Do I Need to Consider a Medicare Supplement Plan?

Dave recommends considering Medicare supplement plans as an option to cover gaps in Medicare. It is important to keep in mind, however, that options can be challenging to review since they can change from state to state. The supplement plans pick up where Medicare falls short, but keep in mind that if you have a healthy emergency fund, you can use that to help cover some of these costs as an alternative. Medicare Advantage plans are available in certain areas as well. These are basically private health insurance companies that take over completely for Medicare and often provide broader benefits at lower costs. However, many operate like an HMO, offering higher benefits but more restrictive physician and hospital lists. Since medical expenses are one of the primary reasons that people run out of savings during retirement, having a supplement plan can be very important. You should look at the overall costs and benefits of each plan and remember to use your emergency fund to help in this calculation.