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Hi, I'm Mary Alexander from Home Instead Senior Care. Today I'm talking about supplemental
insurance coverage and other insurance considerations around Medicare. According to the Centers
for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a medigap policy, also called medicare supplement insurance
is private health insurance that's designed to supplement original medicare, which is
parts A and B. You must have both parts A and B to get medigap insurance. And do note,
Medicare does not pay any of the costs for you to get a medigap policy. Medigap insurance
helps pay some of the healthcare cost that original Medicare doesn't cover, such as co-payments,
co-insurance and deductibles. If you have original Medicare and a medigap policy, Medicare
will pay its share of the Medicare-approved amounts for covered healthcare costs first.
Then, your medigap policy pays its share. Medigap policies do not cover your share of
the costs under other types of health coverage, including Medicare advantage plans, known
as part C, stand alone Medicare prescription drug plans, known as part D, Employer or union
group health coverage, Medicaid, Department of Veterans Affairs, also known as VA benefits
or Tricare. Generally speaking, insurance companies can't sell you a medigap policy
if you have coverage through Medicaid or Medicare advantage plan part C. There are protections
in place to help you. For instance, every Medigap policy must follow Federal and state
laws and the policy must be clearly identified as Medicare supplement insurance. Most Medicare
drug plans has a coverage gap called the "donuthole". This donuthole begins after you and your drug
plan have spent a certain amount for covered drugs. When you reach that amount, you then
have to pay the full cost for your prescription drugs, up to a certain limit. You can reduce
your gap by using generic drugs or applying for extra help from Medicare, state and local
programs. Many people who are on Medicare also have other types of primary insurance
coverage such as employee health insurance plan, spousal employer health insurance or
are getting workers compensation, auto insurance or liability insurance that is covering the
cost of medical care related to an accident. In these instances, Medicare would pay after
the primary insurance. Other situations exist for those on Medicaid, Veterans benefits or
Tricare, among others. If you have questions about what policy pays first, you should contact
Medicare at 1-800-999-1118. More details can also be found in the Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services booklet titled "Medicare and Other Health Benefits: Your Guide to Who
Pays First" available online at medicare.gov.