Medicare Part C costs averages about $30 per month, however, this can vary widely by plan and state. Medicare Part C, called Medicare Advantage as well, is an alternative plan to Original Medicare Parts A and B.
Medicare Advantage plans may often include additional benefits not found in original Medicare such as:
Dental
Vision
Prescription drug coverage
Health & Wellness programs
Transportation to doctor’s appointments
Healthy meals delivered to your home
These benefits vary and are not standard in all advantage plans.
How Medicare Part C Covers You
Before we get into the cost of these plans, let’s talk about what they can do for you and the medical benefits that Advantage plans provide.
These are considered high coverage plans, so you always get lots of medical coverage from them. They are so powerful and offer such extensive coverage that they can serve as a replacement for Original Medicare.
You’ll get most of the Original Medicare benefits through the Advantage plan, but you still need to have an Original Medicare plan as a prerequisite for Advantage coverage.
The Original Medicare plan will provide hospice cover for you while the Advantage plan provides everything else.
Through the Medicare Part C plan, you will enjoy benefits for emergency medical service, which can include ambulance transportation, emergency room care, and any lifesaving treatment.
You’ll also be covered for any medical care classified as urgent care, which can include a wide variety of services depending on where you live, how urgent care is defined in your state, and your needs at the time.
All Medicare Advantage plans are required to provide emergency and urgent care, as well as all Medicare Part A and B services besides hospice care.
That would include coverage for laboratory testing, doctor’s office visits, hospital stays, some medications, nursing care, at-home care, and more.
In addition to all this base coverage, you can also enjoy medical benefits that help with your prescription drug costs or your routine checkups.
How much drug coverage you receive and how often you can visit the dentist, optometrist, or general practitioner and have those visits covered will depend on the insurer you buy your plan from and the kind of Medicare Advantage plan you enroll in.
You can also be covered for prescription eyeglasses and for hearing aids.
These kinds of medical benefits can help seniors to keep their healthcare costs low and can give them the protection they need to feel peace of mind.
Too many people fear going to the doctor’s office or to the hospital because of how much they think it will cost them.
They don’t get the care they need sometimes because they might not be able to easily afford it, and that can be very dangerous.
Seniors especially need good health insurance so that they feel confident going for medical care.
This lets them stay on top of their health issues and catch medical problems before they become very serious.
What is the cost of Medicare Part C? We can tell you that the average price is about $30 a month. However, that may not be an accurate average for where you live.
The price can vary based on numerous factors, like your age, the amount of coverage the plan provides, which insurance company you choose, and where you live.
Let’s look at some of those factors.
Age
You can enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan at age 65, and that will be the best time to get the lowest possible rates.
If you wait and apply later on, you’ll still be able to sign up for an Advantage plan, but your preexisting health conditions can be factored in to increase your rates.
You want to be aware of that issue and be prepared to pay more if you sign up after age 65.
Insurance Provider
The insurance company you choose to buy your plan from can affect pricing as well. Medicare may provide oversight for Medicare Part C plans, but it does not set the prices.
It allows private insurance companies to determine their own rates, and that means that Medicare Advantage plans can range in price from as little as $0 a month to as much as $300 a month or more.
Yes, you read that correctly- some Medicare Advantage plans come with no monthly premium cost.
Some of them don’t have an annual deductible either, and if you use our site to source quotes, you can find low-cost options like these.
Health insurance companies that sell Medicare Advantage plans can change their prices, and you can stay on top of price changes by checking our site. You can switch plans if yours is going to be too expensive next year.
When it comes time to renew, just change up your plan for another one, which you can do from October 15th through December 7th during the annual enrollment period.
Coverage
The amount of coverage the plan provides affects pricing too.
If you get a low coverage plan that just includes basic benefits, then it won’t cost very much, but if you add prescription drug coverage to that or coverage for checkups, then you can expect to pay more.
Even these higher coverage plans can be very affordable, though, as you can compare prices and find the best deal on the kind of Advantage plan that you want.
Location
Where you live in the United States affects average pricing as well. Florida has some of the least expensive Medicare Advantage plans, with the majority of plans priced at $5 or less per month.
On the other end of the scale is Minnesota, with an average Medicare plan price of $121 a month.
The demand for plans in a state can affect the pricing, as can the cost of living, weather conditions, and the availability of insurance providers.
Medicare Part C cost is also affected by the kind of network option that you choose.
Your Advantage plan will be limited by your insurance company’s network. If your insurer has a small network of healthcare providers that it works with, then you can expect to pay more for your coverage in a lot of the US.
