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When And Why You May Need A Hospital Indemnity Plan

If you or someone you love have ever received hospital care, the chances are that you understand how overwhelming the costs of medical services can be. It is crucial to your financial well-being to understand your options regarding insurance coverages of hospital medical expenses. 

 

Hospital Indemnity Plans

Hospital indemnity plans are a type of insurance policy that covers certain unpaid costs left by your essential healthcare. Depending on the indemnity plan you choose, the insurer pays a designated amount either per visit, per day, week, or month that you are in the hospital for medical care. 

 

These plans are considered supplemental insurance coverage that can’t stand alone as your primary basic healthcare coverage. As indemnity plans aren’t counted as minimum essential coverage, they are intended to complement your essential coverage by aiding in costs left unpaid. 

 

Why Hospital Indemnity Plans Are Important

Unfortunately, many people are currently struggling to pay back medical bills left unpaid by insurance companies. Medical debt causes undue stress on families, some of whom are forced to take money from retirement, college, or other long-term savings to pay back exorbitant hospital services fees. 

 

Hospital stays are expensive, and costs quickly add up the longer and more intensive your care becomes. Basic healthcare coverage often falls short of covering the total costs of hospital medical services, leaving people on the hook for balances that must be paid. As the average expenses of unpaid hospital care reach the tens of thousands, indemnity insurance is vital to decreasing these costs, therefore, minimizing your financial burden. 

 

Other Benefits Of Hospital Indemnity Plans

Hospital indemnity health insurance offers other benefits as well. Indemnity plans have no network, which means the doctors that handled your medical needs in the hospital are covered under the plan. Some programs have deductibles that are required to be paid or co-payments as the policy allows. As indemnity plans supplement your primary medical insurance policy, your benefits can be paid by the insurance company to you directly. 

 

Indemnity health policies may also provide a maximum amount of co-insurance that you must pay; however, the vast majority of policies are advantageous. Once you hit the total payable amount, you are no longer required to pay the co-insurance. 

 

Depending on your medical situation, indemnity hospital plans can help you manage the maximum costs you may be responsible for after a hospital stay. 

Medicare In 2021

Changes to Medicare that will impact you occur yearly. It’s important to understand what you can expect and what will be expected of you when using your health insurance. Being informed and trusting experts can help you to make decisions that will benefit you. Let’s explore some of the differences in Medicare for the year 2021.

Medicare In 2021

Premiums and Deductibles

Those who paid their Medicare tax and worked more than forty quarters don’t have to pay the Part A premium. Those who worked between thirty and thirty-nine quarters will pay $259 per month. If a person paid fewer than thirty quarters of tax, they will be responsible for $471 per month. The Part B premium is standard at $148.50, although it can be adjusted based on larger incomes. The deductible for Medicare Part A has increased by $76 in 2021, now $1484. The Part B deductible is $203, only having increased by $5 in 2021.

Coinsurance

Patients needing care for a period longer than sixty days are subject to a coinsurance cost. Medicare Part A is charging patients $371 per day after the sixty days. After ninety days, the cost rises again to $742 per day. Both of these charges have increased from 2020 by $20-$40.

Prescription Drugs

Medicare part D plans vary and are income adjusted. Deductibles may also vary depending on your chosen plan. Participants pay a quarter of the cost of medications after meeting their deductible. They can pay much less after meeting an out-of-pocket maximum of $6550.

Positive Notes

One change that will positively impact many people is a decrease in the copay for insulin. Starting this year, over a thousand Advantage and Part D plans are charging $35 or less for the drug needed by so many diabetic patients. Another positive note is a result of an amendment to the 21st Century Cures Act. Now, all end-stage renal disease patients eligible for Medicare will be able to enroll in Advantage plans. The growing need for telehealth in response to the coronavirus pandemic has led to increases in services offered. Now telehealth is being covered in specialties like dermatology, psychiatry, and cardiology.

Advantage Plans

There are more advantage plans available for 2021, nearly five thousand according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The premiums for these plans are much less costly than in recent years. In fact, these premiums are lower than they’ve been since 2007. The open enrollment period for advantage plans ends on March 31. Therefore, participants can change their plan if they wish to before that date.

