Call for Expert Help
215-658-1776

Request a Free Medicare Quote

Call for Expert Help
215-658-1776

Free Medicare Quote

Author: admin

Allen Heffler Philadelphia Inquirer Article Medicare

10 December 2015
admin
No comments
Categories: Uncategorized
Posted 12/10/2015 Allen Heffler quoted Medicare article in Philadelphia Inquirer. http://articles.philly.com/2015-11-11/business/68166496_1_medicare-advantage-main-line-health-private-medicare
The financial pain of a two-week hospital stay 15 years ago for a heart ailment gives Patricia Johnstone a sharp focus when she shops for private Medicare insurance. “The hospital is the main thing I’m concerned about,” said Johnstone, 75, who with her husband, Robert, attended a Health Partners Plans information session last week at the Wegmans market in Collegeville. The Johnstones were unsettled when they heard that hospital stays would cost up to $295 a day for the first six days under Health Partners, which is expanding its Medicare business into the Pennsylvania suburbs next year. The Johnstones felt good about their current plan, which has a $400 co-pay per stay of any length. Still, with no Social Security benefit increase next year, “it’s good to shop around,” said Robert Johnstone.
Open enrollment for Medicare Advantage – under which the federal government pays private firms a per-member monthly fee to insure Medicare beneficiaries – runs until Dec. 7 for plans that will take effect Jan. 1. In Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester Counties, three firms are competing with eight plans. By contrast, in Southeastern Pennsylvania, seven insurers are offering 47 plans, though not all are in each county. Prices rise with choice, and a higher monthly premium means lower out-of-pocket costs. Monthly premiums for plans with drug coverage range from zero to $272 for Independence’s Keystone 65 Preferred HMO. Nine plans had hikes in monthly premiums of 25 percent or more, Medicare records show. In New Jersey, AmeriHealth, a unit of Independence, went the other way, reducing rates for one plan by more than 40 percent in certain counties, a spokeswoman said. Premiums garner much attention, but the key for consumers is to evaluate total out-of-pocket costs, including premiums, co-pays, and other charges. “You just have to do your homework,” said Jerry Gratton, 75, a Schwenksville resident who has a ritual of using a spreadsheet to analyze plans. The Johnstones have to weigh the cost increases in their Advantra Gold plan vs. other options. Their current $400 co-pay for an in-network hospital stay of any length is rising to $600 next year. And their monthly premium will rise to $123 from $92. With a dizzying array of choices, insurers are competing for what consulting firm Mark Farrah Associates called “one of the most attractive growth targets” in the industry. Since 2012, private Medicare has grown 23 percent nationally, to 17 million clients, the firm said. Locally, next year insurers and hospitals will be doing more to jointly manage the care of patients – matching an industrywide trend that aims to reduce costs and improve care: Aetna and Main Line Health have a new HMO for residents of Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties. Main Line Health will get bonuses if it meets targets for managing the care of members. Cigna-HealthSpring is adding Abington Memorial Hospital and Lansdale Hospital to its network as part of an expanded relationship with Jefferson Health. Jefferson doctors will have access to Cigna data to improve care. In Bucks and Montgomery Counties, Humana tapped Doylestown Health Partners, a joint venture of Doylestown Hospital and about 440 primary care and specialist physicians, to manage Humana’s Medicare members in those two counties. Another major change is the entry of behemoth UnitedHealthcare with AARP MedicareComplete Choice, said Allen Heffler, president of My Medicare Advisor, a Willow Grove company that helps seniors pick plans. “AARP is a monster with Medicare plans” that is just entering Southeastern Pennsylvania, said Heffler, who receives the same commission from an insurer whatever plan his clients choose. UnitedHealthcare could be a formidable competitor for Independence, which had 97,331 Medicare Advantage members in the region last month, far outpacing the next-biggest insurer, Cigna, with 53,927 members. Independence is hoping to build that lead with its new Keystone 65 Focus Rx HMO, which has no monthly premium in Philadelphia and Bucks County and a $25 premium in Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties. It also has a relatively small hospital network. Many people don’t decide until late November, said Lovell T. Harmon, senior vice president of business development for nonprofit Health Partners: “Black Friday is busy.”

