Monday, October 25, 2021

IBM Medicare Via Benefits part D alert for 2022

 If you got a letter from your 2021 part D (aka Rx) insurance plan about your plan being consolidated into another plan OR your part D plan is being terminated you must pay attention to that letter for two reasons.

First, if your part D plan is being terminated, you MUST buy a new part D plan before the end of FEBRUARY 2022.  If you wait until January to buy that new plan, you will not have part D insurance during January. Your coverage will begin February 1, 2022.  If you wait until February to buy the new plan, you will not have part D insurance until March 1, 2022.  As important to consider, if you get your HRA benefit based on having bought the part D from Via Benefits (and bought your medigap another way), you will lose access to your HRA funding until you buy the new part D plan, which must be purchased through Via Benefits.

A more subtle problem with part D plans is plan consolidation.  Again, you should have received a letter from your 2021 plan about this if it affects your plan.  Again, this problem only applies to people who did not buy their medigaps from Via Benefit. If your part D plan is being folded into, aka consolidated into another plan, you still have to "buy" that plan through Via Benefit even though the move to the new plan is automatic.  Also, if the plan you are automatically being moved to is not in Via Benefit's inventory, then you must change to a part D plan Via sells. 

You HAVE to read the ANOC notice you receive every year from your part D and Medicare Advantage plans to make sure the change the insurance company makes does not affect your access to your HRA. Reminder, Via Benefits is an insurance broker.  If you don't buy at least one medical plan through them, you will lose access to your HRA for the year.  That's a costly mistake.

No comments:

Post a Comment