Many factors must be evaluated to make the important decision about which Medicare supplement and advantage plan to enroll in. It’s important to make this decision with the help of someone who is knowledgeable about what is best for your personal situation. The agents of Senior Benefit Services are experienced experts in how these plans can affect you. Let one of our agents be your trusted source of information and assistance.

Medicare OEP 2020: Key Dates & When to Apply

There is a lot of confusion around Medicare OEP 2019 because there are so many similar terms.  

Here’s the thing… 

While there may be multiple Medicare open enrollment periods for different parts and plans, once they have been explained they really aren’t that difficult to sort out.  

 

Medicare OEP 2019

We will discuss the differences between the initial Medicare OEP (open enrollment period), the annual Medicare oep 2019, Part D’s open enrollment period, and Medicare Supplements open enrollment.  

Medicare Initial Enrollment Period 

The Medicare Initial Enrollment Period is quite different from the annual fall Medicare OEP 2019 and confusing the two can cause you to have to pay much more in premiums.  

The question you need to be asking is, ‘When does Medicare start?’ 

The Initial Enrollment Period for most people only comes around once in their life when they turn 65 which, is the age Medicare starts.   

You become eligible for Medicare Part A the first day of the month after your 65th birthday and your initial enrollment period extends from 6 months of that date.  

So if you are wondering, ‘What age does Medicare start?’  

The answer would be the age Medicare starts is the 1st day of the month after you turn 65 and the enrollment period continues for six months after that.  

Many of your questions can be answered within the free Medicare and you 2019 handbook pdf online.  

This definitive annual guide for Medicare has been the consumer’s go-to resource for both new and existing Medicare recipients.  

The Medicare and you 2019 handbook includes comprehensive coverage of your options within the system including Part A, Part B, Part D, Medicare Advantage, and Supplemental options.  

If you are close to turning 65 or have already reached 65 and are wondering about your options, start by reviewing the Medicare and you pdf handbook online.  

During the initial enrollment period you will have the option of choosing Medicare Advantage over Medicare Part A and Part B, also referred to as Original Medicare. 

If you choose Original Medicare you can also choose a Medigap supplemental plan to cover those expenses that Medicare does not.  

The options can be very confusing please give Senior Benefits Medicare Experts a no obligation toll-free phone call at 1.800.924.4272 or get a quote below.

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When is Medicare OEP 2019 

The annual fall Medicare OEP (open enrollment period) in 2019 will start this year on October 15 and end December 7th, 2019.  

During the annual enrollment period 2019 you have the option to: 

  • Change from Original Medicare (Part A & B) to Medicare Advantage (Part C) 
  • Change from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare 
  • Change your Medicare Advantage plan from one to another 
  • Change your prescription drug plan (Part D) from one to another 
  • Enroll in Medicare Part D (Prescription drug plan) if you didn’t in the past but possibly with a late enrollment penalty 

If you want to enroll in Medicare Advantage during the OEP 2019 you will have to meet certain criteria: 

  • You have to be enrolled in Medicare Part A and Part B 
  • You must reside in the plans service area 
  • Certain existing medical conditions cannot qualify (contact a Senior Benefits Agent for more details) 

Feel free to contact a Senior Benefits Medicare Expert today to walk you through the 2019 annual enrollment period, toll-free at 1.800.924.4272 or get a quote below.

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Medicare Advantage Annual Enrollment Period 

Prior to 2019, if you wanted to change your Medicare Advantage plan you had to do so during the Medicare AEP (annual enrollment period) unless you qualified for the Special Enrollment Period aka Early OEP.  

The 21st Century Cures Act changed all that in 2019 to allow you to switch from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare and Part D or change Advantage plans outside of the Medicare OEP in 2019.  

The 21st Century Cures Act extended the AEP from 6 weeks to 3 months and will allow policyholders to switch Medicare Advantage plans along with moving to Original Medicare and Part D now during that three-month annual window.  

When is Open Enrollment For Medicare Part D 

Open enrollment for Medicare Part D is at the same time as general Medicare OEP, starting October 15th and ending December 7th.  

While auto-renewal is available for Medicare Part D plans, it is important to understand the policy and premiums change from year to year. 

