[dolphin]

Originally Posted by shut the front door

My spouse switched from TVH to Humana this year and it's been a nightmare. Every single screw up, the Dr.'s office employee says "this happens a lot with Humana". No idea what to do for next year.

With Humana for years. Have never had a problem

[westernrider75]

Originally Posted by Rainger99

For those of you that do not have Medicare Advantage, how difficult is it to find a primary care physician and/or a specialist? How far do you have to travel? Are you satisfied with the quality of your doctors? Any other comments?

I have traditional Medicare and a supplement. No problem finding doctors that take it. Still with my original PCP that I found in 2022 when we moved here. No issues with specialists either. Glad I went that route.

[NotGolfer]

We've lived here 16 yrs. Went with TVH when it was 1st offered and have been very happy with it. Before that we went to "whomever" and I can say it wasn't easy back then. The filling out of paperwork with every change was cumbersome. I have some medical issues so have app'ts with specialists....so mostly referring to that. THEN toss in insurance changes and dr's not accepting the new insurance. With TVH, we have the portal so all that cumbersome c@%p is taken care of. We see a NP and her care has been very good. I had a NP before we moved to FL and no issues. I've experienced some dr's in both areas that needed to find another occupation.

I, for one, will stick with TVH since none of the speculation or what-if's can be recognized at this time.

[Justputt]

I have an MA plan and use TVH for most things. I am happy with both and see no reason to change. As for the TVH staffing changes, I've worked at great hospitals that have some marginal staff and lesser hospitals with great staff. Until I have a REASON to change, I'll stay the course. As for the MA plans vs government Medicare, I've been happy with my MA plan and benefits government Medicare doesn't offer, so until I have a REASON to change, I'll stay the course.

[elevatorman]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

TVH can't just close it's doors and leave even one, much less 55,000 patients out in the cold with no physician----it's called patient abandonment, and it is a felony.

But they can consolidate close 50% of their offices and cut staff. then when you try to get an appointment it may be far in the future.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Rainger99

For those of you that do not have Medicare Advantage, how difficult is it to find a primary care physician and/or a specialist? How far do you have to travel? Are you satisfied with the quality of your doctors? Any other comments?

I have TVH with my non-Medicare plan. TVH does have specialists that accept Advantage, you just can't use them for regular PCPs.

There are dozens of regular doctors and specialists all over the place, even on the "Villages Hospital" (its new name) campus there are a variety. And on the same Santa Barbara campus as TVH, there is Premier, and a couple of specialists.

My dentist is Lifetime, it's pretty good and they take pretty much any POS plan, plus Medicare Advantage.

My endodontist (Dr. Reddy) doesn't accept UHC anymore but since I have Florida Blue, I don't have to care.

My dermatologist is the Leesburg Dermatology group and they have offices up here as well, near me. My ortho surgeon - no idea what happened to him, he's still listed but no longer at the hospital location. Since I only went to him once for a consultation, it's no biggie, I can go to the Ortho Institute down the street, I've heard they're very good.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Rainger99

The problem is that we may not know how TVH is going to be next year - even if the bankruptcy is resolved prior to the enrollment period.

So you have to compare an uncertainty (TVH) against a certainty (Medicare).

I think people should start looking into all options now - rather than in late November.

There's no way to know what the options will be in January, when the options aren't published until October/November.

You can't look into MA options, or supplement options, because they tend to change every year. And you might say "oh this one is perfect, I'll look at that one when it comes out again" - only to discover that all the PCPs in the area you're willing to travel in, aren't accepting new patients.

I COULD get $0 copays and bypass my out of pocket expenses if I went to a clinic affiliated with Florida Blue. But the closest one to me is in Orlando, which is 90 minutes away. Combine gas, wear and tear on the car, the 3-hour round-trip time for a 20-minute appointment, and round-trip tolls, and it's cheaper and more efficient to pay the co-pays and stay closer to home.

So that option is ruled out. What's left, is a whole lot of "I don't know, I'll find out in October."

