Central Florida seniors curious about what Medicare has in store for them next year can now get a sneak peek, two weeks before enrollment begins.
Today, the Medicare.gov website posted details about the Medicare Advantage plans and stand-alone prescription plans that will be available next year to Americans 65 and older. Seniors — a group not eligible for coverage on the new health-insurance exchange — can find Medicare plans by county and compare deductibles, premiums and drug coverage for 2014.
In Central Florida's five counties, the number of Medicare Advantage plans offered will increase by nearly 10 percent, and one more insurer will provide coverage.
By contrast, residents will see a slight reduction in the number of stand-alone prescription-coverage plans, also called Part D plans, which have uniform benefits statewide. The number of plans will decrease by more than 10 percent and be offered by two fewer insurance providers.
The new crop of drug plans will bring some cost relief. For instance, deductibles will be lower.
The particulars of the "doughnut hole," the point where seniors must pay medication costs out-of-pocket until they spend a certain amount, also will change. That coverage gap will be slightly smaller. While in it, seniors will pay slightly less for generic drugs. Although they will fall into the doughnut hole sooner, seniors will exit it faster next year.
Enrollment begins Oct. 15 and continues through Dec. 7.
Though much new information is now available, the Medicare website won't post each plan's ranking under the five-star rating system for at least another week, said officials from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid.
Plan checkup
"It's important for beneficiaries to look at the new information and evaluate the Medicare coverage they have now," said Gretchen Jacobson, associate director with the Kaiser Family Foundation's program on Medicare policy.
That's particularly true in Florida's retiree-dense metropolitan areas, she said, where seniors have far more choices than almost anywhere else in the country.
Most will find about the same variety and benefits as last year, and the majority of plans will continue to charge no additional premium beyond what seniors already pay for traditional Medicare B.
That 2013 premium was $99.90 to $319.70. The 2014 amount will be announced next week, said CMS officials.
Seniors who don't make any changes to their current health plan will automatically continue on the same plan if it's available, said Sarah Lightell, chief operating officer for the Senior Resource Alliance in Orlando.
Not to be confused
Consumer advocates are concerned that seniors will confuse the new Medicare Advantage plans with health plans also coming out this month on the health-insurance exchange as a result of Obamacare.
The two are not related.
"We have the perfect storm for confusion," Lightell said. "It's important seniors know that the Affordable Care Act will not affect them. Medicare is still their health insurance."
A recent nationwide study of 1,101 adults age 65 and older commissioned by the Express Scripts pharmacy-benefit-management company found that 29 percent of respondents thought the health-care law raised Medicare eligibility age to 68, and 17 percent thought the act replaced Medicare.
To answer questions and help sort out their options, seniors can call trained counselors at Florida's Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders beginning this month, Lightell said.
More information
Plan information is available in the annual "Medicare & You" handbook that Central Floridians have started receiving by mail. Seniors also can contact Medicare at 800-633-4227.
Counselors with Florida's Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders will be available to answer questions and help seniors sort through plan choices beginning this month.
To find enrollment events or a SHINE location, go to floridashine.org or call 800-963-5337.
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