Even if you are planning on renewing the plan, you need to take the time and review the upcoming changes to your policy for the coming year.  

Many people are shocked to find out their prescription is no longer covered or has been moved to a more expensive bracket from previous years.  

Contact a Senior Benefit Services Medicare Expert today to discuss the upcoming Medicare Part D open enrollment (OEP) in 2019, toll-free at 1.800.924.4272 or get a quote below.

Taking Action

Hopefully, you now have a better understanding of the Annual Enrollment Period and/or Medicare Open Enrollment Period.

There are many options available to you each fall OEP with new plans beign added each year.

Our agents will not pressure you into something you do not want or need.

Pick up the phone and speak with one of our experts about your Medicare needs today, toll-free at 1.800.924.4272 or get a quote below.

Free Medicare Supplement Quote Comparison

Home Health Care Vs Nursing Home – Which Is Cheaper

Which Is Cheaper… Home Health Care or Nursing Home? 

This is one of the most common questions that we get each year when clients are trying to decide whether to purchase long term care insurance, nursing home only coverage, or home health care only coverage.

Depending on which state you reside in and what type of care you would be receiving in a nursing home, the daily costs can average from as low as $190 per day on the East Coast, $160 per day in the Midwest, and $300 per day on the West Coast for a semi-private room.  

The National average is around $225 per day for a semi-private room.  

So, based on the national average a retiree would be looking at an annual cost around $82,000 per year as a full time resident in a nursing home.

Is Home Health Care Less Expensive?

Many folks would immediately think that since they already own a home it would be far less expensive to simply have a home health care aid come and stay with them.  

This situation could be answered both “true” or “false” depending on one major question.

“is there a family support system in place?”

If there is a spouse or child that can be in the home either during the day or spend the night then this could possibly work out as less expensive.

In addition, the premium for a HHC only policy is less expensive than a LTC policy.

Home Health Aids

The national average for a licensed home health care aid to provide care is around $21 per hour.

So, a quick computation for having 24/7 care would work out to be around $183,960 per year at this hourly rate. 

Since many home health care agencies will discount the hourly rate based on needing more hours, we are going to use in the next example of an hourly rate of $17. 

For 24/7 care the cost would drop to $148,920 per year to receive continuous care in the home. 

What if we had a spouse or child that could spend 1/2 the day with the individual needing care?

Not a Huge Difference In Cost

At the national average, the cost would still be about $10,000 per year higher than the national average of a nursing home, but at the discounted hourly rate it would be about $8,000 per year lels than national average of a nursing home.

As you can see, if there is a support system available for an individual to be cared for in their own home, it could possibly cost less. 

The more care that a spouse or child could provide on a daily basis would reduce the hours needed for a home health care aide to come into the home.

This in turn, would reduce the overall cost for care in the home.

Medicare Preventive Services

It can be confusing trying to understand what Medicare will cover and what it will not!

However, there is no confusion when it comes to Preventive Services because Medicare covers that!

If you are unsure what Preventative Services are covered, you can click on the guide book below.

As a Senior Benefit Services value added service, you can always contact us to help with any coverage questions.

Take Action!

Senior Benefit Services has expert agents standing by to to help you with your purchase of Medicare, Medicare Supplemental or Medicare Advantage Plans.

You can also get a free Medicare Supplement quote by clicking the compare plans button below.

Free Medicare Supplement Quote Comparison

Don’t Fall Victim to These Medicare Scams

Medicare scams cost Seniors in the U.S. million dollars in 2018 and the National Council of Aging says 2019 is going to be worse!

But, it doesn’t have to happen to you if you are prepared!

Failure to review the three most common Medicare Scams below could result in you falling victim to one of them if you are not careful.

We will tell you how to avoid the Medicare Call Scam, the Computer Virus Call scam, and the ‘Yes’ scam.

Take Action!

If you think that you have been a victim of a Medicare scam call, call Medicare at 800 – MEDICARE.

Senior Benefit Services expert Medicare agents can assist you in any of your ​Medicare Parts or Medicare Supplement needs.

Contact Senior Benefits today!

Or request a free quote below!

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