Medicare is annoyingly complicated. And so is Medicaid. But wait… Aren’t those the same thing? They sure sound about the same. Turns out they are very different, despite the name. However, they CAN work alongside each other. Let me explain:
MEDICARE:
This is a FEDERAL government program funded by SOCIAL SECURITY. It’s designed for people that turn 65 or those who have been disabled for 2 years or longer. This exists because people pay a social security tax every year. If you pay taxes for a total of 40 quarters (10 years) minimum, you automatically get entitled to “PART A”. This covers 80% of all hospital-related things.
“PART B” covers 80% of doctor office related things and is given to you if you pay the monthly “Premium”. I like to think of this as an extra monthly tax the government charges you. Why do they do it this way? Because they can (if you can’t tell, I am no fan of the government).
These 2 parts together give you “Original Medicare”. It comes with no drug coverage, no vision/hearing/dental/ and no maximum out of pocket. It’s not bad on its own, but it’s not great either. That’s where agents like me come in and help make the situation better, often at no cost to the client.
MEDICAID:
This is an INDIVDUAL STATE funded program designed to help those with low incomes have a means of insurance. Basically, Kentucky (or whatever state you are in) uses STATE tax dollars to fund this. While not as complicated as Medicare, there are different levels to Medicaid. I like to think of it as a sliding scale. If you are barely under the income limit, you might not get as high of a level of Medicaid as someone with virtually no income. This type of insurance can do all sorts of things. On its own, it is not bad and is certainly better than nothing.
What Do I Want/Need?
In a perfect world, everyone pays their taxes and gets their Medicare when they’re eligible. Medicare without Medicaid is a fine situation. There are tons of medicare plans (often at NO COST) that do great work. HOWEVER, when you have BOTH Medicare AND Medicaid, a whole new category of insurance plans is available to you. These are called “Dual Eligible” plans, and they are AWESOME. If you are curious about these types of plans or have any general questions about Medicare and/or Medicaid call me ASAP at 606-495-6644.
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