Medicare Supplement, Full Time RV'r
- Thread starter dfc177
- Start date
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Ron
Moderator Emeritus
I suspect AARP offers a medicare supplement plan that might fit your needs. There are probably several choices out there.
tswms
Well-known member
There are any number of good medicare supplements out there. In fact is one of the few things in the health insurance industry that is standardized. They are all controlled by the government. The problem is that all are rated by the state in which you live. The covetrage is the same no matter where you travel. In the US at least. The problem may be a permenant physical address. If you full time and have only a PO box address you may have a problem. The same problem as voting,insurance, and drivers licence.
Tony
Tony
If you are on th move I do not think you are going to find a Medicare Advantage Plan that will provide coverage around the country but AARP's United Health Care Options does include a fee for service plan that will. You will not get the in-network extras like dental, vision, or drug deductibles that some Advantage plans offer but it is great coverage otherwise.
dfc177 said:
If you sign up for the AARP Medicare supplement (not one of their Medicare HMO plans), there's no need to find a network provider. You can go to any medical facility that accepts Medicare. Depending on the plan you select, you are also covered in foreign countries. However, you have to find your own doctor. We have been in many areas where doctors will not take new Medicare patients.
Re a permanent address: you will need to pick one location as your domicile (official residence) for tax and Medicare purposes. Your Medicare supplement rate is based on the rate in the state where you are domiciled.
BTW, we have the AARP supplement plan and are happy with it (except for the high monthly premiums).
Jeannine
Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
United Healthcare has an extensive provider network - just about the largest there is. They are our primary medical insurer (through my retirement medical coverage) and we have never had the slightest difficulty in finding a provider wherever we go. In fact, we always have had a choice of providers.
But that is not an issue with any medicare Part B supplement policy - you are covered wherever Medicare is accepted.
[edit]Inserted "Part B" to distinguish from Medicare Advantage, a different type of supplement[/edit]
But that is not an issue with any medicare Part B supplement policy - you are covered wherever Medicare is accepted.
[edit]Inserted "Part B" to distinguish from Medicare Advantage, a different type of supplement[/edit]
Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
I'm glad you raised that point, Jeff, because there is potential confusion on the type of supplement. Medicare Advantage is a different type of supplement than Medicare Part B and has different rules. However, most Medicare Advantage policies require that you have Medicare Part A & B coverage first. Jeannine & I were referencing the Part B supplement, which is indeed good wherever Medicare is accepted. Medicare Advantage may or may not be, depending on the type of insurance and the company writing the policy. [I just amended my previous response to specify "Part B"]
dfc177 didn't say what sort of supplement he was asking about, so all the answers here may be applicable.
dfc177 didn't say what sort of supplement he was asking about, so all the answers here may be applicable.
tswms
Well-known member
You may want to check the medicare website www.medicare.gov. This site has a good explanation of the types of plans and a list of the plans available in your area and cost.
Pierat
Well-known member
AARP United Healthcare seems to be a good plan nationwide; it is what we chose recently. Our local Council on Aging, a respected nonprofit senior advice center, recommended against Medicare Advantage plans, which they said replace, rather than supplement, traditional Medicare. They recommended the AARP United Healthcare plan that gives you a choice of providers, plus an AARP prescription drug plan (Part D). We are in Arizona but expect to travel extensively. Do look carefully, as there are a lot of pitfalls, traps and quirks built into the system. The Council on Aging provided excellent classes and materials to help us through the thicket. Good luck with your choice.
Ah, Part D! now that REALLY will offer a lot of choices.
It turns out that I am insured for Part B with AARP but because of the specific anti-hypetension drug I use AARP was double the annual out-of-pocket expense that Coventry's First Health Part D cost. At least there is no pre-existing conditions to worry about when you switch Part D providers.
As tswms suggested check the Medicare website.
It turns out that I am insured for Part B with AARP but because of the specific anti-hypetension drug I use AARP was double the annual out-of-pocket expense that Coventry's First Health Part D cost. At least there is no pre-existing conditions to worry about when you switch Part D providers.
As tswms suggested check the Medicare website.
Ron
Moderator Emeritus
While we seldom watch commercials on TV I did watch the AARP commercial abput the supplemental insurrance and they do advertise nation wide coverage with no forms to fill out. Check it out they might fit your needs.
ArdraF
Well-known member
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- Feb 12, 2006
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We initially had Blue Cross-Blue Shield as our Medicare supplement but changed about two years ago when our providers got so disgusted with BC/BS that they opted out of it. Our primary care physician's office said that the AARP Healthcare Options was pretty good so that's what we got in place of BC/BS. We're happy with it and can go to any doctor wherever we happen to be at a time when we need care.
Before going fulltime you need to make a careful assessment of what you will choose as your home state. When we left California where we belonged to the Kaiser Permanente system we were told we could no longer have it because we were moving out of the Kaiser service area. Kaiser told me that Medicare governs their service areas. That's when we made our initial switch to Blue Cross-Blue Shield because we wanted to flexibility of being able to use any medical facility when traveling. As a fulltimer, you do not want an HMO where you are limited to the doctors you can use because that would mean returning to your home area for every doctor appointment which is much too restrictive.
ArdraF
Before going fulltime you need to make a careful assessment of what you will choose as your home state. When we left California where we belonged to the Kaiser Permanente system we were told we could no longer have it because we were moving out of the Kaiser service area. Kaiser told me that Medicare governs their service areas. That's when we made our initial switch to Blue Cross-Blue Shield because we wanted to flexibility of being able to use any medical facility when traveling. As a fulltimer, you do not want an HMO where you are limited to the doctors you can use because that would mean returning to your home area for every doctor appointment which is much too restrictive.
ArdraF
