medicared

[calimac]

I've been officially on Medicare since the beginning of the month. Today was my first chance to try it out, with a previously-scheduled checkup procedure at the hospital, and also needing to reorder a medication online.

My online signup with Medicare from my previous HMO went fine and I got the new card, with the same ID number, on it some time ago. Admittedly I was slightly worried by the mail I kept getting from their sales office, warning that my insurance was about to expire and urging me to talk with them about a new plan. Had the fact that I'd signed up for Medicare not been processed by the system?

Well, not by that system, but my actual medical record transferred over just fine. The only difference is that the new card has a barcode on the back instead of a magnetic stripe, so it goes for a different reader at the checkin desk.

Now I await the gradual cessation of a flood of mail from other Medicare providers urging me to sign up with them.

As the technician at the hospital was checking my ID, she remarked, "ah, you have a birthday coming up." I do indeed.

Comments

[lsanderson]

That 'flood of mail from other Medicare providers urging me to sign up with them' is an annual flood, not a one-time occurrence.

[wild_patience]

Sadly, this is absolutely true. Every open enrollment period, we get reflooded.

[ranunculus]

So true. Sigh.

[ranunculus]

My knee surgery, with Medicare and Kaiser (Kaiser adds $19 per month to Medicare costs) was a whopping $280 plus about $20 for the pharmacy. M's 6 hr neck surgery a few years ago was similar cost using Kaiser as his health provider.