[Steve-Ryzel]

Yesterday The Villages Health (Mulberry Grove Care Center) called me and told me that beings I'm turning 65 next month that I will need to switch to Medicare Advantage to be able to keep coming to them. I told the lady that I already signed up for regular Medicare A & B and have also obtained Prescription D & Medigap. She told me that they don't take regular Medicare, only Medicare Advantage. That doesn't seem right. Anyway I'm not interested in Medicare Advantage so now I looking to find a new doctor.

When I go to Medicare.gov to search for doctors and hospitals I'm finding out that the search there leaves out a lot of doctors in the area. Also when searching for hospitals and emergency rooms it doesn't include the Summerfield ER and Ocala Regional Medical Center (these seem to get better reviews then others in the area). I've been to both their websites and see that they both take Medicare. But Medicare.gov is not showing them either in the search. Why is Medicare.gov not listing a lot of the doctors and the two hospitals I just named ...am I missing something?? I did increase my search area to 50 miles on Medicare.gov just in case they had the distance locations wrong but that didn't help. What's up ...I feel like they are being selective.

[EdFNJ]

The Villages has what seems to be a "semi-private" medical service where many/most/all ??? Villages Health doctors only accept "their" aka The Villages medicare advantage plans, We have an Aetna Medicare Advantage plan PPO from my wife's retirement plan and just have to look for non-affiliated doctors of which there are many. All the hospitals and er's WILL take "reg" medicare as well as other PPO med adv plans.. Thing is many docs go in and out of the The Villages plan which makes most of the directories not up to date. My wife had been going to a doc for 2 years and then her doc "moved into" the Villages Health plan and would no longer accept our Med Aetna Adv PPO and now last week we got a notice she is no longer with The Villages Health and will now again take her plan.

[retiredguy123]

I think the Villages Health system limitation only applies to their primary care doctors. You can still use the specialists with original medicare. I would not expect the Medicare.gov list of providers to be very accurate. Almost every health care provider accepts Medicare.