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I received a letter from IBM today, announcing this change, like most of you will/have. More details will be forthcoming. Here's a quote from the letter I received:
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"It’s your choice – consider your alternatives now!
1. Transition to the new Group Medicare Advantage plan options, which are designed exclusively for IBM retiree benefit participants eligible for Medicare. There are two options under the IBM retiree medical plan – the Enhanced Plan and the Essential Plan. Keep in mind that the IBM subsidy is only available when you enroll in one of the new UnitedHealthcare plan options.
OR
2. Remain enrolled in the coverage you have today. If you would like to remain enrolled in your current plans, including those through Via Benefits, you can do so. Please be aware that, if you choose to remain in your current plans, you will no longer be eligible for IBM’s subsidy while enrolled there."
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Note that it says: IF YOU CHOOSE TO REMAIN IN YOUR CURRENT PLANS, YOU WILL NO LONGER BE ELIGIBLE FOR IBM’S SUBSIDY
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So IBM has negotiated a, one size fits all deal with UHC, for all of us that were receiving up to $3K a year, in medical reimbursements.
I called UHC to try and get a bit more detail. Julia said that they expected more information would be be available on their (UHC) website by the end of this month.
Personally, I would be much happier receiving a flat $1,500 a year check for medical expense coverage, rather than being herded into special IBM Medicare Advantage program that is subject to change each year.
:-(
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So, this sounds like IBM is stopping use of Via Benefits with no more HSA Benefits? No more help with retiree medical?? I recall my father, decades ago when retired, was very angry when he received a letter that had them switch to an HMO. My parents were very specific about who their doctors were.?
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IBM is a turnaround story and we are part of the turnaround.?
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As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already: https://nrln.org/
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On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 09:12:34 AM EDT, BigAl <amboisvert@...> wrote:
As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already: https://nrln.org/
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For what it is worth, I also retired from AT&T and they had a Medicare Advantage plan last year (for the firsts time) that was cheaper and is great - it seems to combine the best of both worlds - you can see the same doctors as Medicare Original as long as they accept medicare,? ?It is combined with a drug plan.? ?have not had to have any referrals. it covers overseas travel as usual, etc.? I would think that whatever AT&T bought into is what IBM is following up with.? It is much better than the standard Medivantage plan, and had several perks that standard medicare did not - I don't recall but food deliveries and transportation for I think 30 days after some surgery I think, and the little stuff like gym memberships,. ., and although AT&T did not tell me, I don't think they thought it up - I think some other large companies had proposed this and they latched on in 2022.
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 10:07:07 AM EDT, JoeRoth via groups.io <jjroth@...> wrote:
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 09:12:34 AM EDT, BigAl <amboisvert@...> wrote:
As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already: https://nrln.org/
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Give it some time and you will find out that Medicare Advantage is a giant scam. I speak from experience.
On Tue, Sep 20, 2022, 05:41 Joyce Nussbaum via <joyce_nussbaum= [email protected]> wrote:
For what it is worth, I also retired from AT&T and they had a Medicare Advantage plan last year (for the firsts time) that was cheaper and is great - it seems to combine the best of both worlds - you can see the same doctors as Medicare Original as long as they accept medicare,? ?It is combined with a drug plan.? ?have not had to have any referrals. it covers overseas travel as usual, etc.? I would think that whatever AT&T bought into is what IBM is following up with.? It is much better than the standard Medivantage plan, and had several perks that standard medicare did not - I don't recall but food deliveries and transportation for I think 30 days after some surgery I think, and the little stuff like gym memberships,. ., and although AT&T did not tell me, I don't think they thought it up - I think some other large companies had proposed this and they latched on in 2022.
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 10:07:07 AM EDT, JoeRoth via <jjroth= [email protected]> wrote:
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 09:12:34 AM EDT, BigAl < amboisvert@...> wrote:
As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already:
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MA's may be a scam & subsidized but they work in Minnesota at least so far.? I was able to keep my original IBM pension due to my age in the 1999 mess but got the Future Health Acct/FHA.? I took early retirement 10 years ago and burned through all my FHA funds (not hard to do at $900/mon for IBM premiums just for me, not my spouse) until I hit 65 Medicare. There's a group of health insurance advisors here that recommended a UCare MN based MA plan for us vs Blue Cross Blue Shield supplemental.? The main reason was it included?Mayo clinic as primary care and was good all over the US.? We do 4-6 weeks of snowbird travel so anything down south is an emergency; if we spent 6 months there the BCBS would have made more sense.? UCare has great coverage except a $400 prescription deductible so sometimes we use GoodRx.com for one shot prescriptions?which has some great savings since luckily neither of us has many drugs.? UCare also covers basic dental, eye care, basic health clubs and provides a good allowance for free OTC items like Tylenol, toothpaste, Voltaren etc.? I hope we can keep it up at this reasonable price.
