In this Elder Law Minute, Wes Coulson talks about Medicare Complete plans. A Medicare Complete plan is actually a Medicare HMO that works as a substitute for Medicare. A Medicare Complete plan does not cover Medicare days in the nursing home. Medicare Complete is not the same as a Medicare supplement policy.
Hi, I’m Wes Coulson and this is your Elder Law Minute. We’ve run across quite a few situations where people have what’s known as a Medicare Complete or Medicare Advantage plan. What that actually is, is Medicare HMO. It’s a substitute for Medicare. It’s not a Medicare supplement policy. One of the big holes that leaves in your planning is something you need to be aware of if you may need nursing home care in the future. Medicare has a deductible – right now it is $143.50 a day for days 21-100 of nursing home coverage. Most Medicare supplement policies pick up that deductible so that in combination you have a 100 Medicare days. Medicare Advantage or Medicare Complete plan – that’s not going to be the case. So you need to be aware. This is something that you need to look into. Those are not the same as a Medicare supplement policy. Maybe it’s worth spending the extra money to have the extra coverage. Thanks!
