Navigating Medicare and all its parts remains an annual challenge for beneficiaries. But this year could present greater confusion since the kickoff for the health insurance exchanges associated with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act coincides with Medicare's own annual enrollment period.
As usual the Medicare enrollment period will run Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, so there will be some overlap with exchange enrollment running Oct. 1 to March 31. But many remain in the dark about what they need to do to comply with the new federal health care law, and fine points such as who needs to go through the exchanges to get coverage can remain especially murky.
But the country's nearly 50 million Medicare beneficiaries should be rest assured they won't need to get involved with the new insurance marketplace. Medicare recipients are classified as covered, and won't be liable for any financial penalty.
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"Medicare beneficiaries may falsely think they need to enroll in an exchange plan to avoid penalties. Or, they may be so flustered that they don't carefully evaluate their Medicare plan options for 2014, which could be detrimental if their plan or their needs have changed," said Paula Muschler, manager of the Allsup Medicare Advisor, a Medicare plan selection service.
According to Allsup, the new plan year will bring cost reductions associated with the so-called donut hole and with drug co-pays when benefits kicks back in under catastrophic coverage. But there also will be premium increases beneficiaries need to consider.
And for those enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, Allsup warns beneficiaries need to stay apprised of similar changes in premiums, out-of-pocket fees, procedure coverage, or even whether their plan will continue or if they will need to choose alternate coverage.
"Health care costs are a critical line item in most people's budget, and especially so for seniors and people with disabilities," Muschler added. "Believing your current plan will continue to cover your needs in the same way can lead to unexpected and costly surprises."
Also read: Can Medicare Advantage survive PPACA?
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