We began full-timing March 1, 2007. At that time we chose a forwarding mail service in Sioux Falls, SD. , mostly because they are more friendly to retirees, etc. We licensed our vehicles there, established a voting address, etc. The service has worked well; however...almost monthly we get a mesage from insurance, medicare, other services we have indicating the change of address may have removed us from their coverage area. We have explained that we are physically located at a different address and that this is simply a forwarding service. I know that we are not the first to have experienced these problems; but am at a loss as to how to handle this. Any recommendations regarding health insurance or other avenues to solve this hassle?
Health Insurance and Forwarding Mail Service Problem
- Thread starter Traveller
- Start date
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I mentioned on another thread that we ended up with our mail forwarder and legal address in the same state for similar reasons.
Medicare only recognizes your Social Security address and although I would have preferred one of the Medicare Advantage plans offered in other parts of the country that we frequent I have a SD fee for service plan that does allow seeking medical services throughout the country. I could find no way to have a S mailing address in one state and have a policy from another.
Our car insurance is also from SD but that saves money so it is not a problem. My wife has a major medical policy issued by Assurant (John Alden) in SD.
Medicare only recognizes your Social Security address and although I would have preferred one of the Medicare Advantage plans offered in other parts of the country that we frequent I have a SD fee for service plan that does allow seeking medical services throughout the country. I could find no way to have a S mailing address in one state and have a policy from another.
Our car insurance is also from SD but that saves money so it is not a problem. My wife has a major medical policy issued by Assurant (John Alden) in SD.
dakotarider
New member
We are from South Dakota born and raised. We have a insurance policy with Blue Cross Blue Sheild of South Dakota. We left in Oct 2007 and spent the winter in Florida. When we returned we sold our stick home in May and became full timers. We use My Dakota Address out of Madison, SD for our mail forwarding. With in the last couple of weeks we finished changing all of our address to Madison. BC/BS notified us that as we no longer had a permanet address and we would be treated as a out of state policy. The mail forwarding address thru up a red flag. They could not cancel us as we had the policy while still a full time resident. But what they did do was raise our policy $130 a month on top of a $60 increase. About 13% annual. Still have a little over 2 years before Medicare so have to suck it up. I asked BC/BS how the Gov. of SD considers us residents by giving us drivers lic. and lic. for our vechiles but BC/BS doesn't. You know who won that argument. If we had known I would not have changed my address as the post office would forward my mail for one year. No family living in SD anymore so couldn't use a address there. Many do that as I was told.......
We used Assurant Health (John Alden) with a large deductible because BCBS and the other PPO providers in SD would not offer a policy to full timers who spent too much time out of state. I am on Medicare now but my wife is still covered by that policy for another year.
dakotarider
New member
Jeff......Lucky for us we took out the BCBS of SD policy before I retired to make sure we were covered. Even though BCBS does not consider me a SD resident they can not cancel my policy as it was in effect when we went full timing. They however were able to raise the rates. Yesterday I checked with a BCBS rep who represents various insurance companie and has over 100 full timers insured for health. He explained that I couldn't even get this policy now if I didn't already have it and the closest thing to it would cost me $200 a month more. I guess sometimes we don't know just how lucky we are.
