THE PLAN PURCHASE REQUIREMENT HAS BEEN CHANGED.
IF YOU BUY A MEDICAL PLAN OR A PART D DRUG PLAN YOU WILL BE ABLE TO ACCESS YOUR HRA SUBSIDY.
I just got off the phone with an Extend Health agent. I was asking questions (of course) and one was pertaining to changing a plan in the middle of the year (Medicare allows a one time change to a 5 star plan if you have one in your zip code) at which point he said - oh, we just got an email this morning from IBM. They changed the requirements for HRA subsidy access. You can access your HRA as long as you have either a medical plan OR a drug plan that was purchased through Extend Health.
That will make life a little easier for some people.
Here are the questions I was asking:
1.
Can I submit bills to my HRA for reimbursement
of medical procedures that are not covered by Medicare such as an annual
physical by a doctor and associated blood tests (assuming I have money left to
do so)?
Answer: Yes, the IRS ruling for HRA accounts only require that it be a medically related procedure or drug cost. Paying out reimbursement money from HRA accounts has nothing to do with Medicare.
Answer: Yes, the IRS ruling for HRA accounts only require that it be a medically related procedure or drug cost. Paying out reimbursement money from HRA accounts has nothing to do with Medicare.
2.
Can I submit bills to my HRA for reimbursement
of doctor bills if the doctor does not accept Medicare insurance?
Answer: Yes – same rules apply as for answer #1. HRA reimbursement has nothing to do with Medicare.
Answer: Yes – same rules apply as for answer #1. HRA reimbursement has nothing to do with Medicare.
3.
Can
I submit bills to my HRA for reimbursement of dental bills if I do not have
dental insurance?
Answer: Yes – same rules as #1 - dental qualifies as a medically related procedure.
Answer: Yes – same rules as #1 - dental qualifies as a medically related procedure.
4.
Both
my spouse and I retired from IBM.
Can we submit bills for reimbursement to each other’s HRA accounts if
there is money left in one account and not the other?
Answer: Yes!!!!
Answer: Yes!!!!
5.
If
my medigap plan is no longer offered by EH in 2015 do I have to switch to a new
EH plan at the end of 2014 to keep my subsidy?
Answer: You have to have at least one plan purchased through EH. You would have to then buy a part D plan through EH if you didn’t want to switch medigap plans. (I did not like this answer because not all part D plans are offered by EH and your drugs might not be covered by plans they offer. My bet is you could lobby for an exception in that case)
Answer: You have to have at least one plan purchased through EH. You would have to then buy a part D plan through EH if you didn’t want to switch medigap plans. (I did not like this answer because not all part D plans are offered by EH and your drugs might not be covered by plans they offer. My bet is you could lobby for an exception in that case)
6.
If
I want to switch to a 5 star Medicare advantage or part D plan during 2014 –
which Medicare allows – will I lost my subsidy if it is not a plan sold through
EH?
Answer: You will not lose the subsidy for a part D switch if you still have an EH medigap plan. You would lose the subsidy for a Medicare Advantage switch. (Again, I do not like this answer and will bet you could lobby for an exception)
Answer: You will not lose the subsidy for a part D switch if you still have an EH medigap plan. You would lose the subsidy for a Medicare Advantage switch. (Again, I do not like this answer and will bet you could lobby for an exception)
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