As for the pension provider I had a discussion last week and asked "who is going to have the best financials in 20 years? IBM, Prudential or Metlife?".? MN has a $250k backing on annuities like many states and will pass on any failed accounts to another?annuity provider too.? ?There is plenty to worry about in life so unless I'm missing something this deal is not real high, but a great example of IBM "following the lead" of other?big companies like the 1999 fiasco.? ? ?DCN in Rochester MN
On Tue, Sep 20, 2022 at 9:51 AM Darwin Busa < darbusa@...> wrote: Give it some time and you will find out that Medicare Advantage is a giant scam. I speak from experience.
On Tue, Sep 20, 2022, 05:41 Joyce Nussbaum via <joyce_nussbaum= [email protected]> wrote:
For what it is worth, I also retired from AT&T and they had a Medicare Advantage plan last year (for the firsts time) that was cheaper and is great - it seems to combine the best of both worlds - you can see the same doctors as Medicare Original as long as they accept medicare,? ?It is combined with a drug plan.? ?have not had to have any referrals. it covers overseas travel as usual, etc.? I would think that whatever AT&T bought into is what IBM is following up with.? It is much better than the standard Medivantage plan, and had several perks that standard medicare did not - I don't recall but food deliveries and transportation for I think 30 days after some surgery I think, and the little stuff like gym memberships,. ., and although AT&T did not tell me, I don't think they thought it up - I think some other large companies had proposed this and they latched on in 2022.
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 10:07:07 AM EDT, JoeRoth via <jjroth= [email protected]> wrote:
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 09:12:34 AM EDT, BigAl < amboisvert@...> wrote:
As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already:
-- Dave Naatz? ? K?VH?? Rochester, Minnesota? gmail acct
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I wonder if UHC will include Kaiser Permanente as a health care provider?? I accepted IBM's $500 offer to switch to an HMO 20 years ago and have been very pleased with my choice of KP - kind of a medical assembly line.
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The indicates that Kaiser, Tricare and VA benefits may be exceptions to enrolling in the Advantage plans. See the text in the paragraph by the big "2."
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Darwin,
"Give it some time and you will find out that Medicare Advantage is a giant scam. I speak from experience."
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Please help us by describing what went wrong with your actual experience.
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Agree, anyone who thinks Advantage is worthy of their time/money need to get some religion from:
https://nrln.org/
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this is NOT like the Medicare Advantage plan you are used to. I made the same mistake until I called and got the particulars.?? I also hated the Medicare Advantage plan -- but I repeat -- THIS IS NOT LIKE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE> The name is a misnomer.? It is a? home-grown unique insurance
On Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at 10:51:09 AM EDT, Darwin Busa <darbusa@...> wrote:
Give it some time and you will find out that Medicare Advantage is a giant scam. I speak from experience.
On Tue, Sep 20, 2022, 05:41 Joyce Nussbaum via <joyce_nussbaum= [email protected]> wrote:
For what it is worth, I also retired from AT&T and they had a Medicare Advantage plan last year (for the firsts time) that was cheaper and is great - it seems to combine the best of both worlds - you can see the same doctors as Medicare Original as long as they accept medicare,? ?It is combined with a drug plan.? ?have not had to have any referrals. it covers overseas travel as usual, etc.? I would think that whatever AT&T bought into is what IBM is following up with.? It is much better than the standard Medivantage plan, and had several perks that standard medicare did not - I don't recall but food deliveries and transportation for I think 30 days after some surgery I think, and the little stuff like gym memberships,. ., and although AT&T did not tell me, I don't think they thought it up - I think some other large companies had proposed this and they latched on in 2022.
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 10:07:07 AM EDT, JoeRoth via <jjroth= [email protected]> wrote:
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 09:12:34 AM EDT, BigAl < amboisvert@...> wrote:
As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already:
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yes, Totally agree -- I also made the initial mistake of thinking this was like the standard Medicare Advantage plan and it isn't.? it is unique, home-grown, and a very good plan.? ? Best of both policies
On Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at 11:09:05 AM EDT, Dave Naatz <dcnaatz@...> wrote:
MA's may be a scam & subsidized but they work in Minnesota at least so far.? I was able to keep my original IBM pension due to my age in the 1999 mess but got the Future Health Acct/FHA.? I took early retirement 10 years ago and burned through all my FHA funds (not hard to do at $900/mon for IBM premiums just for me, not my spouse) until I hit 65 Medicare. There's a group of health insurance advisors here that recommended a UCare MN based MA plan for us vs Blue Cross Blue Shield supplemental.? The main reason was it included?Mayo clinic as primary care and was good all over the US.? We do 4-6 weeks of snowbird travel so anything down south is an emergency; if we spent 6 months there the BCBS would have made more sense.? UCare has great coverage except a $400 prescription deductible so sometimes we use GoodRx.com for one shot prescriptions?which has some great savings since luckily neither of us has many drugs.? UCare also covers basic dental, eye care, basic health clubs and provides a good allowance for free OTC items like Tylenol, toothpaste, Voltaren etc.? I hope we can keep it up at this reasonable price.
