Medicare Advantage: How to get your medical bills covered

Many seniors let Medicare pay for their healthcare bills. What to do when Medicare doesn’t provide coverage for your healthcare needs? From dental implants and hearing aids to glasses and prescription drugs: Medicare can occasionally leave you with expensive medical bills.

The solution could be a Medicare Advantage plan. This plan covers costs missed by standard Medicare and could completely cover you medical bills.

Many Americans in the end save money with their Part C Medicare Advantage Plans, as it offers much more coverage than the basic Medicare plan. By going for a Medicare Advantage Plan, you could be paying significantly less money for your healthcare needs.

And if you are not so sure if a Medical Advantage Plan is right for you, continue reading to learn how more about the benefits of Medicare Advantage plans and how to get the most from your healthcare insurance.

Medicare Advantage Plans covers Gaps in Medicare Coverage

The most important reason to upgrade to a Medicare Advantage plan is because of the coverage and benefits associated with “Part C” insurance. This plan offers you more options in your healthcare coverage, which means you won’t have to pay expensive bills all by yourself for your most critical healthcare needs

A suitable Medicare Advantage Plan will adequately cover any gap in your coverage. Most Medicare Advantage plans¹provide some measures of additional coverage such as dental, vision, hearing, as well as health and wellness coverages. They complement your initial Medicare care insurance by providing additional healthcare services that was not covered by your traditional Medicare plan.

The meaning of this is that a Medicare Advantage Plan generally help you better by providing better and cheaper coverage. Medicare Advantage Plans generally takes care of your extra medical costs at no additional cost to you.

As explained by Medicare.gov², Private Insurance firms are usually provide Medicare Advantage Plans. With these plans, you get all the coverage available in Medicare, generally providing coverage for every health condition in Parts A, B, and D, and going a step further by providing additional healthcare services.

A Medicare Advantage Plan also offers you the opportunity to choose your level of coverage^3.Similar to what you will get in any other private healthcare coverage, you are solely responsible for taking a decision on the level of coverage you want, the type of co-pay that is okay with you and if you would prefer a PPO or an HMO coverage.

However, not all Medicare Advantage Plan are the same.

Undoubtedly, many of them offer the same kinds of insurance, each specific plan has its peculiar advantages and regulations. Some of the most popular extra coverage options you offered by a Medicare Advantage Plan are discussed below

Vision Care

Coverage for Eye examinations is provided under original Medicare only if you have been diagnosed with another medical condition⁴ that is eligible for vision care insurance. The implication of this is that a lot of adults who depend on glasses and frequent eye examinations will have to be responsible for paying the full costs by themselves.

Luckily, several Medicare Advantage Plans offer routine vision coverage⁵. What this means is that your routine eye examinations, glasses or contact lenses and other healthcare need for healthy vision can be covered. You can get a more comprehensive vision care insurance depending on the particular Medicare Advantage plan you settled for.

Dental Care

Medicare generally doesn’t provide coverage for any dental expenses. Coverage is not provided for your regular teeth cleanings together as well as other essential services such as extractions, dentures, and fillings and so you have to pay 100 percent of the cost⁶ all by yourself.

A Medicare Advantage Plan, on the other hand, can consist of dental care coverage. This type of additional plan enables you to have suitable coverage for x-rays, cleanings, extractions along with other essential regular dental practices at some or all⁷ of their full cost. Coverage can also be provided for additional in-depth procedures⁸ , such as bridges, root canals, implants, and dentures.

Hearing Aids

Hearing care is indisputably one of the most needing areas of healthcare. Coverages are not provided for hearing aids by original Medicare plans, therefore the people who needs hearing medical services pay 100 percent of the cost⁹, they are totally responsible for paying for their hearing aids and hearing examinations.

However, several Medicare Advantage Plan provides awesome hearing care coverage. Generally, routine hearing costs are covered¹⁰, such as routine hearing check-ups, fitting assessments for people who need hearing aids as well as hearing aids themselves. Based on the particular Medicare Advantage Plan you settled for, it is possible to have your hearings aids covered fully by the plan.

Prescription Medications

There is a well-acknowledge gap of prescription medication in healthcare services. For many years, patients have grumbled about the low coverage and expensive out-of-pockets prices of drugs due largely to how original Medicare coverage is structured.

However, with a Medicare Advantage Plan, these gaps can be cover and your expenses can be reduced. These offers provide more comprehensive prescription medication coverage¹¹. In addition, you can search and settle for a Medicare Advantage Plan that offers coverage for your prescription drugs.

A Medicare Advantage Plan May Help You Spend Less for your Healthcare Needs

Apart from providing additional healthcare insurance, Medical Advantage Plan also offers a great way to cut down your expenditures and save money, settling for a Medicare Advantage Plan helps you to reduce your annual medical expenses.

Although Medicare Advantage plans generally have premium, you can find some plans that have premiums which are as low as $0¹².

Considering the numerous co-pays available, coupled with the improved levels of coverage, you might pay less whenever you visit your physicians. For instance, the co-pay of a Medicare Advantage plan might be only $10. This is significantly cheaper than the original Medicare coinsurance charge of 20 percent of the bill¹³.

Finally, if you have been searching for a better and additional value-adding insurance plan to take care of your health needs, it’s about time you subscribed to a Medicare Advantage Plan. All you need to do is to search diligently to get the right plan suitable for your peculiar needs. And given the arrays of options available online, it will be a great idea to compare their levels of coverage and costs so that you can find the one most suitable for your needs.

1. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/28/medicare-would-cover-dental-and-vision-if-these-bills-pass-congress.html

2. https://www.medicare.gov/sign-up-change-plans/types-of-medicare-health-plans/medicare-advantage-plans

3. https://www.medicare.gov/your-medicare-costs/medicare-costs-at-a-glance

4. https://www.ehealthmedicare.com/faq/does-original-medicare-cover-eye-exams/

5. https://www.medicareconsumerguide.com/medicare-vision

6./7./8. https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/dental-services

9. https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/hearing-aids

10. https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/hearing-balance-exams

11. https://www.bcbs.com/medicare/prescription-drug-coverage

12. https://www.samshockaday.com/blog/how-can-medicare-advantage-plans-have-0-monthly-premiums

13. https://www.planprescriber.com/medicare-insurance-news/medicare-costs/