Be Careful Calling 800 Numbers for Medicare Help!! Do we have an 800 number for our business? Yes, but we are specifically referring to 800 numbers that then lead you to call centers. Are Medicare call centers all bad? No way! Some of them will truly help you. Our concern for Medicare beneficiaries is when they call an 800 number for help but they don’t truly get the help they should.
Let us explain. You can call a Medicare 800 number and you don’t realize that it leads you to one carrier, or insurance company. This means you don’t get to shop around and see which plan works best for you. All Medicare plans are not the same. Medicare Advantage plans have different networks, different copays, different medications they cover better.
Be careful calling 800 numbers for Medicare Help.
Let us share a story with you from just this week. We had a nice lady walk into our office who was referred by her Doctor’s office. She found out she was losing her low income status and benefits at the end of the month. She then called one of the 800 numbers from a TV Ad. Before she knew it she was put on a plan she didn’t understand. She had questions and the person on the other end of the phone kept talking over her and wouldn’t answer her questions. She went to her doctor the next day and found out her doctor wasn’t in network with this plan! So she came to us.
Once we looked over her options with her (yes, she had many carrier options), we found out not only did the agent put her a plan without comparing different options, they put her on the wrong plan. She no longer qualified for this “new plan”. We are so glad she stopped by. We were able to look at other options and found one where her doctor was in network.
Be careful calling 800 numbers for Medicare help. If you do, make sure they give you multiple carrier options, they check your medication list and doctor to see if it works with the plan they signed you up for. Look for this red flag: They focus more on “bells and whistles” – instead of focusing on what kind of coverage you will have for your Medical.
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