Hospital Indemnity insurance can help lower your costs if you have a hospital stay. The average price of a hospital stay for seniors is nearly $15,000 for a five-day visit. While Medicare may cover some of this, it won’t cover the entire cost. Hospital indemnity plans are especially beneficial for those with high deductible insurance plans. Below we’ll go over Hospital Indemnity plans and how they work.
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What is Hospital Indemnity Insurance?
Hospital Indemnity insurance can reduce hospital costs, even for those with Medicare. When choosing your plan, you can select a per-day cash amount and benefit periods.
Plans with more benefits will cost more than those with fewer benefits. But, your options have some customizable options. You can use the cash benefit to cover things like medical copayments or deductibles. Also, if you need to use the benefit to pay rent or utilities, you can.
The benefit periods are the maximum amount of days spent in the hospital that your policy will cover. Hospital Indemnity policies tend to include a variety of services.
Benefits can include one of four services:
- Before your hospital stay
- During your hospital stay
- After your hospital stay
- During an outpatient hospitalization
How Does Hospital Indemnity Coverage Work?
Hospital Indemnity coverage is relatively simple to use. With Indemnity policies, you can choose to see whichever specialists and doctors you like, without referrals.
Indemnity plans will need you to pay for your health care services upfront. You’ll then submit a claim to your insurance company and get a reimbursement.
You’ll more than likely need to pay a yearly deductible before insurance pays on your claims. Once you meet your deductible, insurance will pay your claims at a percentage rate.
As long as you’re able to pay your bills upfront, these plans work well, especially for those with high deductible insurance plans, such as High Deductible Plan G.
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Is a Hospital Indemnity Plan Right for Me?
Like with all forms of health coverage, you’ll want to make sure the coverage works for you. While it sounds like a dream to use, it may not be right for your situation.
For example, if you aren’t able to pay upfront for your services, this may not work well. Or, if you have Medigap Plan F, it could be silly to have a Hospital Indemnity Plan.
An Indemnity plan may work for you if:
- If you want a policy that doesn’t place network limits on doctors or hospitals
- You don’t want to have a designated primary care physician.
- You’ll need to be able to pay for your services upfront.
Once you pay, you can submit your claim to insurance. You’ll want to be sure you have the financial freedom to do this.
Even if you have a Medigap policy, having an indemnity plan could be the additional protection you need if you have a lengthy hospital stay.
Hospital Indemnity Insurance Benefits
Some of the most popular indemnity benefits generally include:
- Your hospital Admission for the first five days
- Transportation via ambulance
- Emergency room care
- Radiology and lab benefits
- Skilled Nursing Facility coverage
Of course, there are additional benefits not shown here. You can get a complete list of benefits through your insurance agent.
How Does Hospital Indemnity Coverage Work With Medicare?
Hospital Indemnity payments can work hand-in-hand with Medicare coverage. Medicare may cover a good part of the hospital expenses, but it won’t cover everything.
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Since these plans are Supplemental, you can gain relief by pairing this plan with your Part A and Medicare Part B. But will Indemnity insurance work with other forms of Medicare?
Hospital Indemnity and Medigap
Hospital Indemnity insurance and Medigap can work together to bring you ultimate savings. Medigap helps with medical copays and deductibles that Medicare won’t pay. But Medigap won’t provide the same coverage as Hospital Indemnity insurance.
Why? Well, Indemnity plans can help pay household costs. If you’re in the hospital and unable to contribute financially at home, this insurance can help pick up those costs.
While you’re in the hospital, you want your life to continue running as normally as possible. Medigap helps reduce your health care costs. But with an Indemnity policy, you can gain that extra cost protection on the home front as well.
Hospital Indemnity and Medicare Advantage Coverage
Hospital Indemnity policies can produce price predictability alongside your Medicare Advantage plan. Advantage plans usually have low premiums. But Advantage policies can include deductibles, copays, and coinsurance making them more costly.
Indemnity insurance joins works with Medicare Advantage to help you pay even less for health coverage. If you want the ultimate protection, these two policies may work for you! The results? Comprehensive coverage can give you peace of mind and pocketbook savings!
FAQs
How to Get Hospital Indemnity Coverage With Medicare
Hospital Indemnity insurance can offer plenty of benefits. Most importantly, your situation won't be the same as everyone else's, weigh the pros and cons. You can use an Indemnity plan with Medicare, Medigap, or Medicare Advantage. It can help by giving you some of your money back during an emergency.
You don't have to worry about network guidelines when getting admitted to hospitals. To help you understand Medicare or enroll in new coverage, contact one of our agents.
We'll help you make the best decision possible. When you choose to go with MedicareFAQ, you'll gain access to cost quotes from many different companies. Call us at the number listed above or complete an online rate form today.
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