That's all good hints you posted. With that being said -many are going to have to switch Doctors-because many will not take the plans that are available. OR-find a new Doctor which may not be that easy due to San Diego being somewhat isolated from the next major city.
I still believe the payments to hospitals need to be more equitable. When you have to spend $30.00 or $40.00 to mount a tire at a tire store-and then a hospital gets $38.00 for a battery of blood tests-something seems off.
I understand your posts but from them I can tell you are not in a Medicare plan.
Im sincere in what I am posting. Look at it this way. I'll use my wife's company as an example, which is now international. Great benefits but they do shop insurance every year to keep costs down. So it's not unusual for them to switch companies every couple years, sometimes for a year. All among the standard companies.
Advantage C is no different if you are one of the select very few that the company decides to get out of. The networks are all the same, MOST of the same doctors are all in the same networks. It would be extremely rare for a doctor who is in large insurance networks to not have them all. Im a perfect example. TRULY, I moved from SC to NC just this year, once you move out of your area you have to switch to the plan in your area. It was a nothing, the same company UHC, literally started my plan here where I live now. I didnt do anything, it was just transferred over here with new cards and id number. Every hospital and doctor who is in networks is all the same here. They all take the same plans from the same large companies. The thing is, I could care less if they didnt approve a plan for my area because then, I can switch companies right away and not wait until the typical allowed yearly switch times.
By the way, as posted I just switched to Aetna for more benefits, even though I loved UHC. Weill see how it goes with them and if I dont like it? in less than a year I can switch again. But regarding your posts, Have UHC and moving to Aetna, I checked online and Aetna has all the same hospitals and all the same doctors as I do now and that means, every possible one in this area, including Duke University.
What I am saying, your post about a health ins company opting out is because they could not make the profits that they wanted. I assume many small companies can. But it's a big nothing, no one is left without coverage, no one. Your in the medicare system there isnt a place in the USA without coverage, so you just switch. United Health Care has MILLIONS of people in Advantage C, Aetna, Blue Cross, Humana. Seems like the best thing for those people in your post is that they finally move to a large company.
there "one offs" where some doctors and hospitals will take one and not the other? Sure, but that is the same with your employee health plan too, or any health plan.
Lets play worst case, I dont even want to post this because it doesnt happen, but lets say your post was correct and those people cant find coverage. My question would be, and? So what.
Then they have to seamlessly switch back to traditional medicare with a click of a mouse or phone call AND if they dont want to pay 20% of all their medical costs AND 100% of their drug costs for the rest of their lives (except hospitals covered 100%) they will be buying supplemental insurance G or N PLUS a drug plan D from the very private insurance companies using the same networks as the Advantage C plans because those are the same companies offering G or N and D plans. But it will cost you in this case 200 to $300 extra a month with rising costs as you age. One big benefit is with this plan there isnt any out of pocket costs except some of the drugs and dentists vision hearing. With Advantage C you do pay co-pays and have an out of pocket limit that can cary widely and why one must compare plans, again, easy to do on the .gov website.
Im posting this for those interested and truly not debating you, it's the freaking MEDIA and much of their brain dead so called reporters that cannot properly post s complete news story. Im kind of passionate on the subject because its freaking scary now a days with so called "news"
Ok, so here it goes.
Worst case, every American who gets Medicare can do the following;
1. Traditional, meaning only hospital coverage, nothing else, that is free. Optional pay $175 a month and that covers doctors, procedures, any acknowledged medical procedure. BTW with traditional medicare doctors do not have to accept that either. (we still live in a free country) Ok, so that is it, traditional medicare. $175 a month, covers everything for all doctors and hospitals who accept Medicare which is about 90% or so. With that said, how many understand that
YOU pay a 20% co-pay for ALL medical procedures and Doctor bills (other that hospital) Understand the scope of that? Can you imagine bills that now total in the 100s of thousands you being liable for 20% of everything?
2. In then comes other options. Private Medigap plans will pick up the costs of what medicare wont pay for which is that other 20%.
Typically a G or N plan, you will then never have another bill in your life, as long as you choose doctors who accept Medicare>
Keep in mind, non of the above covers prescription drugs, so you then will have to choose another plan for that, Plan D
So you will be paying the Government cost of $175 PLUS the Medigap and part D cost of another $200 to $300 a month = roughly $400 to $500 a month. ALL THESE ARE NUMBERS AS EXAMPLES.
Plus you will pay your own Dental, Hearing and Visions costs and services.
All told if your advantage C plan shuts down at the end of the year at a cost of the Medicare plan of $175 which includes Dental, Vision, Hearing plus perks, for example I am given $1,200 a year to buy anything I want as long as it is related to an activity, plus $300 for contacts, plus $45 every three months for over the counter items or you seemlessly can go back to Traditional if no others are available.
BTW - A agree 100% at the discounted prices they pay under these plans. It doesnt seem possible, how can a hospital bill, 7 hours I was there, I did get a complicated procedure using advanced equipment running 4 wires through my veins in my legs up to my heart. But the cost was over $120,000 and agreed ins cost was around $25,000. Ill have to pay attention to my wife's employee plan, she will be getting a procedure this year, Im not sure if they show the retail cost like Medicare does. Will see but even her, when her company changes needs to be sure her doctors are in the network.
I find this subject really interesting, I have thought about getting a license to help elders because I do feel that not everyone is treated right or understand the system. But it does work and works well.
The bottom line is, if your plan closes down, then go back to Traditional Medicare, pay your $200, $300 or $400 EXTRA a month plus all dental, vision and hearing bills if you dont want another C plan. I personally rather have that choice rather than misleading news stories having the public limit my choices.
(I see some typos in here *LOL* Im not going back to correct them all)
