JL SMITH ASSOCIATES

Guaranteed issue rights (also called "Medigap protections") are rights that a person has in certain situations when insurance companies must offer them certain Medicare Supplement policies. The following 8 situations may provide a Medicare beneficiary with a Medicare Supplement guaranteed issue right that allows them to purchase a Medicare Supplement policy after their Medicare Supplement open enrollment period ends. An insurance company cannot refuse to sell them a Medicare

Trying to contain the cost of a Medicare beneficiary’s Medicare Supplement insurance can be quite a challenge. The premium pricing method a company utilizes will affect future premium costs. A policy that looks inexpensive when it is first purchased at age 65 could end up being the most expensive when the person hits age 80. Insurance companies use three different ways of setting premium prices. In some states, those choices are limited to only one or two. Community-rated pla

When comparing Medicare Supplement policies, it is important to remember that these policies are standardized. This means that the Medicare Supplement policy must follow federal and state laws designed to protect consumers, and it must be clearly identified as "Medicare Supplement Insurance." Insurance companies can only sell consumers a "standardized" policy identified in most states by letters. The letters associated with these plans are Plan A, B, C, D, F, G, K, L, M, N. I

If a person is age 65 or older and they have group health coverage based on their current employment or the employment of their spouse and the employer has twenty or more employees, the group health plan generally pays first. In addition, Medicare would generally pay second if both of these apply: A person’s employer joins with other employers or employee organizations (like unions) to sponsor a group health plan (called a multi-employer plan) and any of the other employers h