Your Medicare Plan Shouldn't Be a Crock-Pot: Set It and Forget It Doesn't Work

I love a good Crock-Pot.

Put everything in, turn it on, walk away, and several hours later dinner magically appears.

It's one of life's better inventions.

Unfortunately, Medicare doesn't work that way.

Yet every year, I meet people who enrolled in a Medicare plan several years ago and haven't looked at it since.

"My plan has been fine."

"I haven't changed anything."

"I've had this plan for years."

And my personal favorite:

"I figured if something important changed, they'd tell me."

Technically, they probably did.

It was likely somewhere in that large stack of mail you received, right between something marked IMPORTANT PLAN INFORMATION and another envelope that looked suspiciously like something you could safely ignore.

Welcome to Medicare.

Your Plan Can Change Even When You Don't

One of the biggest Medicare misconceptions is that if your health hasn't changed, there's no reason to review your coverage.

But you're only half of the equation.

Your Medicare plan can change from one year to the next.

Your prescription drug costs can change.

The list of covered medications can change.

Provider networks can change.

Copays and other out-of-pocket costs can change.

Benefits can be added, reduced or removed.

And sometimes a plan itself may no longer be available the following year.

Meanwhile, your life can change, too.

Maybe you're taking a new prescription.

Maybe you've started seeing a specialist.

Maybe you've been diagnosed with a new condition.

Maybe you're traveling more.

Or perhaps absolutely nothing dramatic has happened. Your needs have simply evolved.

That's why the Medicare plan that fit you beautifully three years ago isn't automatically the best fit for you today.

The Annual Notice of Change: That Thing You Probably Didn't Read

If you're enrolled in a Medicare Advantage or standalone Part D prescription drug plan, your plan sends an Annual Notice of Change, commonly called the ANOC, each fall.

Yes, it's real.

Yes, it's important.

And yes, I fully understand why you might have placed it on the counter with every intention of reading it later.

The ANOC explains what is changing in your plan for the coming year, including things such as costs, coverage and benefits.

Don't automatically throw that one into the "Medicare stuff I'll deal with later" pile.

It deserves a look.

A Medicare Review Isn't Necessarily About Changing Plans

This is something I wish more people understood.

When I suggest reviewing your Medicare coverage, I'm not suggesting you need to change it.

Sometimes we review everything and discover that your current plan still fits you very well.

Wonderful.

That's a successful Medicare review.

The goal isn't to change plans.

The goal is to make sure there's still a good reason to stay where you are.

There is a big difference between keeping your plan because you've reviewed it and it still meets your needs, and keeping it simply because you've had it for years.

So What Should You Actually Review?

At least once a year, it's worth looking at a few important things.

Start with your medications. Are they still covered? Has their formulary placement changed? Are there restrictions? What might they cost in the coming year?

Then look at your healthcare providers. Are your doctors, specialists, hospitals and preferred pharmacies still participating as expected?

Review your costs, too. Look beyond the monthly premium and consider copays, coinsurance, deductibles and the maximum amount you could potentially pay out of pocket.

And don't forget to think about how you actually live.

Do you travel frequently? Spend part of the year somewhere else? Have a new health condition? Need access to particular specialists? Are there benefits you're paying for but never using?

Medicare coverage isn't one-size-fits-all because people's lives aren't one-size-fits-all.

Please Don't Pick a Plan Because Your Neighbor Loves It

While we're here, can we talk about this?

Your neighbor may be delightful.

She may make excellent banana bread.

She may also absolutely LOVE her Medicare plan.

That still doesn't mean you should enroll in it.

Her doctors may be different.

Her medications may be different.

Her health needs may be different.

Her travel habits may be different.

Her budget may be different.

And unless you're sharing doctors, prescriptions and possibly a Social Security number — which would create an entirely different set of problems — her Medicare plan tells us very little about which coverage makes sense for you.

Recommendations from friends can be helpful starting points.

They aren't personalized Medicare reviews.

Medicare Isn't Something You Choose Once

I think this is where Medicare education sometimes gets things wrong.

We put tremendous emphasis on choosing a plan when someone first becomes eligible for Medicare.

That's important.

But Medicare isn't a single decision you make at 65 and then file away for the next 20 years.

Your health changes.

Your life changes.

The healthcare system changes.

And insurance plans change.

A better approach is to think of Medicare as something that deserves a periodic checkup, just like many other parts of your financial and healthcare life.

Most years, that checkup may simply confirm:

Yep. Everything still looks good.

And that's perfectly okay.

Crock-Pots Are for Dinner. Not Medicare.

So by all means, set the Crock-Pot in the morning and forget about it until dinner.

Your Medicare coverage?

Maybe don't give it quite that much freedom.

Open the mail.

Review the changes.

Check your prescriptions.

Check your providers.

Ask questions when something doesn't make sense.

And periodically make sure the coverage you have still fits the life you're actually living.

Because the goal isn't to change your Medicare plan every year.

The goal is to understand what you have, why you have it, and whether it's still doing what you need it to do.

That's a very different thing.

And if reading Medicare documents ranks somewhere between cleaning your gutters and organizing the junk drawer on your list of favorite activities, that's okay.

That's what people like me are here for.

At Flat River Insurance Solutions, we believe healthcare doesn't have to feel overwhelming. Sometimes you just need someone willing to sit down, sort through the details and explain them in plain English.

Healthcare Made Easy.

Simplifying healthcare. Empowering you to live well.