In 2020, when you compare Medicare supplement plans, you need to remember that, the Medicare supplement plan F is going away but not for everyone. It has been well known Best Medicare supplement plans that was in the market for several decades. There are millions of people who are going to be affected. So why is it going away?
When It Will Be Phased Off?
In 2020, both Plan C and F will no longer be offered in the same way as before. Those who will be eligible before 2020 will continue to have the options to enroll in the two plans; C and F. In 1990, Congress standardized the Plans options then in 2010, some options like E, H, I and J were eliminated. Now in 2020, Plans C and F are on their way out. This might affect you if those are the plans you were hoping to ride on.
Why Is Plan F Going Away?
The changes are a result of the CHIF re authorization and Medicare Access Act of 2015 which was referred to as the doc fix law. The legislation was passed by Congress to make sure that doctors will be paid well so that they provide Medicare advantage plans for 2022 services which are better. However, earlier laws that were in place decreased the pay of the doctors over time.
Doctors are not happy about this with many threatening to leave the program of Medicare if the cuts are not stopped. There has been voting in Congress on a yearly basis to stall the cuts, but it has not worked. The solution is not kicking out some plans. They need to fix the problem for payments of physicians to avoid bailing out Medicare programs. The fixing they are doing will cost about $200 billion in the next 10 years. You can Find Best doctors Here.
The money had to come from somewhere and that is why they had to reform the Medigap policies together with other measures. The measures they took included the following:
All Beneficiaries Of Medicare Must Be Subjected To Deductibles
At the moment Medicare Part A and B have deductibles. This is the amount of money that you are required to pay out of your pocket before you start enjoying the insurance benefits. The Medigap can cover for this hospital deductibles in part A but as of January 1, 2020, part B deductibles will not be covered for those who are new enrollees. In 2020, the deductibles stand at $198.
Due to the fact that in Plan F, deductibles are covered, it has to be phased out for those who are enrolling as new members. This is to ensure that, in view of the Congress, the beneficiaries of the Medigap will have to pay more in order to benefit from the scheme.
With a first-dollar coverage being offered by the Plan F, those on it enjoy from the first day, 80% cover with the other 20% being covered by their Plan F. So those currently on the plan don’t pay copay for their visits to the doctor as long as they are on Medicare.