Why Is Medicare Supplement Plan F being discontinued?
According to congress.gov, starting in 2020, Medicare Supplement plans that pay the Medicare Part B deductible will no longer be sold to those newly eligible.
This change is part of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA).
- If you already have Medicare Supplement Plan F (or Plan C, which also covers the Part B deductible), you can generally keep it.
- If you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020, you may be able to buy Medicare Supplement Plan F or Plan C.
- If you qualify for Medicare on January 1, 2020 or later, you may not be able to buy Medicare Supplement Plan F or Plan C.
Medicare Supplement Plan F: how much is the deductible in question?
The Medicare Part B deductible, which is the deductible amount involved in the MACRA legislation, can change every year. In 2019, it’s $185.
That’s the amount you have to pay before Part B pays for covered services.
And Plan F in particular has been a very popular supplemental plan. Also known as Medigap Plan F, this supplemental plan was created to help seniors fill gaps in their regular Medicare coverage. Subscribers could, in years past, add to Original Medicare (Parts A and B) with special prescription coverage plans, Medicare Part C, and Plan F.
However, when open enrollment begins in fall 2019, there will be big changes to these supplemental plans. And Plan F in particular will be affected.
A longtime favorite because of its comprehensive coverage, Plan F reduced seniors’ out-of-pocket expenses and covered procedures and services that Parts A and B did not¹. But Plan F will no longer be available for Medicare subscribers.
Starting in 2020, the U.S. government has decided to stop offering Plan F. And that isn’t the only change happening – Plan C, another supplemental coverage option, will also disappear.
Why Is Plan F Disappearing?
As one of the most popular supplemental plans, it’s shocking that Plan F is suddenly going away.
Many Medicare subscribers were shocked when Congress announced sweeping changes to Medicare supplements. These changes aren’t uncommon – they’ve actually happened almost every decade, with former Medicare parts E, H, I, and J eliminated in 1990 and 2010². So, just 10 years later, two more parts of Medicare are being axed.
Plan F (and Plan C) are part of a larger plan to fix Medicare gaps. For years, doctors have lobbied the federal government to close pay gaps. Many doctors who took on Medicare patients lost income or, even worse, weren’t fairly paid for their services. So, in 2015, Congress passed the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) that’s meant to close the doctor payment gap.
The good news is this legislation will motivate more doctors to stay in the Medicare program. And that means more seniors can continue to see their regular doctors – and the doctors will accept Medicare plans.
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