Always remember, if you go with an Advantage plan, you have another insurance company calling the shots. They have the final say on who is in network and what they will authorize. They limit your choices. They don't tell you this when you sign up.
I went through the tools Medicare set up on their web site. Start with entering your zip code, then they present the MA plans available. From that list I immediately eliminated the HMO plans. Those will restrict you to the HMO doctors (there are probably ways to get referrals out of plan, if they have no options, but it'll likely cost you!)
Once it was pared down (not a lot of options where I am located), the plan I was interested in allowed me to check to see if the doctors I generally use are "in the plan" - since all were, I went with that plan (also UHC/AARP plan.) It does say that you can go to any doctor who accepts Medicare, but some are likely not in the network, so it is better to check first (those who are in the plan can later drop out, so it is always good to check again later!) You can go out of network, but most of the time it will cost you more.
I still find the cost of this MA plus Medicare much better than my last two years with company insurance - even on their "retirement" plan. Almost 12k to get a freaking physical, and not much of one at that. Nothing else was covered as they had a new policy whereby you pay the first $700 of ANYTHING, so my eye exam and one doc visit were both out of pocket. :-( (BTW, the MA plan covers eye exams, hearing, basic member in health club and for a fee it has a dental plan - I kept my company based dental plan as it covers much more.)
The same plan for 2020 has the same cost, but co-pays are going up as are costs for other items. I did note they have another plan that is $0, with smaller co-pays, however the big cost, as someone else noted, is if you have something serious, like hospitalization/surgery. THEN you pay!
The tools on the Medicare page also allow you to "compare" if there are several plans that interest you. Basic info presented only, so either read the details for each plan you consider or contact HICAP.
Contact HICAP. This is exactly what they help people figure out. I went with SCAN although that isn't available everywhere. I am now with United Health Care through AARP. They handle 'all the parts' so easy for me. SCAN was the best though.
I had AARP United Health Care for one year - they were not the best plan I've had by any standards! Check out their co-pays for mental health appointments, for one thing? I went to a counselor 1x/week for almost a year when dealing with Mom's problems and found the $45 co-pay with them grossly more expensive than the $30 with my prior plan (an additional $60/month out of pocket) and that wasn't easily searchable initially. Other issues too...
Some Medicare Advantage plans are entry age and others are age rated. Some plans have $0 premium because their catastrophe out of pocket costs are very high and routine copays are small. It’s a crazy marketplace for seniors to understand. Bottom line if you are healthy and have money in the bank an Medicare Advantage is probably good for you. If you do not have money in the bank, get a Medicare Supplement Plan.
If the F plan hasn’t already been eliminated, it is slated to go away, for new enrollees. The G supplement is the same, except it does not cover your yearly deductible. We found the F plan premiums per year were higher than the G Plan deductible.
This is the medigap policy - I have plan G, although I could have had plan F. My annual deductible is only $198, and that's quickly made up by the difference in premiums!
Once it was pared down (not a lot of options where I am located), the plan I was interested in allowed me to check to see if the doctors I generally use are "in the plan" - since all were, I went with that plan (also UHC/AARP plan.) It does say that you can go to any doctor who accepts Medicare, but some are likely not in the network, so it is better to check first (those who are in the plan can later drop out, so it is always good to check again later!) You can go out of network, but most of the time it will cost you more.
I still find the cost of this MA plus Medicare much better than my last two years with company insurance - even on their "retirement" plan. Almost 12k to get a freaking physical, and not much of one at that. Nothing else was covered as they had a new policy whereby you pay the first $700 of ANYTHING, so my eye exam and one doc visit were both out of pocket. :-( (BTW, the MA plan covers eye exams, hearing, basic member in health club and for a fee it has a dental plan - I kept my company based dental plan as it covers much more.)
The same plan for 2020 has the same cost, but co-pays are going up as are costs for other items. I did note they have another plan that is $0, with smaller co-pays, however the big cost, as someone else noted, is if you have something serious, like hospitalization/surgery. THEN you pay!
The tools on the Medicare page also allow you to "compare" if there are several plans that interest you. Basic info presented only, so either read the details for each plan you consider or contact HICAP.