

Hope this helps! Best wishes!

Answer 2

The best bet would always be to ask around to friends or family members who have Medicare Advantage plans and see how it has worked for them. These plans have to offer ATLEAST the same benefits that Medicare would, but most offer more. Humana Gold Plus has a program called Silver Sneakers that provides a free gym (usually YMCA) membership. Humana offers extra benefits that regular medicare wouldn't , such as your yearly physical, and some are offering more this year. I'm sure other plans are comparable. If you live in or near a large city, you probably have a good enough network that an HMO program would work fine, and be a better bargain.
Think of it this way, the average office visit is about 65 to 70 bucks. With regular medicare you'd have to meet a deductible then once thats met you'd have to pay 20%. With an HMO plan, you pay your copay (10 or 15) and you're done) (for regular visits. Specialists, and other types of care may be more)
Also with the Advantage plan, you'll have drug coverage.
It's often cheaper to get a basic HMO plan than it is to just get a drug plan (part D) with regular medicare.
Most insurance company's will send out a sales rep to explain it all to you. Don't feel the least bit guilty if you call then all out just to hear before you make a decision.

Answer 3

The bad thing about Humana, is that you end up with tons of out of pocket expenses should you get sick. I work with a large medicare hmo company in my area, and we have tons of people who leave our plan to go to humana and then come right back because they ended up getting sick and then having to pay huge deductibles, and copays and things that weren't even covered under Humana. Humana is not a good insurance company for seniors.