Medicare Supplement Plans, All equally accepted on the road?

[PandS]

We're still 2 years from retirement and full timing, but we're researching our options for budgeting purposes. We'll have the choice of three different providers for Medicare Supplemental plans, discounted through my previous employer. All are fairly similar, with a few minor differences in co-pays and drug costs. The plans are offered by Tufts, Harvard Pilgrim, and Blue Cross Blue Shield. BCBS is a little more expensive than the other two, and does not cover vision and hearing like one of the cheaper plans.

All three insurance plans say they'll be accepted by any doctor who accepts Medicare. Have you found that to be true? Or is BCBS better known nationwide, and therefore easier to use?

[2gypsies1]

You said you're retiring in two years..is that when you have to make this decision? If so, I wouldn't delve into it too deep right now. Medical insurance has greatly changed this past year or so. Even Blue Cross is opting out of a lot of states. It's not easy nowadays. You might just want to follow the insurance industry closely until you need to make decisions.

[avan]

Since many of the above responses are wrong, you might just pull up the Medicare and You publication on line and read it. It may be long but it is very understandable.

The wording of your question implies, no states, that you are looking for supplemental or gap coverage under Traditional Medicare - not under one of the all inclusive Part C plans (those are the ones that may have geographic restrictions). Traditional Medicare is accepted throughout the country by every provider that accepts Medicare - no geographic restrictions. Under Traditional Medicare you can buy private supplemental plans (the alphabet plans SCBWR refers to), also called medigap plan. All supplemental plan C's for example will be identical with the only difference amongst those offering it being price and quality of service. All B's will be identical, all F's will be identical etc. ALL supplemental plans through all carriers must be accepted by all medicare providers. The only thing geographical about these plans is pricing and availability. For example, insurer #1 may offer a Plan B at $x per month in State A, County A but at a different price in State A, County B. That insurer might not even offer the Plan in County C.

So read the material, understand what the various Plans (Plan = supplemental while Part = type of underlying Medicare coverage) cover, review past actual medical history and forecast what you might need in the upcoming year and based on that forecast, pick the Plan that provides the best coverage value to you. Then, since you will be full timing and presumably picking a domicile state & county, check and see if that Plan is offered in your new county. If it is, you can use the Medicare online site to see what companies offer that Plan in your new area and pick the least expensive (no reason to pay more since the coverage is identical and the quality of service basically affects the medical provider (speed of payment etc), not you. It's an easy system if you take the time to learn it. It's an extremely difficult system to learn if a) you don't use and understand the correct terminology and b) you get advice from anywhere, including me, other than Medicare --- and the Medicare and You booklet is one of the better written ones in the panoply of government publications. JMO

The answer then to the question posed by your title is an unequivocal "yes" (by law).

[darsben1]

I would stick with a plan any idiot billing clerk will recognize. That said they are all equally good PROVIDED they have natiowide coverage. The typical scenario is that medicare pays first and then the supplemental automatically takes care of the rest. It is all computer driven (usually) and no extra billing is done by the provider.

[Mr__Camper]

Our supplemental plan is from our state since we are both retired teachers. So far they've covered everything. Our Part "D" is through a subsidiary of Aetna and we should be able to avoid the donut hole. We fill our scripts through Walgreens since you can find them everywhere. Look around for a Good RX card for extra savings on Schedule 1 and 2 drugs that might cause us to hit the donut hole. Our Dr.s office has a stack of the cards. Also, Walgreens has their own discount card (Prescription Savings Club) that will save you money before you start Medicare

[scbwr]

If you are looking at the supplemental plans, you have to choose which plan (B,C,F,N etc.) that best meets your needs. If you buy a "F" plan for instance, it doesn't matter what insurance company sells you the plan, the coverage will be the same. I suggest you talk to a qualified advisor about the plan options. We've selected a F plan because of out of state traveling and better coverage overall but it is also one of the more expensive plans. Learn about the 20% gap that you can possibly encounter in some states (i.e. Florida) if you don't have adequate coverage. I'm not comfortable trying to explain about coverage...you really need to talk to someone in the business and read up on line.

[obgraham]

That's precisely the reason I chose the BCBS plan in Washington State. Nobody in Arizona looked twice -- "Blue Cross? OK." And the bills were paid according to the plan with no problems.

The more restrictive your plan is, of course, the less likely it will be accepted "everywhere". Not surprisingly, you'll usually pay a bit more for wider coverage.

[PandS]

My school also offers regional plans, but we wouldn't be interest in them. The three supplemental plans we'd be interested in all state that they are for people who live anywhere in the country, and will be accepted by any doctor or hospital in the country who accepts Medicare. I'm just wondering if providers out west will balk at Tufts or Harvard Pilgrim which are known in New England. Both of those plans appear to be a bit better bang for the buck than the Blue Cross Blue Shield plan offered.

[Johno02]

Better check really close. Most only cover in the state or states they are licensed for. I pay extra to get anywhere coverage, and even at that, its not really very good.

[Kennyg]

You need to pay attention to the area coverage; whether it covers you only in your state or across the nation.

[RoyB]

We have BCBS but don't do much with the doctors side on the road but using WALMART for Pharmacy for the pills is great. They are all connected together through their business network so having the pills sent to WALMART Pharmacy works for us for getting refills etc They find our local pharmacy account with just click click...

CVS Pharmacy is another store that is all over the country too...

Roy Ken