Health Insurance Blog

Geisinger Health Insurance, offers a program that will help you choose the right Medicare plan.  It’s called Geisinger Gold and it has many advantages.

With the Geisinger name behind it, Geisinger Gold offers several coverage options that suit your Medicare needs.  Plans are affordable and they provide a large network of physicians and participating hospitals to choose from.  There are 84 hospitals that are part of the Geisinger Gold throughout the service area.  Participating doctors are over 15,000.

Geisinger Gold has health plans that include Preferred Provider Organization, Private Fee-For-Service, Medical Savings accounts, traditional HMOs as well as Special Needs Plans.  You can also opt for a stand alone prescription plan available to those with Medicare Advantage or Medicare supplement plans.  Consumers who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid two special needs plans are offered.  It’s definitely worth looking into if you are in the market.

According to their website, Humana has 9 million members across the country, 4 million of which are Medicare members.  Many choose Humana as their number one choice for their Medigap supplemental insurance because they have affordable options as well as valuable experience.

Humana is a Fortune 100 company with 50 years of experience in the health insurance field.  They also have many benefits at no extra cost which many members find invaluable.  MyHumana is a personal, secure page on their site with health tips, your personal health record and medication history.  SmartSummary and Smart Summary Rx is a monthly record detailing your benefits and tips to lower monthly spending.  They also have special clinical programs to help manage various chronic health conditions.

Those shopping for Medicare supplements can choose from Medicare Advantage Plans, Medicare Prescription Drug plans, and Medicare Supplement Plans to meet your needs.  It’s worth getting Humana insurance quotes to save yourself time and money.

The article “How Do You Choose the Best Medigap Policy” found on Todaysseniors.com, shares some helpful information for today’s senior citizens when choosing Medicare suppplement insurance.

There are dozens of Medigap plans out there, from UnitedHealth Care’s Secure Horizons, to AARP so it’s hard to tell what is the best value.  The good thing to know is that with each Medicare supplement plan, benefits are the same with each company.  Salesmen may try to imply otherwise, but this is mandated by the government.  Premiums can vary significantly though, so it’s important to shop around. 

The most ideal time to shop around for a Medicare supplement insurance plan is during the first 6 months after enrolling in Medicare Part B.  This is the time where insurance companies have to accept you regardless of any pre-existing conditions.  Paying a high rate for a standardized Medicare supplement plan will not get you anything more.  Their benefits are the same and so are their claim filing requirements.  Familiarize yourself with each of the different plans, understanding that Plan A has the fewest benefits with the lowest cost whereas Plan J has the most benefits and is the most expensive.

According to the article “Medicare and You 2009″ by Sandy Stillwell from Seattle Conservative Seniors Examiner, the government is offering an official handbook through the mail to all seniors who are interested in learning more about Medicare. 

The handbook is entitled Medicare and You 2009 and has a lot of valuable information.  The handbook covers what’s new in the Medicare arena, 2009 Medicare costs, what Medicare covers, health and prescription information with medicare supplement insurance plans, and your Medicare rights.  It also covers how to look for and what to do in the case of fraud and identity theft. 

If you have not received a Handbook you are able to contact Medicare to request one.  If you need to drop, switch or join a Medicare Advantage plan you are able to do this through December 31.  The coverage for this type of plans starts the 1st of each new year.  Medicare and medicare supplement insurance plans can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing, so having this handbook at your fingertips is a great way to stay on top of all of the information out there. 

The AARP recently announced they are supporting the idea of a government run health care system according to the article “Why Has the AARP Sold Out Its Members on Healthcare” by Al Ritter for the Baltimore Conservative Examiner.  This is interesting because the AARP is a self declared non-partisan group.

In 2008 AARP made about $653 million in royalties from insurance companies that sold products referred by AARP.  This is huge considering membership fees only brought in about $249 million that same year.  Seniors have two main choices for Medicare supplement insurance plans, Medicare Advantage and Medigap.  Medigap supplemental insuranceis endorsed by the AARP and they receive royalties from the company.  With Medicare Advantage health plans at risk with the new health care proposal, the hope is that more people will purchase Medigap and therefore AARP will make more money.

Section 1161 of the House bill cuts payments to the government run Medicare Advantage health plan which is used by about 20% of senior citizens.  It may cause them to lose some of their benefits such as health, vision and dental coverage and this is why they may be forced to purchase AARP Medicare Supplements.

According to the article “Two Medicare Programs Are Leaving Amarillo” found on connectamarillo.com, Secure Horizons and Physicians Health Choice are leaving the city. 

Members who were part of these plans and wish to remain on Medicare still have options.  The Area Agency on Aging is offering help to these citizens.  They are offering advice and guidance free of charge to those who need help.  Lisa Hancock is a volunteer for the Agency and told Pronews 7 that they try to help find a plan that will cover prescription costs because Medicare often does not. 

Open enrollement for prescription drug and health plans through Medicare goes through the end of December.  If you need assistance you should contact your local Area Agency on Aging.

According to the article “Overhaul of Health Care Bad for Seniors” by John Fanning on summitdaily.com, many senior citizens are losing their health insurance coverage in 2010 as many insurers have reduced medicare supplement plans or have increased premiums drastically. 

Many seniors are currently struggling to get by and paying for health insurance is just another worry on their plate.  If the current health care bill passes in Congress, advantage plans may be dismantled and seniors will need to find a prescription drug plan for MedicareD.  This can add an additional $25-$50 to the cost of their health care.  With many senior citizens living off of only social security this can be disastrous, especially since there is no SS increase for 2010. 

Over 12 million Medicare benficiaries are enrolled in Medicare Advantage Plans which represents 23% of the total Medicare population.  Many use Medicare supplement insurance as well.  Medicare pays about 11% more for a beneficiary to have a Medicare Advantage plan than for original Medicare on average. 

In the recent US News and World Report annual health plan rankings report, two health plans offered by Highmark ranked as being among the best health plans in the nation.

• SecurityBlue, HighMark’s Medicare Advantage HMO ranked #32 among Medicare Health Plans
• Among Commercial HMOs, Keystone Blue (offered by Highmark subsidiary Keystone Health Plan West) ranked 47th

Both of the above health plans were rated as excellent.

More information about:  Pennsylvania Health Insurance, Medicare Advantage Plans, HighMark BlueShield

US News and World Report recently released their updated health plan rankings for 2009-2010.  Their rankings of Medicare Health Plans was as follows, with 2008 ranking in parenthesis.

1. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado (8)
2. Fallon Community Health Plan (Not In Top 10)
3. Geisinger Health Plan (3)
4. Tufts Associated Health Maintenance Organization (10)
5. Capital Health Plan (7)
6. MVP Health Care (Not in Top 10)
7. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Northwest (Not in Top 10)
8. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Southern California (2)
9. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Northwest (Demonstration Project) (NR)
10. Capital District Health Plan (9)

In 2008, Preferred Care was the top rated Medicare Health Plan by US News.  In this years study, they failed to make the top 10.  Kaiser Foundation Health Plans fared very well in the 2009-2010 study, with 4 of their regional plans being ranked among the top 10 plans in the country, with the Colorado plan occupying the top spot.

According to US News and World Report, Capital Health Plan, an affiliate of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, is the top rated Medicare Health Plan in Florida.

Founded in 1982, Capital Health Plan serves the four county are surrounding Tallahassee.  They currently provide coverage to more than 110,000 members.

More information about Florida health insurance & senior health insurance.