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Health & Fitness

Medicare Blue Cross Medex Policies Drop in Price for 2014... Again

There's some good news up on the Blue Cross of Massachusetts web site recently. Blue Cross put out the good news for seniors that those of us who use its Medex Core and Medex Bronze private Medicare supplements. The monthly premium will be lower in 2014 than in 2013. (And I think that is true this year versus 2012. Hmmmm? Have we been paying too much all along?)

The price of the most popular Medicare supplement in Massachusetts, Medex Bronze, is going from 183.73 down to 175.10. The Medex Core program drops from $96.38 a month down to $92.64. I'll post something about why you would choose one over the other in a future entry.

There is one thing that is a little misleading on the Blue Cross web site. Despite the wording the implies otherwise (Hey this is just advertising right), you don't have to buy a Blue Cross Part D Medicare drug plan just because you have a private Blue Cross Medicare supplement. You can match up any Part D drug plan -- the one that works best for you -- with any of the Medicare private supplements sold in Massachusetts.

Other Medicare supplement policies are available in Massachusetts from AARP, Fallon, Health New England, Harvard, Humana, Readers Digest (in association with Humana), and Tufts. I believe all plans are available all over the state and they all basically offer the same benefits although some may have a few extra bells and whistles (such as emergency coverage while travelling outside the United States). In addition, if you buy your Medicare coverage individually (as opposed to through a former employer)  this is the best time of year to decide about all your Medicare coverage including supplements. But in Massachusetts you can sign up for a Medicare supplement any time during the year and the policy will be effective the first of the following month.

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