Medicare at 65 and older is suppose to be the help we would all need in our golden years.
It is that healthcare we were all paying into every time we got a paystub and saw that Medicare deduction. Staring from when we first went to work all the way up until we retired. For some of us that was at age 14 ( when we got our working papers)or 16 when we were legally old enough to work full time. That is from 1966 when the Medicare payment act was started. I believe us baby boomers are the biggest generation to take part in this program .
Today we have Medicare coverage for anyone over 65 which pays for most basic healthcare scenerios. it does have an out of pocket amount we must meet if we are on just Medicare. That means if we supposedly have a hospital bill for instance. Say that bill is 45,000 dollars. Medicare would deduct our deductible amount from what they allow for those services and only pay the remainder. leaving us with the deductible to pay. Most hospitals will accept assignment , which means they will accept what Medicare pays as full payment. Some Doctors will accept assignment. Many won’t. In fact many will send you a bill for what Medicare did not pay in it’s entirety. Yes, Healthcare is Big, Big business! You do need additional insurance whether it is Medicare supplemental. Medicare Advantage, Premium, HHO, PPS. Medicade or whatever. You need additional insurance or you are screwed! Most insurance companies have made such lowball deals with hospitals, clinics and etcetera that you the patient cannot win. I said most, not all. There are a very few that help the patients and they have strict guidelines. You do jump through some hoops, but, the end is worth it, and those hoops are necessary for them to be able to provide decent insurance.
You see there are some facts about insurance people need to understand and accept.
1, Insurance companies are in business to make money. If they lose on every customer they would be out of business and bankrupt the first year. They have to make some money.
Next, not all insurance companies are bad guys, some are actually good at what they do and maybe have a side hustle like a drugstore or something that makes up their profits. Some insurance companies are purely greedy and really could care less about the customer. These companies are in business to Deny, Delay, Dispute and Defend. Buyer Beware!You must really shop for a good insurance company and research reviews!
With all that being said, are you beginning to see why you must be your own strongest Advocate for yourself and loved ones? You have to research , you have to question everything. You have to write down both answers and questions. Do NOT ever take a doctor’s word for anything! He could be having a bad day and giving bad guesses. When you enter a medical office of any kind, you will find people! People have egos, people had bad days, people can have problems you don’t know about and people can tell you anything, it can depend on their mood.
Medical professionalism Has become slacker and slacker and almost non existent. They dress down, they are more relaxed and the staff is more non – chalant these days. No one is up tight, nor hesitant to say anything. The disturbing thing is, anyone is liable to give you an off handed answer good or bad, right or wrong. It has gotten that “lax”, unfortunately. Then we wonder why no one seems to respect medical professionals anymore.
Healthcare 65 Plus 