If you are a Medicare beneficiary looking for medical insurance, you have a lot of choices now. You may find that having so many choices makes things more difficult. This article is here to help clear some of the fog.

Medicare now has Part A, Part B, Part C and Part D. Each element covers you differently.

Parts A and B are considered Original Medicare. Part A covers expenses incurred in the hospital primarily. Part B pays for medical care in the doctor’s office.

Even if you have both Part A and B your is not complete. You may want to get a Medicare Supplement policy.

Medicare Supplement is also known as Medigap. A Medigap plan can to a great degree lower your exposure to the things that Medicare will not cover. These policies can pay for your deductible in the doctors’ office. They can also pay some of your coinsurance and copayments. None of the policies currently sold will cover any of your drug costs.

You can get insurance for drugs. Part C will sometimes cover drug costs. Part D is a standalone plan that only covers prescription medicine costs.

Part C is not a supplement. It is designed to cover much of the same health expenses that are covered by Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B and a Medicare supplemental plan.

Unlike Medicare Part A and B, the benefits are not provided by the federal government. Medicare Part C benefits come from private medical insurance carriers.

Medicare Advantage is another name for a Part C plan. In 2010 these policies are inexpensive and are a great choice for many seniors and Medicare beneficiaries.

The one major drawback of purchasing a Medicare Advantage contract is that it doesn’t cover you well if you seek treatment from out of network providers. You will be covered if there is a health emergency when you go to a doctor that is not in the network, but routine care will only be covered in rare situations.

Medicare Part D is prescription medicine drug insurance. These policies provide much needed coverage for drugs. Before these policies became available the plans that covered Rx were over priced and inadequate for many.

Rx insurance is not included in Medicare Part A or Medicare Part B. None of the currently sold Medicare Supplement policies provide this insurance. You can get drug coverage through some Part C policies.

There are two ways recommended ways to get insurance that will take care of most of your health needs. You can have Medicare Part A, Medicare B, a Supplement and a Part D drug policy. Alternately, you can have a Part C contract that provides the same basic coverage.

Each option has its own pros and cons. The best choice for you may not be the right decision for your neighbor.

For many Medicare beneficiaries, it comes down to how well the Part C network suits you needs. Part C is almost always the less expensive option, so other criteria must be used to determine which option is best.

Since routine care isn’t usually paid for if you seek care outside of the network, the network is a very important issue when making a selection. If your doctor is not in the network of a Medicare Advantage plan, you may want to keep Original Medicare and stay away from a part C plan. If you spend a lot of time away from home and will need routine care in an area not serviced by your plan, you may want to keep Original Medicare.

Once you have decided on what type of contract you need, you can go through the process of getting pricing information and determining which insurance company and which contract will give the best combination of price and value. There are many websites that provide instant senior medical insurance rates.

Author Bio: You can find Medicare Advantage Quotes and other Med Sup information on the Author, Alston J. Balkcom’s website.

Category: Finances
Keywords: senior insurance,healthcare,senior coverage