A short discussion on medicare and medicare supplement plans

Original Medicare

We will talk about the Medicare and its supplement plans in the following lines. Medicare is something most people are familiar with, but for those who are not, we will explain what it is. People who are aged 65 or higher have an option of getting an insurance and it is called Medicare, which can also be acquired by those who have some disabilities and are younger than 65.

Also, this insurance can cover people who had a transplantation of kidneys, who need dialysis due to the permanent kidney failure or any of the other End-Stage Renal Diseases or the ESRD. The costs of the health care are mostly covered by this insurance, which is called original Medicare plan. This insurance will take care of fees for prescription drugs, home health care, hospice, skilled nursing facility and hospital care, but besides all this, it can help you avoid future higher fees and it can decrease the costs for the prescription drugs.

Medicare Supplement Plans

But some gaps or costs are not covered by the original Medicare policy and in order to fill these gaps, the Medical Supplement Plans were introduced. They are also called Medigap policies and they will help you avoid costs for the health care. These plans will fill the gaps of the original Medicare policy and private insurance companies provide these plans, which are created in order to fill the gaps of the original Medicare policy and cannot be taken without the original policy because they do not provide the coverage for the basic costs.

Also, you cannot apply for the supplemental plans if you do not have the original policy, but if you do have it, you can apply for the supplemental plans and cover the charges that you would have to pay otherwise. Know that Medicare advantage plan and the Medigap policy are not connected in any way and so there is a difference between the Medicare Supplement plans and the Medicare Advantage Plans such as PPO or the HMO plan.

You also have to know that co-insurance, co-payments and deductibles will not be covered by the Medigap policy if you transfer to the Medicare Advantage Plan from the original Medicare policy. You cannot get the Medigap if you have the Medicare Advantage plan and the company is bound by law not to provide it to you. So, in order to get the Medigap plans, you will have to be covered by the original Medicare. Also, there are 12 supplemental plans marked by letters from A to L, which correspond to the service provided. These plans are standardized and every company provides the same benefits with the only difference in coverage policy.