About a year ago, we posted an article about Medicare Premium Reimbursement Arrangements, which allow small employers to pay for the Medicare Part B, Part D, and supplement premiums for their active employees. As explained in the article, the employer cannot force older employees off of the group plan (they have the same enrollment rights as all other full-time employees), but it can often be a win-win solution for both the employer and the employee.

The Annual Election Period (AEP) for Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D prescription drug plans runs from October 15 to December 7. During this time of the year, Medicare recipients can join an Advantage plan, switch from one Advantage plan to another, or leave their Advantage plan and return to Original Medicare.

Each year, Medicare makes changes to the Part A and B out-of-pocket expenses, monthly premium for Part B, and premium adjustment thresholds for Part B and Part D. Here are the figures for 2019.

If you sell Medicare supplements, you may have heard that Medigap plans C and F are being eliminated in 2020. Since that’s just over a year away, and because Medigap Plan F is the most popular Medicare supplement plan, you’ll probably start getting some questions from your Medicare-eligible (and near-eligible) clients. Here are a few short-and-sweet answers to some of the more common questions.

If you sell Medicare Advantage and/or Medicare Part D plans, then you are no doubt familiar with the Annual Election Period (AEP), which starts October 15 and ends December 7. The AEP is sometimes referred to as the “Open Enrollment Period for Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug coverage.” In fact, the Medicare.gov web page devoted to Medicare enrollment periods describes it this way.

Can Employers Pay Their Employees’ Medicare Premiums? At AHCP, we’re starting to get this question more and more frequently from brokers. We believe there are two reasons for this:

If you’ve been selling Marketplace plans for the past five years, then you probably have a number of clients who are currently receiving premium tax credits. As these clients approach age 65, it’s important to let them know that they will no longer be able to receive a premium tax credit when they sign up for Medicare. Both Healthcare.gov and Medicare.gov have pages devoted to educating consumers about this topic, but it’s unlikely that your clients will read this information unless you point it out to them.

A weird situation came up the other day that we wanted to tell you about. One of the agents we work with received a call from a 68-year-old client who had not signed up for Medicare when he was first eligible. He was not yet receiving Social Security checks, so he was not automatically enrolled in Medicare Part A when he turned 65. Instead, the client kept the individual health plan that covered himself, his wife (who is under 65), and his eight-year-old granddaughter who he has custody of.

Have you heard the news? Medicare beneficiaries will soon be receiving new Medicare cards with a new Medicare number. A 2015 law requires CMS to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019 and replace them with a new Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI). The new cards will be sent out over a 12-month period beginning this April.

If you sell Medicare supplements, Medicare Advantage plans, or Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, you’ve probably been asked on multiple occasions how much Medicare Part B costs. If you’re like a lot of agents, you may have answered with the standard Part B premium amount, which is $134 per month in 2018. This can be dangerous.