We were fortunate to have a knowledgeable and unbiased broker assist us with the selection process when my husband first became eligible for Medicare. People are easily swayed by celebrity ads and enticements of freebies, but they aren't told about the downsides of an Advantage plan or the inability to switch to traditional Medicare later without medical underwriting (in most states anyway). This is yet one more way our healthcare system is a complete mess.
Use the tools on medicare.gov to compare Part D plans. You can enter all of your specific drugs and get a precise price comparison between plans. Part D plans tend to change the most from year to year, so it's a good idea to repeat this process annually and not just renew your plan from the previous year without re-running the numbers.
Using a broker does nothing to increase your cost of healthcare unless you fail to do your own research and blindly choose what is put in front of you. Brokers, at least ours, can be a wealth of knowledge that is challenging for some people to find on their own. In my husband's case, the cost for USAA's Plan G was $30/mo. more than the AARP/UHC plan G. Not everything USAA offers is necessarily less expensive than their competition.
I took Edward's comment to mean he pays for the Plan F deductible with existing HSA savings. He never mentioned that he continues to contribute to the HSA.
Comments
We were fortunate to have a knowledgeable and unbiased broker assist us with the selection process when my husband first became eligible for Medicare. People are easily swayed by celebrity ads and enticements of freebies, but they aren't told about the downsides of an Advantage plan or the inability to switch to traditional Medicare later without medical underwriting (in most states anyway). This is yet one more way our healthcare system is a complete mess.
Post: What Advantage?
Link to comment from March 27, 2024
Use the tools on medicare.gov to compare Part D plans. You can enter all of your specific drugs and get a precise price comparison between plans. Part D plans tend to change the most from year to year, so it's a good idea to repeat this process annually and not just renew your plan from the previous year without re-running the numbers.
Post: Time to Decide
Link to comment from May 31, 2023
It depends on where you live, your age, and possibly other factors.
Post: Time to Decide
Link to comment from May 31, 2023
Using a broker does nothing to increase your cost of healthcare unless you fail to do your own research and blindly choose what is put in front of you. Brokers, at least ours, can be a wealth of knowledge that is challenging for some people to find on their own. In my husband's case, the cost for USAA's Plan G was $30/mo. more than the AARP/UHC plan G. Not everything USAA offers is necessarily less expensive than their competition.
Post: Time to Decide
Link to comment from May 31, 2023
I took Edward's comment to mean he pays for the Plan F deductible with existing HSA savings. He never mentioned that he continues to contribute to the HSA.
Post: Time to Decide
Link to comment from May 31, 2023