Take Advantage Of Medicare Benefits With UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement Of Texas
Last fall, millions of American seniors made choices about their Medicare coverage, and now’s the time to put those choices in motion. Lindsey Edwards-Olaiya with UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement in Texas spoke with Studio 512 to share the many ways you can – and should – get more from your Medicare benefits.
When trying to get – or stay – healthy, how can people proactively take advantage of their Medicare plan benefits?
“The first step I suggest is to review your benefits, starting with preventive services covered by your plan. All Medicare plans cover many preventive services, such as certain cancer screenings and annual wellness visits. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, you will have access to extra benefits and features not offered through Original Medicare including:
Dental, hearing and vision coverage
Fitness memberships
24/7 access to registered nurses by phone
A routine physical (offered by All UHC Medicare Advantage plans)
As many people eligible for Medicare are retired or living on a fixed income, every dollar counts. What tips do you have to help manage health care costs?
“Costs can vary based on your personal health and your Medicare plan type, but you can anticipate a lot of the costs by understanding your health needs and coverage. If you have Original Medicare, 80% of Part B medical expenses are covered, but you have to pay for the other 20%, with no limit on OOP costs or coverage for medications.
“With a Medicare Advantage plan, you get predictable copays and annual out-of-pocket expenses are capped, so once you hit your annual maximum, additional medical costs are covered 100% for the rest of the plan year. But also be sure to choose doctors and hospitals in your plan’s network.
“In 2024, UnitedHealthcare will again offer Medicare Advantage’s largest national provider network* across even more plans. Also, look for extra plan benefits and savings on everyday health care items and services.
Anything that might surprise people when it comes to new benefits or features in their plans to take advantage of?
“Closely reviewing your coverage can uncover some fantastic benefits that can make a meaningful difference. For example, people love our UnitedHealthcare UCard® – the all-in-one access point for members to use their benefits which is integrated with our online portal.
“In fact, just in January alone, more than 5.5 million members have used their UCard, racking up 8.6 million transactions amounting to more than $402 million spent on their health and wellbeing. With UCard, members can seamlessly access care, fill prescriptions, use fitness benefits, manage earned rewards, shop in-store with their benefits and more.
“Enabled by UCard, we enhanced our popular combined over-the-counter healthy food and utilities benefit on nearly all our D-SNP plans, which are plans that cover people with both Medicare and Medicaid coverage.”
Where should people go if they’re looking to stay healthy and save money with their Medicare plans?
“Now is the time to get to know your plan benefits, so you can take steps to stay healthy and save money in 2024! For more information, call your plan directly at the number on your ID card or talk to your agent.”
For information, visit UHCMedicareHealthPlans.com.
*Benefits, features and/or devices vary by plan/area. Limitations, exclusions and/or network restrictions may apply.
This segment is paid for by UnitedHealthcare and is intended as an advertisement. Opinions expressed by the guest(s) on this program are solely those of the guest(s) and are not endorsed by this television station.
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