As for the pension provider I had a discussion last week and asked "who is going to have the best financials in 20 years? IBM, Prudential or Metlife?".? MN has a $250k backing on annuities like many states and will pass on any failed accounts to another?annuity provider too.? ?There is plenty to worry about in life so unless I'm missing something this deal is not real high, but a great example of IBM "following the lead" of other?big companies like the 1999 fiasco.? ? ?DCN in Rochester MN
On Tue, Sep 20, 2022 at 9:51 AM Darwin Busa < darbusa@...> wrote: Give it some time and you will find out that Medicare Advantage is a giant scam. I speak from experience.
On Tue, Sep 20, 2022, 05:41 Joyce Nussbaum via <joyce_nussbaum= [email protected]> wrote:
For what it is worth, I also retired from AT&T and they had a Medicare Advantage plan last year (for the firsts time) that was cheaper and is great - it seems to combine the best of both worlds - you can see the same doctors as Medicare Original as long as they accept medicare,? ?It is combined with a drug plan.? ?have not had to have any referrals. it covers overseas travel as usual, etc.? I would think that whatever AT&T bought into is what IBM is following up with.? It is much better than the standard Medivantage plan, and had several perks that standard medicare did not - I don't recall but food deliveries and transportation for I think 30 days after some surgery I think, and the little stuff like gym memberships,. ., and although AT&T did not tell me, I don't think they thought it up - I think some other large companies had proposed this and they latched on in 2022.
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 10:07:07 AM EDT, JoeRoth via <jjroth= [email protected]> wrote:
On Monday, September 19, 2022 at 09:12:34 AM EDT, BigAl < amboisvert@...> wrote:
As a second choicer I never received the $3000, so am unaffected by this. I would however warn people about the dangers of Medicare Advantage plans and the governments attempt to privatize Medicare.? Advantage plans are heavily subsidized and are pushed by insurance companies as you can see daily on TV ads. It's sad but unsurprising to see IBM has taken the bait dangled by government and insurance companies. Read all about this issue on the NLRN web site and get educated if not already:
-- Dave Naatz? ? K?VH?? Rochester, Minnesota? gmail acct
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I'm a healthy senor (thankfully) and Medicare Advantage works
well for me. I see my GP annually and rarely in between. I see the
dermatologist twice a year, and have had several skin cancer
surgeries which were correctly treated without cost or difficulty.
My wife, on the other hand, has chronic illnesses. She has more
medical appointments on her calendar than social. Advantage was a
disaster for her - because the insurer was constantly challenging
her doctors' decisions, and even diagnoses.? We soon switched her
to a (much more expensive) medigap policy.
I will certainly consider this United Advantage offering (I'm
currently Aetna). But my wife has strict instructions that, should
I become seriously ill, to switch me to a medigap as soon as
possible.
Mike Halliday (flymike)
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Home grown? No.? Medicare plans or Advantage plans follow set rules as dictated by CMS.
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Sorry about the wife’s condition.? I’ve been told to get off Advantage and back to medigap ?after the grace period it requires going through underwriting. Can you share how the process worked for you?
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Sep 22, 2022, at 4:28 PM, Michael Halliday via groups.io <mike@...> wrote:
?
I'm a healthy senor (thankfully) and Medicare Advantage works
well for me. I see my GP annually and rarely in between. I see the
dermatologist twice a year, and have had several skin cancer
surgeries which were correctly treated without cost or difficulty.
My wife, on the other hand, has chronic illnesses. She has more
medical appointments on her calendar than social. Advantage was a
disaster for her - because the insurer was constantly challenging
her doctors' decisions, and even diagnoses.? We soon switched her
to a (much more expensive) medigap policy.
I will certainly consider this United Advantage offering (I'm
currently Aetna). But my wife has strict instructions that, should
I become seriously ill, to switch me to a medigap as soon as
possible.
Mike Halliday (flymike)
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I’m not so much worried about the quality of this new plan. What I’m most concerned about is what happens in 2 years, 5 years…or whenever IBM decides to change plans yet again. Who knows what we might end up with, and then there may be no turning back to regular Medicare.
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It appears that, those of us who have chosen a standard Medicare Supplement plan, will lose our subsidy, unless we change to a Medicare Advantage plan.
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Correct. The government, insurance companies, Joe Nameth, etc have been pushing and incentivizing people to go to Advantage.
Advantage plans are being unfairly subsidized to trick people into a privatized and FOR PROFIT Medicare. That's enough of a
reason for me to turn-and-run and stick with my plan G. Please read NLRN.org for lot more information. Do not trust IBM.
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JoeRoth
Dave Naatz