Member-only story
Medicare Advantage is NOT Medicare
The confusion is deliberately encouraged
If you’re hitting *that* age I bet I know what about a third of your postal mail looks like these days. We sure went through it when my partner in art and life, AleXander Hirka, turned 64. These dozens of pieces of garbage mail we’d get every week were not from Medicare, by the way.
Oh, sure, they all had the word MEDICARE plastered all over them. And right after that word was the code word: Advantage.
That is code for This-Is-Not-Medicare. Memorize that.
Memorize this bit as well. Whatever that plan may be and however amazing it looks — low premiums! discount pharmacy plans! meal delivery! personalized recommendations! and a pony with every sign-up!!! — it is just another private insurance health plan (Oh, and no pony. I made that part up). Please note that if you enroll in one of these too-good-to-be-true plans, you can’t waltz into any healthcare provider who accepts Medicare and get care. In fact, you can be denied some care because — altogether now in full three-part harmony — you do not have Medicare.
A further bit of bureaucratic nastiness: Medicare itself encourages people to sign up for these plans which are really just healthcare plans administered by private insurance agencies. Ain’t that a kick in the…
