Medicare Supplement or Medicare Advantage in 2011

You may be wondering what kind of Medicare coverage makes more sense for you next year.  You really have two options to consider.  They are Medicare Advantage and Medicare supplements.  The Medicare supplement works as a true supplement to medicare and pays things that medicare does not pay.  How much depends on the plan letter that you choose.  This coverage comes with a price, and the price is determined by your location, the company you choose and the plan letter.  The biggest benefit of this kind of coverage is that it is accepted anywhere Medicare is accepted. 


The alternative is Medicare advantage. With Medicare advantage you choose a company that is going to be most likely a PPO or HMO which means you will be working within the confines of a network.  The biggest advantage is that in many areas these companies offer little to no plan premium.  Instead you pay co-pays when you use it.  This means that if you are healthy and rarely go to the doctor, you could save a substantial amount of money by joining a medicare advantage plan.  These plans also offer extra benefits that medicare and supplements do not such as drug coverage, dental, vision, and many times health club memberships.  It's really simple, if you are healthy and not anticipating any procedures in the upcoming year than medicare advantage makes a lot of sense; but on the other hand if you are unhealthy or have some planned procedures coming up, you should probably be looking at a supplement!