Community Chat

[Carolm]

Thanks, all, for your responses.  I had decided to switch to Cigna from BCBS, but after reading your comments, I think I will contact my doctors before making the switch.  As I am sure you all know, Plan F is Plan F no matter the carrier, but there is a big difference in premium, almost $100 per month.  If I find out anything of interest, I will post.

[meem120]

Also, the further you are out from starting your Medicare coverage the higher your supplemental plan will be.  A friend who was with bcbs as her original supplement now wanted to switch to plan f with aarp.  They advertised coverage at $166 for plan f, but when she applied her premium would have been $90 higher per month. 

[Moonchilde]

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@Carolm wrote:

@NickNack I absolutely agree about checking with doctors.  However, I have just had two different agents tell me that as long as a doctor accepts medicare they will accept any supplemental carrier.  I currently have BCBS so it hasn't been an issue for me.  Perhaps someone else will comment on whether the information about doctors accepting any supplemental policy is accurate. 

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As long as you're talking Medicare Supplement and not a Medicare Advantage plan, it was explained to me by an insurance agent that any and every supplement company works the same way and pays the same way, and whether you've heard of them or not makes zero difference as to how the payout works. The companies that no one ever heard of are the ones that have the best rates.

The doctor's office sends the bill to Medicare and the supplement company almost simultaneously, many times electronically. As soon as the supplemental company sees that Medicare has okayed the charges, they cut their check  for the 20% and send it off. Done. There's nothing about what one company pays that's any different to how any other company pays. It's cut and dried simple.

The only thing to watch for (I'd ask the agent) is the financial rating of the company. The agency I use recommends only A to B- financially rated companies. The company they recommended to me is B+ rated.

Never heard of my company (Combined) either but they save me $70/mo in premiums over the Big Guys. Have not had a single issue in 11 months.

[Kachina624]

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@Nicknack wrote:

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@Kachina624 wrote:

@Carolm  @NickNack Your agents are wrong.   My supplemental plan has the misfortune of having the Humana name on it.   They aren't the insurer but were just hired as administrators.   I've run across one hospital,  the state's largest group of orthopedists,  and a group of dermatologists that won't take it.   I call the insurance person,  get her to call our Humana group and then everything is okay,  but it's a hassle

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@Kachina624  I didn't say that my agent told me anything.  All I told the OP was that she should check with her doctors to make sure they accepted the plan that she chose.

@Carolm  I believe your agent is wrong that your doctor has to accept your plan.  When I chose my plan recently I called my doctor to make sure they accepted it.  There was one plan that they did not accept.

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@Nicknack  I know you didn't say it but Hannahsgram did in comments to you and I wanted you to know that this may not be correct. 

[Isobel Archer]

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@Carolm wrote:

@NickNack I absolutely agree about checking with doctors.  However, I have just had two different agents tell me that as long as a doctor accepts medicare they will accept any supplemental carrier.  I currently have BCBS so it hasn't been an issue for me.  Perhaps someone else will comment on whether the information about doctors accepting any supplemental policy is accurate. 

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Is that part of the ACA?  Or a recent change?

I ask because when my mother was still alive, (she died in 2011)  BCBS - her supplemental - would only pay their covered doctors.  And clearly, she was on Medicare.