[DonnaNi4os]

Unless I want to replace every specialist I have with The Villages Health, and I have 5 of them, I will be staying. I’ve been here almost 8 years. I am not searching for new specialists when I am happy with the ones I have now.

[Snowbirdtobe]

Many people believe that they can continue with TVH, others have said it is a felony to close practices and abandon customers.
While both of these may be true the FACTS are, as sworn to in COURT filings, TVH cannot continue as it is and is BANKRUPT.

I have no idea what lies ahead for TVH but Traditional Medicare will offer the SAME service and Supplemental plans as last year this year. I guess I paid over $30,000 in insurance to Medicare over the years and didn't get $30,000 in services yet. That's why it's called insurance.
My wife paid in about the same amount and I believe received $1,000,000 services over the years. No prior contact with insurance for approval and no additional cost out of pocket to us.
Her docs said you need this and they did it.
We didn't get "free" health clubs or $$$ back but we both are getting to take the granddaughters to gatorland today.

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by Snowbirdtobe

Many people believe that they can continue with TVH, others have said it is a felony to close practices and abandon customers.
While both of these may be true the FACTS are, as sworn to in COURT filings, TVH cannot continue as it is and is BANKRUPT.

I have no idea what lies ahead for TVH but Traditional Medicare will offer the SAME service and Supplemental plans as last year this year. I guess I paid over $30,000 in insurance to Medicare over the years and didn't get $30,000 in services yet. That's why it's called insurance.
My wife paid in about the same amount and I believe received $1,000,000 services over the years. No prior contact with insurance for approval and no additional cost out of pocket to us.
Her docs said you need this and they did it.
We didn't get "free" health clubs or $$$ back but we both are getting to take the granddaughters to gatorland today.

Well, I paid in over $200K over the years and have received about $600 in "services". If your wife received $1 million in services, a Medicare Advantage plan was never appropriate for her. For others it makes sense, and not for "the free gym membership".

[Rainger99]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

If your wife received $1 million in services, a Medicare Advantage plan was never appropriate for her. For others it makes sense.

Why wasn’t it appropriate for her?

And when does it make sense?

[Aces4]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

Well, I paid in over $200K over the years and have received about $600 in "services". If your wife received $1 million in services, a Medicare Advantage plan was never appropriate for her. For others it makes sense, and not for "the free gym membership".

We have traditional medicare and they provide a gym membership, if that's all that is to be considered.

[Aces4]

Originally Posted by Rainger99

Why wasn’t it appropriate for her?

And when does it make sense?

MA makes sense for those on a limited budget and in great health. If you have medical issues totaling over a million dollars, the full coverage and easy access to treatment and doctors with traditional Medicare makes sense for that scenerio.

I do hope that the doctors at TVH that so many on MA depend on remain with the organization and the MA care there can continue. It would be a huge pain in the butt at this point in their lives to attempt to change their Medicare coverage and find all new physicians for healthcare. It all gets more difficult as we age so fingers crossed it works out at this is shaken out.

[Lisanp@aol.com]

I'm sorry but your life DOES in fact depend on the safety protocols of an airline each time you board a plane and financial solvency does effect that! The Villages Health was never a "world class" provider, but overall I have been very pleased with the care that I and my spouse have received. If "my life" depended on the care I was receiving from a medical provider, I would not expect to receive that at TVH (nor in the state of FL).

[Lisanp@aol.com]

Originally Posted by Aces4

Apples and oranges. My life didn't depend on whether one of the airline carriers at a time were having financial issues and I couldn't fly with them during that period. Now we're talking medical care and that needs to be top notch and not a facility running on fumes, since they are filing bankruptcy. It's concerning and the most the public can do is hold their breath and hope for a good outcome as the whole mess shakes out.

I'm sorry but your life DOES in fact depend on the safety protocols of an airline each time you board a plane and financial solvency does effect that! The Villages Health was never a "world class" provider, but overall I have been very pleased with the care that I and my spouse have received. If "my life" depended on the care I was receiving from a medical provider, I would not expect to receive that at TVH (nor in the state of FL).