Allen Heffler Willow Grove Medicare Insurance

10 August 2015
admin
No comments
Categories: Uncategorized
Posted by Allen Heffler  on 08/09/2015 Allen Heffler Willow Grove Medicare Insurance Open Enrollment Period Medicare’s Open Enrollment is almost here. From October 15, 2015 to December 7, 2015, people on Medicare can change some of their Medicare Insurance. During this time period, a person who has Medicare Part D Prescription coverage can change their Part D plan. A person can get into a new Medicare Advantage plan or can change their  existing Medicare Advantage plan to another plan.  (Exception-ESRD). Questions- call  Medicare Insurance broker in Willow Grove Allen Heffler at 215-658-1776.
Read More

Read this prior to applying for Medicare – Allen Heffler

18 May 2015
admin
No comments
Categories: Uncategorized

Posted by Allen Heffler on 05/18/2015

Read this before Applying for Medicare – Allen Heffler Medicare Insurance Broker Willow Grove

Medicare is an important piece of the puzzle for seniors, with the health insurance covering the most of healthcare costs that you will incur after you turn 65. While most of us will be eligible for Medicare, there are important items things to think about prior to enrolling in Medicare in order to take maximum advantage of the benefits. Anyone who has looked into Medicare knows that it is confusing and complicated. To help simplify it somewhat, though, it helps to boil down Medicare’s many benefits and costs to their bare essentials. Below you’ll find four things you should consider prior to making your Medicare decision that could have big implications for the rest of your life. 1. What you pay for and what you get with Medicare. Medicare is complicated in part because it has multiple parts. Part A hospital coverage is free for most Medicare beneficiaries. Medicare Part B covers such things as outpatient services- doctor visits, lab, diagnostic, etc. For Part B, Medicare charges a standard premium of $104.90 per month, with higher amounts for upper-income earners ranging all the way up to $335.70 per month. Prescription drug plans under Part D have differing costs depending on what the plan covers. Alternatively, signing up for a Medicare Advantage plan, also known as Part C, involves consolidating all the hospital, medical, and drug coverage options into a single policy. Medicare Advantage plan costs also vary by provider and level of benefits included. Regardless of which option you pick, you might also have to  pay co-payments and deductibles with your Medicare coverage. 2. The right time to sign up for Medicare. You can sign up for Medicare starting three months before you turn 65, and initial enrollment lasts until three months after you turn 65. That time period is important because if you enroll late, you can owe penalties. For instance, late enrollees for Part B have to pay 10% higher monthly premiums for every year by which they missed the initial deadline. Those who work beyond 65 can qualify for a later deadline as long as they have coverage at work. Even then, though, you have to enroll within eight months of the end of that coverage to avoid potential penalties. 3. Filling the gaps in Medicare is important. Medicare only covers a portion of your healthcare costs. In order to help with the rest, many people buy Medicare Supplemental insurance, also known as Medigap coverage. Medigap policies typically involve making set monthly premium payments in exchange for the insurer paying much of the cost that Medicare doesn’t cover. By paying all or part of coinsurance amounts, deductibles, and even co-payments in some circumstances, Medigap coverage can make your healthcare expenses even more predictable in retirement. 4. Beware of what Medicare doesn’t cover. Even with Medigap coverage,there are certain types of expenses that Medicare just doesn’t cover. One of the biggest is long-term nursing home or assisted living care, with Medicare only covering a limited period of skilled nursing care in which the patient makes substantial progress toward rehabilitation and restoration of their health. Those who need nursing-home or other care for daily activities like eating and hygiene can’t expect Medicare coverage to pay for those costs. Those who anticipate these types of expenses should consider a long-term care policy that’s designed to cover these costs. Similarly, Medicare generally doesn’t cover costs of routine dental care, eye exams, dentures, or hearing aids. Those will typically remain your responsibility.

Any questions, call Allen Heffler Medicare Insurance broker Willow Grove PA (215) 658-1776