Medicare

Medical Insurance Part B

Anyone who is eligible for free Medicare hospital insurance (Part A) can enroll in Medicare medical insurance (Part B) by paying a monthly premium. Some beneficiaries with higher incomes will pay a higher monthly Part B premium.

If you are not eligible for free hospital insurance, you can buy medical insurance, without having to buy hospital insurance, if you are age 65 or older and you are;

      * A U.S. citizen; or
      * A lawfully admitted noncitizen who has lived in the United States for at least
        five years.



Medicare Advantage Part C

If you have Medicare Parts A and B, you can join a Medicare Advantage plan. With one of these plans, you do not need a Medigap policy, because Medicare Advantage plans generally cover many of the same benefits that a Medigap policy would cover, such as extra days in the hospital after you have used the number of days that Medicare covers.

Medicare Advantage plans include:

      * Medicare managed care plans;
      * Medicare preferred provider organization (PPO) plans;
      * Medicare private fee-for-service plans; and
      * Medicare specialty plans.

If you decide to join a Medicare Advantage plan, you use the health card that you get from your Medicare Advantage plan provider for your health care. Also, you might have to pay a monthly premium for your Medicare Advantage plan because of the extra benefits it offers.

People who become newly entitled to Medicare should enroll during their initial enrollment period (as explained under Signing up for Medicare) or during the annual coordinated election period from November 15 – December 31 each year. There also will be special enrollment periods for some situations.
Medicare prescription drug plans (Part D)

Anyone who has Medicare hospital insurance (Part A), medical insurance (Part B) or a Medicare Advantage plan (Part C) is eligible for prescription drug coverage (Part D). Joining a Medicare prescription drug plan is voluntary, and you pay an additional monthly premium for the coverage. You can wait to enroll in a Medicare Part D plan if you have other prescription drug coverage but, if you don’t have prescription coverage that is, on average, at least as good as Medicare prescription drug coverage, you will pay a penalty if you wait to join later. You will have to pay this penalty for as long as you have Medicare prescription drug coverage.

People who become newly entitled to Medicare should enroll during their initial enrollment period (as explained under Signing up for Medicare). After the initial enrollment periods, the annual coordinated election period to enroll or make provider changes will be November 15 – December 31 each year. There also will be special enrollment periods for some situations.

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