Talk with a licensed Insurance Agent at 941-567-6000 (TTY 711)

Talk with a licensed Medicare Advisor
941-567-6000 TTY 711

Medicare At-A-Glance

The Big Picture on Medicare

Original Medicare

(medicare.gov)i

Original Medicare includes Hospital (Parts A and B) insurance. A separate drug plan (Part D) is optional. You can also add Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) to help pay your out-of-pocket costs.

Part A Hospitalization i

Medicare Part A is for everyone. In general, part A covers:

  • Inpatient care in a hospital
  • Skilled nursing facility care
  • Nursing home care (inpatient care in a skilled nursing facility that’s not custodial or long-term care)
  • Hospice care
  • Home health care

Coinsurance of 20% applies and coverage has limits for hospitalization longer than 60 days at a time. If your work history qualifies, there are no monthly payments for Part A.

Part B Outpatient i

Enrolling in Medicare Part B right away prevents penalty costs later, unless you’re covered by other medical insurance when you turn 65. Part B covers:

  • Medically necessary services: Services or supplies that are needed to diagnose or treat your medical condition and that meet accepted standards of medical practice.
  • Preventive services: Health care to prevent illness (like the flu) or detect it at an early stage, when treatment is most likely to work best.

You pay nothing for most preventive services if you get the services from a health care provider who accepts assignment.

Medicare Supplement Plans (Medigap) i

(view Medicare Supplement comparison chart)

Medigap is Medicare Supplement Insurance that helps fill “gaps” in Original Medicare and is sold by private companies. It’s preferred by people who want predictable healthcare costs, no matter how much healthcare they need. Original Medicare pays for much, but not all, of the cost for covered health care services and supplies. A Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) policy can help pay most of the remaining healthcare costs – depending on the plan you select. These remaining costs can consist of:

  • Copayments
  • Coinsurance
  • Deductibles

Part C Medicare Advantage Plans i

Medicare Advantage Plans, sometimes called “Part C” or “MA Plans,” are an “all-in-one” alternative to Original Medicare. They are often preferred by people who want the lowest price on Parts A, B, and D, but may carry substantial out of pocket costs if you need healthcare. They are offered by private companies approved by Medicare. These “bundled” plans include Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) and Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance), and usually Medicare drug coverage (Part D).

Part D (Prescriptions) i

Part D may be included in a Medicare Advantage Plan, but not in a Medicare Supplement plan or Original Medicare. All Medicare Part D plans must cover a wide range of prescription drugs that people with Medicare take, including most drugs in certain protected classes, like drugs to treat cancer or HIV/AIDS. A plan’s list of covered drugs is called a “formulary,” and each plan has its own formulary. Many plans place drugs into different levels, called “tiers,” on their formularies. Drugs in each tier have a different cost. For example, a drug in a lower tier will generally cost you less than a drug in a higher tier.

Extra Coverage i

…and more” Extra coverage included in many Medicare Advantage plans, but additional options in Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plans.

Dental

Hearing

Vision

Long Term Care

If you’re receiving Social Security benefits, you’re likely already enrolled in Original Medicare, but may still have gaps in your coverage. If you’re a new ActivAger (turning 65 soon and planning an active retirement) you may need specific coverage options that cover your active retirement lifestyle.

Use our MediClear helper to zero in on the type of Medicare plan that provides the best coverage for your individual situation

At any time during your Medicare enrollment journey, call us at 941-567-6000 TTY 711 to ask questions and learn more. By contacting the phone number listed, you can expect to be in contact with a licensed insurance agent.

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WE WILL NOT SHARE YOUR INFORMATION WITH ANYONE ELSE. By providing your information – such as name, phone number, and email address – you agree to allow an ActivAge licensed Insurance Agent to contact you about various health plans, services, and/or educational information related to health care.

Medicare has neither reviewed nor endorsed this information. Not connected with or endorsed by the United States government or the federal Medicare program. Our National Producer Number is: 18595829

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Medical Terms and Definitions

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  • Advance Beneficiary Notice of Noncoverage (ABN)
    In Original Medicare, a notice that a doctor, supplier, or provider gives a person with Medicare before furnishing an item or service if the doctor, supplier, or provider believes that Medicare may deny payment. In this situation, if you aren't given an ABN before you get the item or service, and Medicare denies payment, then you may not have to pay for it. If you are given an ABN, and you sign it, you'll probably have to pay for the item or service if Medicare denies payment.
  • Advance coverage decision
    A notice you get from a Medicare Advantage Plan letting you know in advance whether it will cover a particular service.
  • Advance directive
    A written document stating how you want medical decisions to be made if you lose the ability to make them for yourself. It may include a living will and a durable power of attorney for health care.
  • ALS
    Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
  • Ambulatory surgical center
    A facility where certain surgeries may be performed for patients who aren’t expected to need more than 24 hours of care.
  • Appeal
    An appeal is the action you can take if you disagree with a coverage or payment decision made by Medicare, your Medicare health plan, or your Medicare Prescription Drug Plan. You can appeal if Medicare or your plan denies one of these:
    • Your request for a health care service, supply, item, or prescription drug that you think you should be able to get
    • Your request for payment for a health care service, supply, item, or prescription drug you already got
    • Your request to change the amount you must pay for a health care service, supply, item or prescription drug.
    • You can also appeal if Medicare or your plan stops providing or paying for all or part of a service, supply, item, or prescription drug you think you still need
  • Assignment
    An agreement by your doctor, provider, or supplier to be paid directly by Medicare, to accept the payment amount Medicare approves for the service, and not to bill you for any more than the Medicare deductible and coinsurance.
  • Beneficiary and Family Centered Care Quality Improvement Organization (BFCC-QIO)
    A type of QIO (an organization of doctors and other health care experts under contract with Medicare) that uses doctors and other health care experts to review complaints and quality of care for people with Medicare. The BFCC-QIO makes sure there is consistency in the case review process while taking into consideration local factors and local needs, including general quality of care and medical necessity.
  • Benefit period
    The way that Original Medicare measures your use of hospital and skilled nursing facility (SNF) services. A benefit period begins the day you're admitted as an inpatient in a hospital or SNF. The benefit period ends when you haven't gotten any inpatient hospital care (or skilled care in a SNF) for 60 days in a row. If you go into a hospital or a SNF after one benefit period has ended, a new benefit period begins. You must pay the inpatient hospital deductible for each benefit period. There's no limit to the number of benefit periods.
  • Benefits Coordination & Recovery Center (BCRC)
    The company that acts on behalf of Medicare to collect and manage information on other types of insurance or coverage that a person with Medicare may have, and determine whether the coverage pays before or after Medicare. This company also acts on behalf of Medicare to obtain repayment when Medicare makes a conditional payment, and the other payer is determined to be primary.