Question about Social Security, Medicare, Insurance?

Question

I presently work, and have Medicare Part A. I have Blue Cross Blue Shield through my company and pay about $320.00 per month, my company also pays $320.00 per month. $640.00 per month is excessive. Will Part B, medicare eliminate my need for Company insurance?

Answer 1

If you continue to work and have company group insurance you WILL NOT have a penalty if you sign up for Part B within 8 months after you retire and lose your group policy.

If you retire and continue to receive employer sponsered health benefits those benefits are secondary to medicare and you will have a penalty if you don't sign up for Part B.

More than likely you'll be better off if you do go on Part B. You will have a Part B premium of $93.50 per month unless you are high income, then the premium will be higher. You will also need a supplement or Medicare Advantage plan and prescription drug coverage. The supplement premium is age dependent. It will run around $150 per month at age 65 and increase for every year you are over 65. No supplements come with Part D any more so you will also need a prescription plan. These plans vary so you will need to talk with an agent to find the best plan for you. The premium for Part D plans in my area run from $10 to $78 per month.

You can also get a Medicare Advantage plan instead of the supplement. These plans are much better than supplements unless you are very ill because they have co-pays for most medical procedures, such as $10 for a doctor visit. However, the premium is much less. In my area the premium for a MA plan runs from $0 to $98 per month (average cost around $35) and many include the Part D coverage.

There is a lot more to go into but we don't have the space here. I'd suggest for you to visit an independent agent in your state that deals with senior plans. They can work with you to determine whether you'd be better off staying with group coverage or getting Part B. They work with many different companies to find the best policy and they don't charge you any extra for the service.

Answer 2

On your Medicare card, does it have a date for Part B? Are you paying $93.50 out of your Social Security check? If the answer is no, then you wil not pay any penalty for getting onto part B. I would strongly recommend, as I always do, that you SPEAK TO A LICENCED AGENT IN YOUR STATE. If you are not on part B yet, then if you decided to go with a traditional Medicare supplement, which depending on your state could run $130 - $230 per month (Texas it is $120-$160) for a 65 year old, then you are in a special enrollment period where you cannot be declined coverage due to medical reasons. A part D, Rx drugs, plan will run about $10-$100 per month. But are you sick, I mean do you take meds? You might have better drug coverage with your current BCBS plan than through any Medicare D plan. I have seen situations where I recommended folks keep their $400 a month plans because the drug coverage was spectacular. Better than anything they could get through any Medicare plan. I say again, SPEAK TO A LICENSED AGENT IN YOUR AREA, and he can explain Medicare to you, the two of you can make a decision together. Good Luck.

Answer 3

If you're on Medicare Part A, you must sign up for Part B when first eligible or you will be subject to a penalty premium on Part B if you sign up for it later.

If the cost of Part B plus the cost of a supplemental plan is less than what you're paying now it would make sense to go that way now. But that's just what's best for today. You need to consider the lifetime impact of delaying enrollment in Part B. Keep in mind the penalty premium for Part B! If you delay for several years on Part B while you are still working, your Part B premium costs may become prohibitively high once you stop working and no longer have employer coverage.

Answer 4

Excessive? Have you compared it to a PRIVATE quote? That's how you can tell it's excessive or not - if you can buy a private policy for considerably less, it's excessive. Are you over 50, or covering more than one PERSON?

For a healthy 30 year old, BCBS usually costs about $250 a month.

You'll have to compare coverages - BCBS has about 25 different plans, with different coverages - to the part B you're considering, to see what picks up what, and when.

Answer 5

Your question is not so simple to answer. Your employer may not coordinate with part B. As long as you're still working, any group health insurance you may have will be primary to medicare. If you have medicare & no group insurance medicare will be your only payer. Medicare was never intended to be used alone... You will find large gaps in services & patient balances if you choose to use medicare by itself. I suggest, at a minimum, a gap plan to use with your medicare. good luck.

$640.00 is not excessive.

Answer 6

Pretty much. You will have to pay the M/C B premium. You can purchase supplemental insurance that will pay the 20% that Med B doesn't pay. M/C D pays for rx drugs- or a portion. Sometimes the supplemental will have a drug plan. Good luck.

Answer 7

www.medicare.org has all the information you need to check your coverage to determine if you have enough coverage without your company insurance.