The annual open enrollment period for Medicare has arrived! If you have patients or clients who receive Medicare benefits, you have likely been receiving more than a few questions about it; especially if your patient is new to Medicare and hasn’t been through an open enrollment period before this one. We thought it would help to pull together the questions we receive most often and share information on each of them.
When is Medicare Open Enrollment?
The Medicare Open Enrollment period runs from October 15th through December 7th each year. It is the time of year for you to review your expenses and coverage from last year, evaluate your options for 2014, and make any changes. Medicare has a free brochure that can help you with your review.
What does and doesn’t – Medicare cover?
Understanding Medicare from A- D can be a challenge. Each is designed to cover a different set of benefits and each benefit has its own restrictions and limitations.
Medicare Part A covers:
- Inpatient hospital care
- Skilled nursing care (for up to 100 days)
- Hospice care
- Home health services
Medicare Part B pays for:
- Physician office visits
- Outpatient rehab services
- Durable medical equipment (DME)
- Ambulance services in an emergency
- Some preventative services, such as your annual flu shot and a variety of cancer screenings
- Some medical supplies like therapeutic shoes and diabetes test strips
What is Medicare Part C?
Medicare Part C is the Medicare Advantage Plans. These are plans from private companies that are contracted to provide you with the benefits of Medicare A and B. By law, they have to provide you with at least as much coverage as traditional Medicare.
Medicare Part D covers:
- Prescription medications
What is NOT Covered by Medicare:
Just as important to understand during open enrollment is what Medicare does not cover. Some items on this list are often surprising for new Medicare recipients and their caregivers:
- Long-term care in a nursing home or assisted living care
- Routine dental care and dentures
- Eye care and/or glasses glasses
- Hearing aids & exams
- Routine foot care
- Personal Care or non-medical home care
If I’m happy with my current plan what do I need to do?
If you are satisfied with everything just as it is, you aren’t required to do anything. Your coverage will remain the same for 2014 unless you tell Medicare differently.
When do changes take effect?
If you make any changes during open enrollment they will take effect on January 1, 2014.
More questions?
Medicare & You offers great resources online that can help.
What questions do you receive most often from older adults & caregivers, share with us on Facebook and Twitter?
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Author: Ann Jamison
Ann Jamison is an experienced senior advisor who has successfully worked with hundreds of families to help them find the best care and home-like environment for themselves or their loved ones. Prior to launching Senior Living Options, Ann was an eldercare advisor for a national placement agency and served as sales director at a senior living community. Thanks to her 25-year career in advertising sales and marketing, Ann is able to discern between hype and reality for her clients. Ann recognizes that there are objective factors that need to be weighed when making a life-changing decision, but she can also assess the important softer attributes by getting to know her clients and by using the gut instincts that can only come through extended experience.
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