Citizens of the United States are very familiar with the free Medicare system. This system provides a lot of help and is divided into two main parts, Part A and Part B. While Part A is totally free for the citizen, Part B has a premium part for which we must pay.
However, these are not the only parts that Medicare has. In addition to this, we also find the Advantage Plan, which is usually known as Medicare Part C. This Advantage Plan offers a series of extra services for citizens. Basically, we are talking about the medical services available ceasing to be public and becoming private.
This can have its advantages and disadvantages, so it is a good idea to look at the whole picture to make a final decision. At the end of the day, in order to access Medicare Advantage Plan we have to pay money, so we need to know in advance what this medical service is all about.
What does Medicare Advantage Plan offer?
If we talk about Medicare Advantage Plan we are also talking about Medicare Part C. This means that it is a little different from Part A and Part B. The Advantage Plan is run by private companies, unlike Part A and Part B. Therefore, we will have the original Medicare services, although some extra.
Broadly speaking, these are the services offered through the Medicare Advantage Plan:
- Hospitalization in any State.
- Citizen care services.
- Hospice services.
- Regular doctor visits.
- The price of drugs are covered.
- Preventive care to avoid injury.
- Dental services.
- Vision care and related services.
- Hearing care and related services.
So we can safely say that the Medicare Advantage Plan has a great advantage over Parts A and B, since we can obtain a great series of benefits that will help us to have not only better health, but also a better economy.
What are the types of Medicare Advantage Plans?
There are many types of Medicare Advantage plans and each citizen has to choose the one that is best for his or her ultimate goal. Each of these plans has its own characteristics.
- Health Maintenance Organization (HMO). It is a general plan where we can use doctors from the own network. In the case of specialists, they require a referral.
- Preferred Provider Organization (PPO). Depending on the services contracted, we can have different rates.
- Private Fee-for-Service (PFFS). The best thing about these plans is that they offer great flexibility to providers, so it is easier on an economic level.
- Special Needs Plans (SNPs). Anyone with a chronic illness can receive help from these SNPs to defray medical expenses.
- Medical Savings Account (MSA). High-fee health plans get a little help through this medical savings account, one of the smartest ways to use Medicare.
Each plan is different because each person needs a different plan. That’s the idea that Medicare offers through these different options.
Medicare Advantage Pros
Considering that Medicare only offers hospital and medical insurance, choosing the advanced part is a great opportunity. It is possible to add Part D to have drug coverage, as long as they are prescribed. However, if we talk about Medicare Advantage, the situation is different. All the coverages will be within a single plan, which makes it easier to organize.
These are the main advantages of Medicare Advantage:
- Personalized plans. Within Medicare Advantage there are many different types of plans. Each one of them fits the personal situation. Therefore, we can choose the one that is best for us.
- It seems like an expense, but it is a savings. Although at first it seems like we’ll be spending a lot more money, it turns out to be the opposite. Since Advantage plans have no premiums and low or no deductibles, users end up paying much less.
- Communicated and coordinated physicians. Since everything is centralized under the Medicare Advantage roof, the medical team is always in constant communication. This makes all treatments fully coordinated and more effective. In addition, this also saves us a lot of money, as the communication between doctors can save us from paying for a different doctor that we do not need.
As you can see, there are many advantages offered by Medicare Advantage Plan that American citizens can enjoy in order to have an excellent medical service.
Medicare Advantage Plan Cons
As nothing in life is perfect, this advanced medical coverage plan also has its disadvantages. Each citizen must choose whether they want Medicare Advantage Plan or not based on knowing the two parts of the plan. Among the disadvantages we find:
- Limited services. Among the providers we find that we have a number of them, but not all of them. We will always have to go to the hospitals and medical centers on a list. As soon as we want something outside that list, we will have to pay for it separately.
- Complex plans. Although Medicare Advantage plans are really broad and very useful, sometimes it can be very difficult. We can consult an expert in case we have problems with this section.
- Watch out for additional costs. While it is true that most of the time we will not have to pay anything extra, sometimes there may be an additional charge. We must watch out for this to eliminate unpleasant surprises.
- It is different in each State. When contracting a Medicare Advantage Plan we have to check how it is in the State where we live. The plans offered will always be linked to the zip code in which we live, so we must watch out for this so we do not end up overpaying senselessly.
In short, with Medicare Advantage Plan we must watch out when choosing a good plan. We will always have the option to cancel it, if our contract allows us to do so, and switch back to Medicare Part A or Part B.