| Issue: # 5 |
December 19, 2007 |
Greetings!
Keeping you informed of the latest developments in the employee benefit marketplace.
If you know anyone, who may find this information of interest, please forward them this newsletter (there is a link on the bottom), and they can subscribe themselves.
Sincerely,
Bill & Vanessa
Advantage Benefits |
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Medicare and Medicare Supplements
Retiring At Age 65 |
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Recently a client told us she would turn age 65, retire and needed direction regarding her health insurance options. Although every case is diffferent, here is our general recommendation. First, a person should enroll in Medicare and sign up for Parts A and B.
Second, since there are gaps in the basic Medicare coverage, supplements need to be purchased. Your best option is Blue Cross of Massachusetts , here are the options:
- Medex Core or Bronze (fills the gaps in Parts A & B)
- Blue Medicare Rx (Medicare Part D Prescription Plan).
Enrolling in Medicare with the appropriate supplements will give a retiree excellent coverage and will be accepted by any doctor and hospital in the nationwide Blue Cross network. If a retiree spends the winter, for example, in Florida there would be no network issues.
There are other less expensive options based on the HMO model called Medicare HMO Blue. If a person is satisfied with the Massachusetts network and is not spending extended peroids of time outside of Massachusetts, this is also excellent coverage. We have not included monthly premiums, since they do change and are based on your county of residence.
Although we typically recommend Blue Cross to our clients for their medicare supplement coverage, this is not the only option. In Worcester County, Fallon Clinic has excellent options, but you are limited to their network. If the Fallon network fits, this is great coverage and costs less then Blue Cross.
It takes a little bit of research, but there are plenty of options to choose from for retirees. We highly recommend that someones starts investigating the various plans and takes advantage of the free seminars that are offered by the carrriers to learn about their options.
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Medicare for Active Employees Age 65 or Over
Companies Under 20 Employees
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In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts the HMOs interpret the Federal Medicare Laws differently for employers with less then 20 employees . According to Blue Cross of Massachusetts, an active employee turning age 65 must make Medicare as their primary coverage and opt out of the employer sponsored group health plan. These employees would then enroll in Medicare and purchase the appropriate supplements. The other major carriers, however, in Massachusetts do not interpret the Federal Medicare Laws and will leave the decision up to the employer.
If active employees 65 and over take Medicare as their primary insurance, they should follow our recommendations as outlined above. At the same time the employees under 65, on the employer sponsored Group Health Plan, will be able to get more competitive rates.
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Medicare for Active Employees Age 65 or Over
Companies with 20 or More Employees
Active employees turning age 65 at companies with 20 or more employees have the option to either have Medicare or the Employer Sponsored Health Plan as their primary insurance. An employer can not force an employee to take Medicare as their primary insurance.
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| Chapter 32B Section 18
Mandatory Enrollment in Medicare |
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This section of the Massachusetts General Law allows cities and cities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to force employees who are eligible for Medicare to enroll in that program. Many cities and towns have begun to adopt this local option to save monies on their Employer Sponsored Health Plans. Most recently the City of Worcester. | |
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