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Colorado Health Insurance
Colorado Medicare Supplement Insurance for Seniors
Medicare is a federal health insurance program for people 65 years of age or older. It pays for much of your health care, but not all of it. Such costs could be prescription drugs, deductibles, and coinsurance.
Medigap, or Medicare Supplement Insurance, is supplemental insurance sold by private health insurance companies to fill in the "gaps" in Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) and Medicare Part B (Doctor Visit Insurance).
We recommend reading through the following two documents for a better understanding of Medicare and Choosing a Medigap Policy. (These document files are quite large and may take several minutes to download):
You must have Medicare Parts A and B to purchase a Medigap policy, and like Medicare, you & your spouse can each purchase your own Medigap policy.
The standardized Medigap plans include Medicare Supplement Plans A through L. Since you are guaranteed issuance of Medigap insurance without underwriting only once in your lifetime, we recommend that you select the best policy you can afford (Medigap Plan F or better); especially since the price difference between plans is usually fairly minimal.
Qualifying events for enrolling into Medigap coverage without underwriting for pre-existing conditions are:
- The open enrollment period during the first 6 months in which you are both age 65 AND enrolled in Medicare Part B
- The qualifying event created after enrolling into Medicare Part B AND terminating coverage from an employer-sponsored group health plan
- Anytime within 1 year after the first time enrolling onto a Medicare Advantage Plan
Prices can vary greatly from one insurance company to the next, so you should compare rates between carriers offering supplemental coverage in your state.
Prescription Carriers in Colorado for Medicare Part D
Medicare Part D (Prescription Drug Insurance or PDP Plan) is now also available. If you are currently taking prescription medications and do not already have prescription drug coverage, it is worthwhile for you to look into this option. Here is a premium comparison spreadsheet for all of the Colorado Medicare Part D standalone plans available in 2008.
You may sign up for a PDP plan when you first become eligible for Medicare (three months before the month you turn age 65 until three months after you turn age 65). If you get Medicare due to a disability, you can join from three months before to three months after your 25th month of cash disability payments. If you don't sign up when you are first eligible, you may pay a penalty. If you didn't join when you were first eligible, your next opportunity to join will be from November 15, 2008 to December 31, 2008.
Erickson Financial Services can help you determine which Medicare Part D plan will offer you the lowest out of pocket responsibility per calendar year, and even if the best option for you is not a product that we broker, we will send you the information for your reference. Please contact us for more information about this service. Erickson Financial Services can help you enroll in any of the Coventry AdvantraRx plans or Blue MedicareRx plans. We are unable to assist with Part D enrollments involving any other carriers at this time.
For more information or to request a quote for a Medicare Supplement from our office, fill out our online Medicare quote form. This will not be an instant quote, so we will need your contact information to respond to you with rates. The information you provide will be held personal and confidential. We NEVER share contact information or email addresses with ANY third parties. You will recieve a quote from our office within 24 hours after we receive your request.
Note: You may have already investigated AARP Medicare Supplement Insurance. Although AARP has a very good reputation among seniors, we recommend that you "shop around" for your medicare supplement insurance. Medicare Supplement Plans are standardized, so they are the same regardless of insurance carrier. You may find a carrier other than AARP that will offer a lower premium for the very same plan design (see tip below).
Tip: Unlike with buying other types of insurance, it is OK to consider purchasing a lower-priced Medigap plan from any carrier, even if the carrier is less than top-rated. If your Medigap carrier goes bankrupt, you have the right to purchase plans A,B,C or F from any carrier in your state (within 63 days), WITHOUT medical underwriting. | 
