Comparing Medicare prescription drug and health plans can be a complicated process. To make your choice easier, we’ve listed 4 things that you should keep in mind when comparing Medicare plans:
Total Cost for Care
It’s important to think about your total out-of-pocket costs, including coinsurance, drug costs, deductibles, maximums, and copayments, that you’ll need to pay with a Medicare drug or health plan. When you compare plans online, you can get information about the expenses and find the plans with the lowest costs. Some websites can also show you plans with the lowest premium and drug costs first.
Provider Choice
Some types of plans have a network of providers that will help you pay less if you use them. Using Medicare Plan Finder, you can even filter your results online by plan type, and learn how each plan type allows you to choose providers.
If you have a particular pharmacy or doctor that you prefer to visit, check if the plan has a network. If it does, ensure that your provider is a part of the plan’s network. You can also check if your plan’s network has providers that you can choose, that are convenient to you.
Benefits
Many Medicare Advantage Plans include dental, hearing, vision, and prescription drug coverage. If you spend part of the year in a different state or travel a lot, check if your plan will provide coverage when you travel. You can filter, view, and compare these benefits when you use Medicare Plan Finder.
Overall Star Rating
The Medicare Plan Finder has a star rating system for Medicare drug and health plans. This “Overall Star Rating” gives an overall rating of the plan’s performance and quality for the types of services offered by each plan.
A plan can get a rating between 1 to 5 stars, where 5 is excellent. If a Medicare Cost Plan, Medicare drug plan, or Medicare Advantage Plan with a 5-star rating is available in your location, switch from your current Medicare plan to a 5-star rating Medicare plan by using the 5-star Special Enrollment Period (once a year).
