Blue Cross Medicare Advantage 2011
Many plan options available for Blue Cross Medicare Advantage 2011
There is probably no insurer with greater name recognition than Blue Cross Blue Shield. Whether you live in California, Florida or parts in between, you may have been insured by Blue Cross Blue Shield at some point in your life.
Blue cross Medicare Advantage plans will be a mainstay for those on Medicare during 2011. There are many Advantage plan options available and will vary depending on where you live. Blue cross has the luxury of converting many of their employer group and under 65 individual insured members to one of their Medicare plans when those members age into Medicare. This is a benefit not available to companies like HealthSpring or WellCare who do not have tens of thousands of under 65 members to convert to Medicare Advantage.
Blue Cross offers Medicare beneficiaries; Advantage plans, Medigap and Part D drug coverage (PDP). Although Blue Cross Medigap plans offer beneficiaries standardized coverage, Blue Cross Medicare Advantage plans vary from State to State and often from County to County.
Types of Blue Cross Medicare Advantage plans available
The types of Medicare Advantage plans available where you live will vary and the names of the plans are not standardized. For example, in California the Blue Cross Medicare HMO is offered by Anthem and is called; Blue Cross Senior Secure. In Florida, plans are available from BlueCross BlueShield of Florida, and the Medicare HMO is aptly called BlueMedicare HMO. Plan benefits will also vary from plan to plan.
Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Plans in California include:
Blue Cross Senior Secure Plan 1 HMO, Freedom Blue Plan 1 Regional PPO, Freedom Blue Plus Regional PPO, Freedom Blue Classic Regional PPO, Smart Value Classic PFFS and Smart Value Plus PFFS.
Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Plans in Florida include:
BlueMedicare HMO, BlueMedicare PPO, BlueMedicare Regional PPO and Blue Medicare PFFS.
These are examples of Blue Cross Advantage plans available for 2010. Medicare Advantage plans are available on an annual basis. There is no guarantee that plans will have the same benefits or premiums the following year. In fact, there is no guarantee that your plan will renew for the following year. Many carriers have announced that they would not renew or offer PFFS plans for 2010.
Will your Blue Cross Medicare Advantage plan be available for 2011?
All carriers participating in the Medicare Advantage program must adhere to CMS guidelines and notify members of any plan changes for the following year during the month of October. One question that looms large on the minds of PFFS plan members is, whether or not their plan will renew for 2011. Many companies have already announced that they would not be renewing PFFS plans. If you have a PFFS plan, keep an eye out for any communications from your carrier about plan changes.
During the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) you are able to change Medicare Advantage plans, join a plan or drop a plan and return to original Medicare. The AEP begins November 15 and ends December 31. This is the time to compare your Blue Cross Medicare Advantage plan for 2011 to other plans that may be available in your area.
Be certain of your choice, as you will not have the traditional Open Enrollment Period for 2011 you have had in past years.
WellCare Medicare Advantage 2011
Should you consider WellCare Medicare Advantage for 2011?
WellCare offers Advantage plans that are often quite popular with their members. Many WellCare members probably have never been to the official WellCare website and many people interested in enrolling in a 2011 Medicare Advantage plan will probably never visit the website. That said, it is a little disconcerting that the home page includes links to SEC Consent and Final Judgment, as well as Deferred Prosecution Agreement.
This point is not brought up to rehash legal issues or actions taken by CMS against this insurer. In all fairness, if we took these types of issues into consideration, we may change our shopping habits for many of the products that add value to our lives. And if you ask WellCare members, many would say that they have been happy with their WellCare Advantage plans.
So yes, when you are comparing Medicare Advantage plans for 2011, you should take a look at WellCare Medicare plans if they are available to you.
Types of Advantage plans offered by WellCare
WellCare saw the writing on the wall in 2009 when they announced that they would not renew nor offer Private fee-for-service (PFFS) plans for 2010. WellCare offers coordinated care plans, including both Medicare HMO and HMO POS plans. The Point-Of-Sale plans give the members greater freedom when choosing providers.
In some markets, WellCare offers the WellCare Dividend Plan. This plan reduces the Medicare Part B premium.
Medicare Advantage plans are not required to include Part D drug coverage and a couple plans offered by WellCare; Advance HMO and Essential HMO POS, are medical only plans.
Plans branded as: WellCare Choice and WellCare Value, include both medical and Part D coverage. The Choice plan is a HMO POS and the Value plan is a HMO.
WellCare Medicare Advantage plans are also available for those people that are dual-eligible, that is, enrolled in both Medicare and their State’s Medicaid program. Two popular plans are WellCare Access and WellCare Select. To join, qualifications that must be met for both plans.
Like all carriers offering Medicare Advantage plans for 2011, WellCare will release the details of the plans in early October. Medicare Advantage plans are available on an annual basis and you should not assume that your current plan will look identical to next years plan. The proof of that is the fact that WellCare PFFS Advantage plans are no longer available as they once were.
If you are enrolled in a 2010 WellCare Medicare Advantage plan, you should review any plan changes for 2011 to ensure that you are satisfied with your new WellCare Advantage plan. Also keep in mind, that the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) enables you to compare all 2011 Medicare Advantage plans available, not just the 2011 WellCare plans. The AEP begins November 15 and ends December 31. Visit the Medicare website or compare plans online to save time when reviewing your options.