When you look at Medicare as a model it is a little more complex than what you might imagine. There is Medicare and then Medicare supplements as well as Medicare Advantage. Medicare Advantage is Medicare contracting with a private company such as BC/BS to do all the work logistically that the Federal Medicare resources would normally do. So it is a little hard to disentangle the private entities from the government entity in these cases. I am on a Medicare Advantage program where I never show my Medicare card, but instead just show my Medicare Advantage card and all charges, etc are handled by the private entity. 

The overarching notion here, however, is that Medicare still sets prices that will be awarded, etc. In many instances the Medicare Advantage plan has some additional things that original Medicare might not provide (like health club memberships, etc). It is also a little like having an original Medicare and a supplement all rolled into one. 

There ARE some downsides in many of the Advantage plans if you travel outside of their service area in which case your coverage is not as good so you have to evaluate things like that. With plain Medicare (with or without supplement), you are treated the same financially in ANY institution that accepts Medicare no matter where it is located. 

 

Last edited by tennyson (7/26/2017 8:07 pm)

Another BTW, the Medicare Supplement plans that many have today to supplement their Medicare are run by private entities also 

Just Fred wrote:

I have a supplement to Medicare, also.  It's HOP.  I have been very pleased with Medicare and the HOP supplement, and have had no problems with both.  My opposition to employer-based, for-profit health insurance is that their #1 goal is produce a profit for their shareholders, and how do they do that?  I see 3 options:

1. raise premiums
2. deny coverage
3. outsource the work involved and/or reduce wages

I see a public option as a compromise proposal ......  Shop around for something via private insurers or buy into the medicare program.  I see no problem with private insurers running their own supplemental insurance programs.


 

Just a word or warning here. Most of those supplementals (and Medicare Advantage plans) are private for-profit organizations. In looking at your HOP as part of PSERS I don't know if it is considered a for-profit or not. A little hard to ferret out. 
 

For-profit medicine means production-line medicine.  

Quantity, not quality.

What could possibly go wrong?

My HOP program costs me about 160 dollars per month.  Both of us are happy with what we have,

Anyway, my bigger concern is those that would have at least the option of buying into Medicare Part A until they reach the age when they wouldn't have to buy into the program.  We don't have to re-invent the wheel here since the medicare infrastructure is already in place.  Many westernized nations have figured it out, why can't we?

Last edited by Just Fred (7/27/2017 2:19 pm)