If you are considering Medicare options, you may wind up spending hours upon hours doing your own research on the Internet and calling up friends and relatives to hear what they have to say. While reading up on plans and getting first-hand accounts from people you trust is good, there is one easy way for you to expedite this process and save yourself a whole lot of money and stress in the meantime: talk to a local, licensed Medicare specialist. Our licensed Medicare Specialists will compare your options to find coverage that best fits your needs while not breaking your bank. All of this service will come at no cost to you. Keep on reading to learn what Medicare specialists do and how we can help you find an ideal health plan that balances care coverage with your finances.
Who Are Medicare Specialists?
Medicare specialists are typically Medicare insurance agents who have been licensed to sell Medicare insurance plans in your area. These specialists know everything there is to know about Medicare in your area. Depending on the Specialist and their business, the Specialist will work with one or multiple insurance carriers near you. Independent specialists will be particularly knowledgeable about the different carrier’s application rules, the histories of carrier rate increases, and the benefits and limitations of each carrier’s plans. Best of all, working with a specialist is free.
Insurance carriers do not tend to publicly release many details of their plans because there are so many carriers and so many plans that releasing every last detail would create too much confusion. Instead, carriers will hire specialists – either directly or through a contract – to help guide the public through the insurance marketplace. Specialists’ sole job is to understand the Medicare insurance market, and they are regularly tested on their knowledge, meaning you know you can trust their advice. A lot of people think working with a specialist means they’ll have to pay a fee, but in reality, services are free, and you will probably save money by working with a specialist.
An agent is your trusted guide to the complicated Medicare insurance market.
Why Should You Have a Medicare Specialist?
Medicare Parts A, B, and D will provide you with some pretty good healthcare coverage, but a lot of people find that it is not quite enough. To round out their healthcare coverage, a lot of folks will enroll in a Medicare Supplement Plan, also known as a Medigap plan. These plans “fill in the gaps” that Original Medicare doesn’t cover, and Medigap plans can help save you a lot of money on out-of-pocket costs.
However, not all people want a Medigap plan. Perhaps they feel the premiums are too expensive, so instead, they choose a Medicare Advantage plan. The Advantage plan is private insurance that effectively replaces your Original Medicare and oftentimes comes with ancillary benefits such as eye and vision coverage.
Whether you want one of the 12 Medigap plans (or less, depending on where you live), or if you would like a Medicare Advantage plan, or if you want to keep just your Original Medicare, a Medicare Specialist can help you make this tough choice. Independent specialists can help you compare premiums and plans from competing companies so that you can choose a plan that fits your budget and your healthcare needs. Licensed specialists work with the most up to date information released from both Medicare and the insurance carriers to ensure that you’re making an informed decision.
How Does A Specialist Help You With Medicare Choices?
Medicare Specialists will first try to learn about your specific healthcare needs and gather information about what your healthcare budget looks like. After getting to know your personal situation, the Specialist will compile a list of coverage options that best fit the information you have given them. Once you have chosen a plan, the Specialist can also help you enroll.
If you are already on Medicare but would like to review your options and possibly change plans, a specialist can also help you. Even if you’ve been on Medicare for a decade or more, specialist services will still be free to use.
Independent Medicare Agents vs. Captive Agents
Earlier in this article, you may have noticed that we made a distinction between Medicare specialists hired either directly by carriers or hired on contracts from carriers. This is an important difference and here’s why:
Captive agents work directly for one insurance carrier. Since they are on that one carrier’s payroll, they are obligated to make their employer sound like the best option on the market. Captive agents can also only show you plans from the carrier that they work for.
On the other hand, an independent agent will look at all carriers and all plans to find what option works best for you. Independent agents want to find a health plan that fits your specific needs, regardless of who is offering the plan.
Do Specialists Really Work for Free?
Medicare specialists – even the independent ones – are paid by the carriers, which is how their services remain free. If you begin working with a specialist and they mention some kind of fee structure, you should probably look for another service because reputable specialists do not charge fees.
Tips When Choosing a Specialist
As we have mentioned, when you talk to a specialist, their services should be free. So, if you talk to a person looking to charge a fee, think twice. You should also know that a Specialist will never come to your door or call your phone unless you reach out to them first. Additionally, a Specialist cannot give you coupons, cash, or rebates worth more than $15 to sign up for a plan. If you work with a Specialist that violates any of these rules, you should switch services.
Work With a Specialist Today
When you enroll in Medicare, you make a long-term decision that affects your health and your pocketbook. The choices can be tough, but by working with a licensed Specialist, these decisions can become much easier. You may also wind up saving quite a bit of money by utilizing these free services. Call us today, or send an email so we can get you enrolled in a plan that fits your needs and saves you money.
