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Medicare Suplement Coverage
Medicare Suplement Coverage is available from several insurance companies and insurers. These policies cover some of the expenses not paid by Medicare. If you're not familiar with what Medicare does and does not pay, you should read the Federal booklet, "Guide to Health Insurance for People with Medicare". The booklet is available free from the Maine Bureau of Insurance or your nearest Social Security Administration Office. A more detailed source of information is "Your Medicare Handbook" available from the Social Security Administration. If you have Medicare supplement coverage issued before January 1,1992 you can replace the policy that you have with any plan offered by the same insurer as long as the new policy doesn't have better prescription drug coverage than your current policy. The insurer can't refuse to give you the Medicare Suplement Coverage.
If you want to replace your current coverage with the standardized plan of a different insurer, please be aware of the following: Each insurer must hold a one-month guaranteed issue period each year when any applicant will be accepted in Plan "A". (The insurer decides which month.) Insurers are not required to offer other Medicare Suplement Coverage plans during this period. However, if insurers offer other plans besides Plan "A" during the guaranteed issue period, they cannot deny you the plan you want because of health reasons as long as the new plan has similar or fewer benefits than the one you already have.
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The best way to know when Medicare Suplement Coverage plans are offered is to contact the insurance company directly or contact the company's producer.
If you apply for Medicare Suplement Coverage during the six-month period beginning with the first month in which you enroll for Medicare Part B, any insurer you apply to must insure you and must give you the plan you choose. This is called your open enrollment period. It does not matter what your medical condition is, you cannot be turned down. Insurers may ask you medical questions during the open enrollment period. However, even if you have medical problems, you cannot be refused Medicare Suplement Coverage during open enrollment. Disabled Medicare beneficiaries have an additional six-month open enrollment period when they turn age 65. If you are 65 and still working, you should check with Medicare about the options available to you.
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