Going to one of their network healthcare facilities guarantees you full coverage. Outside the network, you might be required to pay for all of the coverage yourself.
If you choose the right network option, though, you can get partial coverage while off the network.
Medicare Part C plans are at their cheapest when you choose an HMO version of the plans.
This means that you get coverage only within the network. If you need medical care from a healthcare provider who is not part of your insurer’s network, then you pay full price, if all you have is an HMO plan.
You could opt for a PPO plan instead, though, and this will cover you for medical care received on the network as well as of the network. You only get partial coverage outside of your insurer’s network, but that is certainly better than nothing.
PPO plans will be more expensive than HMOs because of the better network coverage that they provide, but if you don’t live near a network facility or you travel often, then it could be worth it to you to pay that extra.
If you want to keep your costs somewhere between what you would pay for an HMO and a PPO, then you could give them a more flexible POS plan a try. This will cover you fully on your insurer’s network.
If you go outside the network, you get no insurance coverage, but you do get to pay a lower price for medical care.
You’ll be able to enjoy discounts that have already been approved and decided on ahead of time, so you can look up exactly what you will be responsible for paying before you agree to any medical care when you use this kind of plan.
HMOs, PPOs and POS plans give you some options for keeping your costs low and ensuring that you are covered inside or outside of the network area. If you have questions about these options, then you can give us a call.
We are happy to help you make the right choice or just answer any questions that you have. You can use our site to source quotes for these kinds of plans. Keep in mind that choosing a network option does not affect your medical benefits.
It only affects how much coverage you will get from your plan depending on whether you are on or off the network.
You Can Save Money on Part C Plans
Medicare Part C can be really affordable if you know how to source quotes and compare them.
You can use our website for that. It is so much easier to get lift quotes by searching on our site than it is to ask each insurance company for a quote and then compare that information.
We source our quotes directly from the insurance companies websites, so they are always accurate and up to date.
Comparing quotes shows you how different insurance companies stack up to one another, and it helps you narrow down your list of options and choose the more affordable one.
Medicare Advantage plans are often sold at competitive rates, but at the same time, many seniors overpay for their coverage.
They simply do not take the time to source very many quotes and look for the cheapest rates. If the cost of Medicare Part C is what is keeping you back from enrolling in one of these plans, then you should use our site to find out how much it really costs and to find some of the most affordable options available.
You’ll be able to easily compare the rates from a number of different major insurers in your area. You can come back and use the site as often as you like, staying up to date on the latest price changes and easily determining which insurance companies have the best rates.
You can also use our site to find quotes for alternatives to Medicare Advantage, such as Medicare Supplements.
These are health insurance plans that do not replace Original Medicare but instead serve to complement it. Medicare Supplements can provide healthcare benefits that cover the cost of copayments, excess charges, blood, foreign emergency transport, deductibles, and coinsurance.
Like Medicare Advantage, the Supplements are sold by a number of different healthcare insurance providers.
You can compare their rates to find out who has the best deals on Medicare Supplements.
If Medicare Advantage covers you too much and costs too much, then the Supplement plans may be a more affordable alternative.
Choosing the Right Insurance Provider for Your Part C Coverage
As you try to keep your costs low and make the best possible health insurance decision you can, you want to be careful that you choose the right insurance provider to purchase your plan from.
Not all health insurance companies will sell Medicare Part C at a low, affordable rate. Some of them overcharge, and others will offer poor customer service or few to no member perks.
You can make a smart choice and pick an insurer that you will be happy with if you learn a bit more about some of the industry’s best providers. Mutual of Omaha is one of our top choices because of its commitment to customer service.
They have low prices but are not always the lowest. Still, they make up for that with a solid lineup of plans and a claims process that stays simple and customer-friendly.
Speaking of customer-friendly insurers, Aetna is really great about making it easy to find network healthcare facilities, and they have a very accessible online service. Their rates are low as well, and they offer some great healthy living services like gym access to ensure their customers live well.
Cigna is another major insurer that you should consider. They have fairly competitive rates and even offer international coverage for your healthcare expenses.
Cigna has a large network to keep you covered in most areas of the country, and they have some great member perks you will want to look into.
AARP sells Medicare Advantage plans that are backed by financial stability and a bevy of member perks.
They can provide you with telehealth services, prescription drug discounts, counseling services, concierge services, and more.
You can find these and other insurance providers listed on our site when you search for quotes. You’ll see the Medicare Part C cost for each of them and how they compare, and that should help you to make a more informed decision.
If you want to have confidence in the plan that you have chosen, then take the time to source some quotes and use our site to compare your available options.
You can save so much money this way and get a coverage plan you like without having to break the bank.
