Share your Medicare story with MONEY magazine
October 12, 2011: 8:56 AM ETDo you have a story to tell about how someone sold you a Medicare plan? MONEY magazine would like to hear about it.
For people who will be covered by Medicare next year, it's almost time to pick a plan. If you or a relative uses Medicare for health coverage, you'll need to be wary of marketing programs that could persuade you to make a bad choice.
Three years ago, in response to rampant abuses in the sale of Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D plans -- health insurers stalking seniors outside grocery stores, for example -- Medicare enacted stricter guidelines on how these plans could be sold. The new rules have helped a lot, but problems persist.
Have you or a relative had issues with what an agent or insurer did to sell you a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan? These actions might include:
- Cold-calling or knocking on your door unannounced in order to sell you a plan.
- Pitching you something very different from the plan you've requested information about.
- Telling you that your doctor or medicine was covered by a plan, even though they weren't.
- Not explaining the full costs of coverage, such as co-pays or out-of-network fees.
People have found that it's not easy to get out of the wrong plan once you're in it, so knowing how to avoid these problems in the first place is extremely important.
If you'd like to share your story with MONEY and its readers about your Medicare marketing mess -- and how you fixed it, if you could -- please fill out the confidential form below. A MONEY staffer may follow up to ask more about your situation. In no case will the magazine publish your name or your story without speaking with you first to get your permission.
Thanks!
