I have been offered Medicare , A is free but you pay for B. I have very good insurance and it pays all but token amount for Medicine and Doctor visits. I want to carry it till current reconstruction is finished but I am facing the problem of my husband retireing and needing my own insurance. Will there be a big difference in types of treatment that the medicare will pay for and regular insurance will pay for. I know I need a suplimental policy. Will this all cover like my old insurance did. What are the problems?

I don't know why I am responding to this post! Amy is a much better resource for this than I am but I remember my father having Medicare A & B and also an additional, relatively inexpensive, supplemental policy through ARRP that paid what was remaining of the deductible. I remember him having a broken femur, extensive surgery and repair with in hospital rehabilitation and it was almost 100% covered. He saw many doctors and had lots of procedures & meds and I remember paying very little for all of it (Like microMohs facial cancer surgery at UCSF). I had to manage the money, so I had a pretty good handle on who got paid what. I want to caution you that this dated information. My father passed away in 1995.

You may want to discuss Medicare options with your current doctors to see how they will handle Medicare payments.

Optionally, you should also be able to COBRA your husbands insurance for 18-36 months (depending on what set of rules you fall into). It is expensive. They can charge up to 105% of the original premium I believe.

Can he extend his retirement until you are done with the big stuff?

gnelson,
Here's how it works...

Once you qualify for Medicare, you are in

Hi, Thanks for input. I have a card to order AARP magazine, I think I will send it in.What time period is a pre existing condition are they considering? 5 years for Cancer or more? I need one more operation and stretcher and teeth. My current insurance should pay for teeth because it says very clearly, only if Tumor involved were teeth removed, and you better believe that was it! They should replace. I have to answer Medicade right now but I want to keep my other insurance till all is finished especially teeth.I can have both for a while can't I ? Is a second site Cancer considered new or existing? Could I be turned down for supplement insurance because I had a late stage cancer. My current co. has been so good at paying for all that I hate to think of dealing with problems. My husband will not retire for awhile but, when and if he does or as he says what if something happens to me? I need to cover my butt I guess.

gnelson,
Pre-existing condition exclusions (type and duration) will vary by insurer. I would recommend looking in to a couple so you have some basis for comparison. Also, be sure to check any requirements with the PA Insurance Commission so you are well informed. Most state insurance commissions have well developed websites with lots of consumer information.

I wouldn't count on your current insurance to cover your teeth unless you have something in writing (or have COBRA coverage). I would recommend discussing this with the benefits administrator at your husband's place of employment.

Go ahead and sign up for Medicare. It can only benefit you. You can have Medicare in addition to your current insurance through your husband's work. Just remember that Medicare will be your secondary payor and be sure to inform your care providers so they will bill Medicare instead of you. Also, medical necessity requirements will come in to play but your providers will inform you about this.

Non-government insurers have the right to decline coverage as long as they comply with state and federal laws and provisions of their contracts with employers. Coverage exclusions will vary according to the insurer, insurance plan, and a variety of other considerations.

You might also talk to a small handful of insurers about the what-if scenario you describe (what if something happens to your husband). They may be able to suggest some sort of overlap coverage that allow them to be a tertiary insurer while husband is still carrying you to get you over the pre-existing condition (again...watch the fine print and ask lots of questions).

These are all great questions! Be sure to ask as many and more of any insurer you talk to so you know exactly what you are getting.

As always...I'm here if you need additional information.
Amy

Hi, I have been reading up on the Medicare program and I found information that says when you begin the medicare part B, I have A already, you have a 6 month window where no suppliment insurance can regect you or give you higher rates because of a current or past condition.The insurance I have has a Gold plan for seniors, I thought great! Guess what. The county I live in has too high of an income and no one in this county can get the Gold plan! I do not get this at all!We have a lot of people who retire here and a major University but it seems unfair to cut off the whole county! I guess I will have to find other suppliment. This is hard to do, because a person has to wonder what find of problems with cancer am I faceing in the future? Will they cover it well? One of the big reliefs we have had thru all of this was the great coverage we have gotten from insurance. Well I hope the information about the WINDOW will help someone, I had worried about that.

gnelson, this is about who pays for teeth. In my case, the rad killed mine. Medical, right? Nope, Med insuror said they don't do teeth. Dental said it was medical, though, so they would pay for extraction, but not the implants. Medical would, however, pay for the hyperbaric. I went pretty high with my complaints about medical not covering and got exactly nowhere. So the Mutual of Joanna paid for most of it. The bright side, though is that this is a great tax deduction. I hope your situation is better.

gnelson,
As far as pre-existing conditions go, when Heather was still alive, her husband was considering changing jobs, but was concerned Heather would be denied coverage. So I checked and found that in PA, insurance companies are not allowed to use a pre-existing condition to deny coverage. I was told, however, that some companies will try to deny benefits anyway, so you have to be prepared to fight sometimes.

He didn't change jobs, so I can't say for sure that this is true, but the information came from Heather's case manager at Keystone Health Plan. Also, the agent for his prospective employer's insurance plan said the same thing, so I'm fairly confident that it is correct.

Rainbows & hugs,
Rosie