Senior Citizen Health Insurance Options

In the USA, senior citizens over the age of 65 are offered medical care by your state and federal government’s Medicare Health Insurance program. All basic medical costs are covered from doctor’s visits to hospitalization. It is the early retiree that may have a problem with insurance. At the age of 65, in the United States, residents are eligible for Medicare and are automatically enrolled if already receiving Social Security. Though Medicare provides adequate medical coverage for many people, it does not cover all co-payments, pharmacy expenses etc. Seniors have the option to purchase extra insurance through the government, called Medigap. Medigap offers 10 different levels of supplementary insurance in groups called Medigap A – Medigap J, each level offering higher coverage for an additional expense.

If you are not yet 65 and have retired or plan to retire soon, you should plan ahead. Many seniors, who are not yet eligible, have a challenging time obtaining reliable health care insurance, or may find private insurance too expensive to bear. If you must retire before you are eligible for Medicare, there are several options to consider.

Some employers offer their company’s group healthcare plan to retirees. Though this is not the norm, larger companies or corporations involved with unions, may offer this option to retirees as an ongoing benefit, and is generally the least expensive healthcare alternative until Medicare kicks in. To find out if your company’s healthcare plan is available after retirement, contact your Human Resources Department.

A second option, but much more costly than your current insurance, is to opt for COBRA benefits once you have left your company. COBRA, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, makes the company’s group health insurance plan available to former employees for 18 months. Though the former employee must pay the entire insurance premium (plus 2% administrative fee to the corporation), it may be less expensive than private individual insurance, and is better than going without insurance altogether.

The third, and usually most expensive, option is to purchase private individual insurance. Private insurance can be pricey for anyone, but the cost goes up with age, and many retirees may be amazed at the soaring expense. The best things to do when seeking individual insurance is research several companies and get several quotes, as coverage and cost vary greatly from company to company.

If you are in the need of seniors health insurance, check out our online instant quotes from Medicarehelp.org to get a starting idea of price range and benefits from many different provider companies. As with any insurance plan, be sure to ask questions and examine a policy carefully before committing to anything.