Pascagoula, Mississippi Medicare Options

Curious about your Medicare options in Pascagoula, Mississippi? Look no further – we’ve got answers! Whether you’ve been enrolled in Medicare for years or if you’re just beginning to look into the program, we can help educate you on how the program works and which options may be a great fit for you. To begin, let’s get familiar with how Medicare works.

The Four Parts of Medicare

There are four parts of the Medicare program: Parts A, B, C, and D. You may not need to enroll in every part, and you may also seek coverage outside of these four components. Let’s talk about the coverage you can expect from each one.

Part A

Part A is hospital insurance and helps cover your room and board during any inpatient hospital stay. (It also provides some coverage for stays at a skilled nursing facility.) Many people enjoy premium-free Part A. As long as you paid Medicare taxes for ten years, you won’t pay a premium for Part A. If you have not met this requirement, your premium will be calculated based on how many quarters you did pay into Medicare.

 The deductible for Part A is $1556 per benefit period. A benefit period begins when you become an inpatient and ends when you have been hospital-free for 60 consecutive days. You can end up paying the Part A deductible multiple times in one year.

Coinsurance expenses for Part A are calculated based on how many days you’ve been in the hospital. You won’t have any coinsurance expenses for the first 60 days. On days 61-90, you will be responsible for $389 per day. If you have your 60 lifetime reserve days remaining, you will pay $778 per day starting on day 91. After that, your Part A benefits have been exhausted.

Part B

Part B is outpatient insurance. It will pay for things like visits to your doctor, durable medical equipment, surgeries, diagnostic tests and images, and many preventive services. The standard premium for Part B is $170.10 per month. You may pay more if you earn a high income. The Social Security Administration will make this determination by looking at your tax return from two years prior.

The Part B deductible is much lower than the Part A deductible and must only be paid once per year. In 2022, the Part B deductible is $233. Once the deductible has been met, you can expect Part B to cover about 80% of your outpatient expenses.

Part C

 Part C plans are also called Medicare Advantage plans. If you enroll in a Part C plan, you’ll receive benefits from the insurance carrier that you have enrolled with. A Part C plan will replace your Part A and B benefits, so you will no longer receive coverage directly from the government. Part C plans will cover the same things as Parts A and B but usually come with more benefits like prescription drug coverage, dental benefits, hearing and vision benefits, and a few other perks. Part C plans vary from one company to another, so coverage and benefits will vary based on the plan.

Many Part C plans have low premiums – sometimes even $0 per month. The reason Medicare Advantage plans have low premiums is because they utilize provider networks. Plan members must receive care from a provider within the network; otherwise, they will pay much more out-of-pocket.

Medicare Advantage Options in Pascagoula, Mississippi

Part C plans are not offered in every county. A Part C plan that is available in one county may not be available in another. A few of the popular plans and carriers of Medicare Advantage in Booneville, MS include:

• Aetna Medicare Freedom (PPO)
• Cigna Preferred Medicare (HMO)
• Humana Gold Plus (HMO)
• AARP Medicare Advantage Choice (PPO)
• UnitedHealthcare Nursing Home Plan (PPO I-SNP)

Remember, your choices will be limited to your location, and there are some plans that have eligibility requirements.

Part D

Part D of Medicare is prescription drug coverage. These can be purchased as a stand-alone plan or may come as part of your Medicare Advantage plan. Either way, the plans work the same.

Each Part D plan will include a drug formulary. The formulary is the list of prescription drugs covered by the plan and is categorized by tiers. Common medications fall into lower tiers, and specialized medications are placed in higher tiers. As you probably guessed, medications in higher tiers are more costly.

Most Part D plans have an annual deductible of $480. (The carrier can choose a lower premium, but it can’t exceed $480 in 2022.)

Your premium will be dependent on the plan. Individuals who take many prescriptions or who are on specialty prescriptions will need a more robust plan, resulting in higher premiums.

Part D Options in Pascagoula, Mississippi

Remember, you’ll need to make sure your current medications are covered under the specific Part D plan. There are many Part D carriers to choose from in Pascagoula, MS. A few of the popular Part D carriers include:

• AARP
• Humana
• Cigna
• Mutual of Omaha
• SilverScript
• Elixir
• Clear Spring
• Wellcare

 Medicare Supplements (Medigap Plans)

You cannot enroll in both a Medicare Advantage plan and a Medicare supplement. While both of them offer more coverage than you’ll find in Original Medicare, they have stark differences.

Medicare supplements don’t fall into one of the “parts” of Medicare. These plans, also called Medigap plans, were designed to help pay for the expenses that remain after Parts A and B have paid their share.

The most popular Medigap plans – Plans F, G, and N – leave the beneficiary with nearly no out-of-pocket expenses. There are no deductibles, and you will have no copays or coinsurance costs if you enroll in one of the more popular plans. However, unlike Medicare Advantage plans, Medigap plans do not offer any coverage outside of Original Medicare.

You can purchase a Medigap plan from a variety of carriers. Medigap plans are standardized, which means that their coverage remains the same, no matter which insurance company you purchase one from. Your Medigap plan premium will depend on which plan you choose.

Our Medicare Advisors in Pascagoula, Mississippi

We hope you’ve now got a basic understanding of how each part of Medicare works. To ensure you get enrolled in the right plans, you should work with a licensed, independent Medicare advisor. We can answer all of your Medicare questions and compare plans between many insurance companies. We’ll help you decide which plans will offer you the best benefits and make sure you get enrolled on time. Our services are provided at no additional cost to you, so don’t hesitate to call our office and schedule an appointment.