John Burke, Medicare Insurance Broker

Answer: Yes, your son, daughter or other family member can help you with your Medicare plan, but when enrolling you either have to be present to answer the questions or have someone with power of attorney answer them for

Answer: If your Medicare Advantage or Medicare Supplement ( Medigap) plan has a premium and you stop paying, yes, they can drop you.

Your plan can also stop offering service in your area, which is known as a service area reduction (SAR).In this case, you can choose a new plan during annual enrollment( AEP) from Oct 15- Dec 7th. If you are outside of AEP, this will trigger a special enrollment period, which allows enrollment in a different plan.

Answer: Health insurance agents do not charge fees for Medicare consultations, as it is against the law.

The exception would be for retirement planning, but most agents will ask for referrals rather than charge fees.

Answer: No, you do not. asd long as you pay your plan premium, Medicare Supplement plans will renew automatically.

Answer: Yes, Medicare Advantage ( MAPD)can save you money in several ways;

1) Prescription drug coverage included in MAPD plans is often less than a standalone Part D plan

2) Some MAPD plans include dental, vision, and hearing benefits that Original Medicare Part A and Part B do not cover,

3)MAPD plans have caps, such as a maximum out-of-pocket ( MOOP), which Original Medicare does not.

Answer: The most common penalties are for late enrollment in Medicare Parts B and D , which is why we urge people to do this ASAP when their eligibility period begins.

Answer: If your physicians accept Medicare Advantage, you can get additional benefits like dental, vision, and hearing that Original Medicare does not cover.

The other option would be a Medigap plan, which has a monthly premium that works with Original Medicare, is not tied to a network, but does not cover dental, vision and hearing.

Answer: If you're talking about Original Medicare, the answer is no, but a Medicare Advantage plan could- you would need to compare the two plans side-by-side.

Answer: Medicare Advantage offers more benefits that you won't get with a Part D plan, such as dental, vision, and hearing.

If you are on Medicaid, there is also a spending card with Medicare Advantage "dual" plans with a monthly allowance that can be used to purchase wellness items/ healthy food, etc.

Answer: If you are admitted to the hospital. There will be a copayment based on the number of days( $250-450 per day) and the Medicare Advantage (MAPD) plan you have. On Original Medicare, your deductible is $1,736.

For outpatient surgery,$300-500, depending on which MAPD plan you have. On Original Medicare, you will pay 20% coinsurance of the Medicare-approved amount for outpatient surgery.

Answer: If they have either a Medigap plan( usually a G or N plan) or a hospital indemnity plan that you can use in any state, usually for about 50% less than a Medigap plan.

Answer: If you were under 65 and on SSDI for two years on the 25th month, he will be automatically enrolled into original Medicare