If you had Medicaid, CHIP, or Medicare you should get a 1095-B sent Form 1095-B. A 1095-B can help you complete your taxes, for example if you had marketplace coverage for part of the year and need to file a 8962 form for tax credits.
The law requires employers with over 20 employees to offer health coverage to all full time employees regardless of their age. Thus, they must offer coverage to an employee on Medicare.
We cover everything you need to know about open enrollment in Medicare and the different open enrollment and special enrollment periods. When Is Medicare Open Enrollment? Medicare open enrollment lasts from October 15 to December 7 each year. Your coverage will start on January 1 of the new year. If you are already enrolled in… Read More
Have you enrolled in Medicare for next year? You only have a few more days to do it. By Saturday morning, it will be too late. Medicare Open Enrollment Ends Friday, December 7th, 2017.
What if you Don’t Have Medicare Part B? Many Americans enroll in Medicare Part A because it is free if you have enough Social Security quarters of employment. Part B has a fee, and you need to sign up for it and start paying for it during your first Medicare enrollment period or pay a… Read More
What is the Best Supplement for Original Medicare? If you anticipate needing a significant number of health care visits or care in a facility, you may want to think about adding a Medicare supplement and Part D drug plan to Part A and Part B. Part B has an annual deductible of $183 for 2018…. Read More
What is Plan F, Plan G, and Medigap? Once you have Medicare Part A and B, you can buy either Part D along with a Medigap Plan F or Plan G or a Medicare Advantage Plan. We discuss your options. A Medigap Plan F Covers the Part A hospital and Part B outpatient deductibles Covers… Read More
Medicare Doesn’t Cover Everything; Supplemental Medicare Can Help Original Medicare doesn’t cover everything, and this can result in high costs and coverage gaps. Supplemental Medicare coverage like Part D, Medigap, or Medicare Advantage (Part C) can help. Understanding What Medicare Does and Doesn’t Cover and What You Can Do About It Medicare enrollees lack crucial… Read More
What is Medicare Cost-Sharing? When you use Medicare, you share the cost of your care by paying premiums, deductibles, copayments, co-insurance, and out-of-pocket maximums. If you receive a paycheck, part of your check will be set aside for Medicare. You pay for the program when you work and pay again when you use it. When you… Read More
What is the Difference Between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage Plans? We compare Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage to help you better understand the difference between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans. Both Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage are Federally regulated and ACA-compliant, but the fact that aspects of Medicare are privatized means there are significant… Read More
Just a reminder, Medicare Open enrollment 2018 is here. Enrollment goes from October 15th to December 7th each year. Coverage starts January 1st.
What do you need to Know to Enroll in Medicare for 2018? We cover everything you need to know about open enrollment in Medicare 2018. Get the facts on 2018 Medicare open enrollment. When Is Medicare Open Enrollment For 2018? Medicare open enrollment lasts from October 15 to December 7 each year. Your coverage will start… Read More
Who Oversees Medicare Costs? The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) provides cost and access oversight for the Medicare Program for quality of care and access to services. The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 established the group, which is composed of 17 part-time members appointed for three-year terms by the Comptroller General. Some appointments expire each… Read More
What Does the “Death Panel” Rumor Have To Do With Medicare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board? We want to know the function of Medicare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) and whether the rumor that it might be used as a “Death Panel” is true. What is IPAB? Medicare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) is a group that does… Read More
Why do I Need to Know Which Drugs are Preferred in my Insurance Formulary or Which Physicians are In Network? We ask what drug formularies and preferred providers are and why you need to consider them when choosing a Medicare plan or any health insurance policy. Every insurance plan has a list of which drugs… Read More
An Introduction to Bernie’s Medicare-for-all Bill, a Summary, and a Link to the Full Bill We present the full text and a summary of Bernie Sanders’ Medicare for all bill (“A BILL To establish a Medicare-for-all national health insurance program”). Read the full text of Sanders’ Medicare for All Act of 2017 (S. 1804). Background: On September 13, 2017… Read More
Bernie’s Medicare-for-all bill ignores funding, but not as an oversight. The bill itself purposefully leaves funding mechanisms open to debate.
We explain the basics of the Bernie Sanders Medicare-for-all bill, a bill to expand universal coverage to all Americans by expanding Medicare.
Why is the Medical Community Concerned About Medicare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) and MedPAC? IPAB and MedPAC are Medicare’s cost control systems. We discuss concerns that the medical community has about their potential to limit services and profits. What is The Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB)? The Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) is, in theory,… Read More
Medicine and Medicare in the U.S. The U.S. has had a Medicare program since the mid-1900’s and has accepted a theoretical responsibility to take care of the elderly, veterans, and the poor. Improved standards of living have increased our life expectancy tremendously. It was not unusual to see people in this country live only through… Read More
What are Drug Formularies For Medicare Plans? Medicare Prescription drug lists (formularies) are lists of covered drugs, placed into different tiers, where each tier has different costs. Each Medicare plan that provides drug coverage has its own list of covered drugs and costs that follow a set of common rules. Below we will explain more about… Read More
Medicare and Hospital Costs: Medicare Networks, Medicare Assignment, Balance Billing, and Other Factors Related to Hospital Costs On this page, we discuss Medicare networks, Medicare assignment, balance billing, and the way hospital costs vary within a hospital (such as in the ER). Hospitals often charge more, sometimes a dozen times more, for services provided in the emergency… Read More
Medicare and Medicaid are not JohnsonCare; Social Security is not RooseveltCare. Why call the Affordable Care Act ObamaCare?
What is Medicare? We explain what Medicare is, how you can qualify for Medicare, and how the Affordable Care Act affects Medicare. Medicare is a federal health insurance program that most people pay into while working and all citizens can access when they turn 65. Medicare is funded by two trust funds held by the US Treasury: the Hospital… Read More
Ever wonder what the difference between Medicare and Medicaid was? In overly-simple terms Medicare is for seniors and Medicaid is a free or low cost program for low-income children and adults.