2019 Medicare Plans Posted

msf

"The 2019 plans are now available to review and compare. You can join a plan starting October 15, 2018 through December 7, 2018."

https://www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan/questions/home.aspx

• Enrollment in Medicare Advantage is projected to be at an all-time high in 2019 ... Based on projected enrollment, 36.7% of Medicare beneficiaries will be enrolled in Medicare Advantage in 2019.
• For 2019, CMS estimates the Medicare Advantage average monthly premium will decline by $1.81 to $28.00 from 2018.
• Approximately 83 percent of Medicare Advantage enrollees will have the same or lower premium in 2019 if they continue in the same plan.
• The average monthly premium for a basic Medicare prescription drug plan in 2019 is projected to decrease by $1.09 (3.2 percent decrease) to an estimated $32.50 per month.

https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/2019-medicare-advantage-and-part-d-prescription-drug-program-landscape

MikeM

Here in NY (Rochester area), the cost of a supplemental plan is $0 through Blue Cross Blue Shield. I start Medicare next January. Hope that doesn't change.

msf

You may mean a Medicare Advantage (Part C) plan. For 2019, there's one Medicare Blue Choice (Excellus BC BS) with $0 premium: the Select HMO plan. The other four Excellus plans range from $35/mo (Advanced HMO-POS) all the way up to $250/mo (Optimum HMO-POS).
https://excellus.destinationrx.com/PlanCompare/2019/consumer/type3/Compare/GetStarted

If you're thinking about Medigap Plans (aka Medicare Supplement Plans), there's some Excellus information here:
https://www.excellusbcbs.com/wps/portal/xl/medicare-coverage/medicare-plans/compare-plans/supplement

Or you can browse the Medicare.gov site for Medigap plans:
https://www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan/questions/medigap-home.aspx

(even the lowest cost insurer for the cheapest plan - Plan F with High Deductible - costs at least $51/mo)

davidrmoran

yeah, confusion over MC Supp vs Advantage.

My wife has had the $0-premium Tufts MC Advantage plan for a few years, since she's a low-utilization customer. But this year she had a knee replacement and some other things, lots of PT, specialist OVs, fancy meds, etc., and of course those co-pays and fees are significant.

The contracted entities know what they're doing, naturally.

I have a supplement (also Tufts), since my utilization (usually joint surgeries) is so much higher. Also PDP.

catch22

Morn'in @msf et al

Side note for show and tell; 2019 changes for this house:

--- Our supplemental health cost, Plan F, will increase +9.4%
--- Part D, RX insurance monthly/annual cost will increase, +30.3%
Our deductible, before coverage for meds with this plan will also increase 2.5%

Be well,
Catch

msf

I was a bit surprised to see CMS say that average Part D plans would be cheaper in 2019. What you're seeing, unfortunately, isn't surprising.

Earlier when I looked through filings insurers made to request rate increases for 2019, what I saw was that they all seemed to be saying that most of the cost increases are coming from higher drug prices.

johnN

Bought more Vht... Yeah!!