How can my Medicare plan premium be zero dollars?

You might wonder how private insurance companies can offer zero-premium Medicare Advantage plans. Even though some Medicare Advantage Plans offer a $0 monthly premium you would still need to continue paying your Medicare Part B premium of $198 per month.

Zero premium Medicare plan does not mean free. You should keep in mind that there may be other costs you could be responsible for. Additional costs you may be responsible for include copayments, coinsurance, and annual deductibles.
It is recommended that beneficiaries compare all of the different costs associated with Medicare Advantage plan coverage before enrolling into a plan in their service area.

SPEAK WITH A LICENSED AGENT 877-209-4949 and they will help guide you into a plan that fits your needs.  

All Medicare Advantage plans offer, at minimum, the same coverage as Original Medicare, Part A and Part B. These plans are sold by private insurance companies with the ability to set their own prices and must be approved by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Some of the factors that can affect Medicare Advantage premiums include:

• The federal government pays the private insurance companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans a flat monthly fee to cover the cost of each member's healthcare coverage.
• To help control costs, Medicare Advantage plans usually enter into contracts with a network of doctors and hospitals. If you have certain doctors you want to continue to see, you should find out whether they participate in any Medicare Advantage plan.
• If the plan ends up spending less than the flat fee it gets from the government, it can pass the savings to members by lowering the monthly premium to zero or providing additional benefits not offered by Original Medicare, such as routine vision care.

• Having a pre-existing condition does not prevent you from signing up for Medicare Advantage, unless you are on dialysis for end stage renal disease.
• Unlike Original Medicare, Medicare Advantage plans have a yearly limit on how much you pay out-of-pocket. In 2019, that limit was $6,700 for in-network services, although plans can choose to set it lower than the maximum allowed by Medicare.

How can Insurance Companies Afford Zero Premium Medicare Plans?

• You might wonder how private insurance companies can afford to offer zero-premium Medicare Advantage plans. The federal government pays the private insurance companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans a flat monthly fee to cover the cost of each member's healthcare coverage.
  So costs for Medicare Advantage programs are kept low because the government pays the insurance companies to take care of the bills instead of the Medicare program itself. This helps save government money and resources.
  The private insurers can then save costs by establishing their own networks and set their own premium rates approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). All of these savings help make the plans affordable—as low as $0.

Medicare Advantage Plan premium rates stay low and can range from zero to a hundred dollars. Saving money on a Medicare Advantage plan that does not have a premium cost could enable you to save those extra funds you’d otherwise spend toward monthly premiums. Other out-of-pocket expenses may include:

• Annual deductibles
• Coinsurance
• Copayments
• Prescription drug costs

 Keep in mind that although you may enroll in a no-premium Medicare Advantage plan, you are still responsible for paying your Part B premium.