[gatherer47]

My wife received her booklet today concerning changes for 2015 with Florida Blue's advantage plan.The monthly premium which right now is $0 per month will be $36 per month..Has anyone with a different insurance company heard anything about next year's changes in their advantage plan?

[Irishmen]

Originally Posted by gatherer47

My wife received her booklet today concerning changes for 2015 with Florida Blue's advantage plan.The monthly premium which right now is $0 per month will be $36 per month..Has anyone with a different insurance company heard anything about next year's changes in their advantage plan?

Yep, the full weight of Obamacare hasn't even kicked in yet. '15 and '16 increase going to hit harder.

[sunnyatlast]

Report: Seniors to Lose Benefits and Choices as a Result of CMS' Proposed Cuts to Medicare Advantage

On February 21, CMS, released the 2015 advance notice, which include proposed changes to Medicare Advantage payments for next year. According to a new report from Oliver Wyman, these changes, if finalized, would result in a 5.9 percent cut to Medicare Advantage payments in 2015. This would result in seniors facing benefit reductions and premium increases of $35-$75 per month, or $420-$900 for the year, according to the report.

If the new changes proposed by CMS are implemented, the program would be hit by a double-digit cut over just a two-year period, causing cost increases and benefit reductions for seniors of $65-$145 per month, or as much as $1,740 over two years, according to the Oliver Wyman analysis.

Cuts of this magnitude could result in a “high degree of disruption in the MA market,” including the “potential for plan exits, reductions in service areas, reduced benefits, provider network changes, and MA plan disenrollment,” the report stated.

Seniors across the country would feel the impact of these cuts. An updated analysis by Oliver Wyman examines the state-by-state impact of these cuts.

The Affordable Care Act already includes more than $200 billion in payment cuts, the vast majority of which have not gone into effect yet, and imposes a new health insurance tax that begins this year. These were real cuts in payments – not reductions in rates of projected growth.

Seniors will see the impact of any new payment cuts in late October 2014, when they begin enrolling in their 2015 Medicare Advantage coverage. Another round of payment cuts would mean seniors learning that out-of-pocket costs are higher, benefits have been cut, provider access is restricted, and choice of plans is more limited…….

America's Health Insurance Plans - Medicare Advantage

[CFrance]

Well, it always did seem strange to get something for nothing. I heard many years ago, before the Affordable Care Act, that advantage plans were not going to last because of the expense. I have always wondered who is footing the bill for the free advantage plans.

We have a supplemental that is more expensive than $0, but it is accepted everywhere in the country (and my husband's is accepted overseas), and there are no copays. We travel a lot, and it's peace of mind that I don't object to paying for, especially since Medicare has made such a difference in our lives in terms of the overall cost of our health care.

[2BNTV]

Originally Posted by gatherer47

My wife received her booklet today concerning changes for 2015 with Florida Blue's advantage plan.The monthly premium which right now is $0 per month will be $36 per month..Has anyone with a different insurance company heard anything about next year's changes in their advantage plan?

I have Fl Blue HMO Advantage plan and my premium is $104.90 per month.

What plan has a $0 premium?

[Shirleevee]

Originally Posted by gatherer47

My wife received her booklet today concerning changes for 2015 with Florida Blue's advantage plan.The monthly premium which right now is $0 per month will be $36 per month..Has anyone with a different insurance company heard anything about next year's changes in their advantage plan?

My husband has this plan and $104.00 is paid from his SS monthly......

[billybye]

Originally Posted by Irishmen

Yep, the full weight of Obamacare hasn't even kicked in yet. '15 and '16 increase going to hit harder.

When was the last year before Obamacare that health insurance rates didn't go up. My last employer (4 years ago) canceled everyone's health insurance because it kept going up every year, and he was tired of negotiating with new companies every year. Pretty tough for employees over 50 to get reasonable insurance. At least now they would have Obamacare.

[pbkmaine]

Originally Posted by CFrance

Well, it always did seem strange to get something for nothing. I heard many years ago, before the Affordable Care Act, that advantage plans were not going to last because of the expense. I have always wondered who is footing the bill for the free advantage plans.

We have a supplemental that is more expensive than $0, but it is accepted everywhere in the country (and my husband's is accepted overseas), and there are no copays. We travel a lot, and it's peace of mind that I don't object to paying for, especially since Medicare has made such a difference in our lives in terms of the overall cost of our health care.

Which supplemental plan do you use?

[rubicon]

Thanks to ACA my employer is stepping back from providing a health care supplement and has forced us to shop insurance providing up to a max amount. ACA has created an unstable and unpredictable market. It has placed undue pressure in the medical community and created chaos in the insurance field. What it hasn't done is help create a better quality healthcare system

[JGVillages]

Insurance companies that provide Advantage plans receive around $10,000 from the government to completely cover the individual with all Medicare Benefits and whatever (such as HMO vs PPO) else the Insurer adds as benefits. This "whatever" is what makes the Advantage premiums vary from actually receiving part of your $104 Medicare deduction back, to $0 premium, to $95 premium, and so on. Obama is taking money from the Advantage plans and putting it into Obama Care thus reducing this $10,000ish amount the Insurer will receive. The Insurer will then pass this reduced revenue they receive and increase Advantage Plans premiums to make these reductions up. Understand that the Medicare non- advantage plans, called Supplemental, will also be increasing with Obama Care. And since I contributed to Medicare all of my working life I will not be receiving something for nothing, but many who choose the entitled lifestyle will receive something for nothing with our premium increases.

[rjm1cc]

Also remember that you paid into medicare most of your working life.

[jimmy D]

Full confusion on this page and this info. No Medicare Advantage plans can be discussed by any Insurance Agent until 10/01/2014 and no paperwork until 10/15/2015. So if someone knows they should not be telling according to CMS guidelines

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by JGVillages

Insurance companies that provide Advantage plans receive around $10,000 from the government to completely cover the individual with all Medicare Benefits and whatever (such as HMO vs PPO) else the Insurer adds as benefits. This "whatever" is what makes the Advantage premiums vary from actually receiving part of your $104 Medicare deduction back, to $0 premium, to $95 premium, and so on. Obama is taking money from the Advantage plans and putting it into Obama Care thus reducing this $10,000ish amount the Insurer will receive. The Insurer will then pass this reduced revenue they receive and increase Advantage Plans premiums to make these reductions up. Understand that the Medicare non- advantage plans, called Supplemental, will also be increasing with Obama Care. And since I contributed to Medicare all of my working life I will not be receiving something for nothing, but many who choose the entitled lifestyle will receive something for nothing with our premium increases.

And you have been paying for those who had no medical coverage before Obamacare through increased insurance rates and hospital costs, so remember that too.

You are getting a lot more return for your money than you ever paid into Medicare. You were also covering costs of those getting advantage plans for nothing or reduced costs through taxes you paid. It had to come from somewhere.

[gatherer47]

Florida Blue has already sent their information out to its subscribers.My wife received her information in the mail yesterday.

[gerryann]

Originally Posted by jimmy D

Full confusion on this page and this info. No Medicare Advantage plans can be discussed by any Insurance Agent until 10/01/2014 and no paperwork until 10/15/2015. So if someone knows they should not be telling according to CMS guidelines

We're not agents...just plain ole folks discussing Medicare.