Medicare & Insurance

As soon as I became a member with United Healthcare, I began to receive phone calls from a third party company affiliated with United Healthcare known as BeneLynk.  The callers from BeneLynk seemed to know certain pieces of critical information I had given to United Healthcare, but they didn't seem to have my home address, income, or date of birth.   The calls from BeneLynk didn't seem to be very professional, and they were very aggressive in their attempts to get me to sign up for additional services, so I asked one of the rep's from BeneLynk to send me an email outlining their pitch to me.  However, when I got the email things didn't look right, so I tried to call United Healthcare to report the issue. I called the number listed on the back of my card, and then I had to wait an extended period of time before finally speaking to someone in a call center in South Asia, and my call actually got disconnected once or twice during the process.    Whe

Just a question - opinion Do you like the new way that the Medicare Prescription Drug Program has been designed from the Build Back Better Act?   Do you have need to participate in the financing of your out of pocket cost by your insurer?  If so, does this work out well for you?  Is the maximum out of pocket cost - (2026) $ 2100 - which includes all payers - a reasonable amount - do you reach it early in the year?  

To add a bit more to my post on Medigap premiums increasing -Think about this:If you have a Plan G and your premiums for that Plan G rose to $ 500 a month but Congress passes legislation that caps your out of pocket cost in Medicare (A & B) to $ 5000 per year -   There would be NO need for the Medigap plan.   

I have been on medicare with UHC medigap plan G for less than 2 years.  66 years old male, Ohio.  Low insurance usage, dont even go over the deductible.   My premiums started out at $119, then $143, and now going to $195 starting in October 2026.  These seem to be astronomical increases.  Oddly, my same address household partner, same UHC plan, who is female 71 years old has experienced acceptable premium increases of roughly about $10 for the same period.  Her premium in October will be $187 (compared to my $195).  Note she is 5 years older than I.  Could someone explain these premium increases and different rates per person? I looked forward to Medicare hoping for some price stability, but this is anything but stable.   I never thought I would consider shopping around for other insurance companies, is it wise to switch companies (same plan G)?  Do most people shop around, or just stay with UHC? 

Has anyone enrolled in Plan N ever been charged the 15% medicare excess charge?

My husband went to the lab for his bloodwork before his appointment with the doctor next week. He was told at the lab that Medicare won't cover it stating Medicare will cover one blood work up a year and that September is the only month. I never received notification of this change so I researched on this and found nothing relating to that. Anyone know anything about this? I live in PA

I enrolled in UHC's Plan G here in North Carolina in January 2021; monthly premiums began at $154. In October 2025 I went to the UHC website and discovered that my Plan G — with monthly premiums now $249 — had morphed into Plan G+ and included wellness perks I'd never use. Speaking to a UHC agent for another round of medical underwriting, I downgraded my plan from Plan G+ back to Plan G, monthly premiums decreasing by $75. The agent casually mentioned that Plan G+ had been offered for about a year.I never received any notice from UHC that my Plan G had morphed to G+, never received the option to forego those extra wellness perks, never consented to the higher monthly premiums funding those extra perks. The insurance coverage and benefits for my 2021 Plan G — which later morphed without my knowledge or consent into Plan G+ — are exactly the same as the insurance coverage and benefits for my 2025 Plan G. In 2021, the Plan G wellness perks were called "Wellness Extras" and now in 202

  I've been using AARP/UHC Medicare Supplement Plan F for 12 years with no problems. This year we switched to Plan G, but that's not why I'm writing this. I've been paying for both my wife and I for several years now, since my wife joined up, and that's been working fine. However, since AARP/UHC switched their billing to separate accounts for my wife and I things have really fallen apart. Since May, when the separate accounts were started, I've been paying my premiums every month, faithfully, and on time. Every month, AARP/UHC has been shuffling a random part of the premium that I pay over to my wife's account. So I've never been in a position where I owe $0 and show $0 due for the next month. Which is what should be happening every month. Right at the moment, they have me a $0 for August (that was a battle, took several phone calls), and owing $168 for September after I made my full September premium payment. I keep calling AARP/UHC customer service to get this corrected, an

Hi! My brother has(will be had) WellAbe for his supplement G. He has had knee surgery a bout 3-4 years ago. He went to the doctor to check why he doesn't have full use of his leg. He limps. He also went to get his hearing checked. He knows he needs a hearing aid,and the ones he's tried, to put it bluntly, suck. He received his bills, and this WellAbe won't honor any payments. They tell him now that they don't cover these type of medical issues. Are there any companies that cover this? Any recommendation for a supplement G insurer? Any and all responses will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

HelloI currently am enrolled in AARP UHC Supplement (was in G and switched to N) and I love the benefits. I have no issues at all (except maybe the premiums are getting somewhat out of reach).  I have awful mail service in my area and have subsequently moved all items of importance (pension statements, utility bills etc...) to paperless. My mail was frequently not arriving or getting delivered to the wrong home and I never see it again. I have complaints to USPS - no help there.  Anyway I made sure I changed anything to do with my AARP UHC covererage...billing, EOBs etc...to paperless - I did not want my personal information being lost somewhere in the wrong hands. Unfortunately, I keep getting these useless (to me anyway) monthly personal statements - they are stamped "OPEN IMMEDIATELY" and  all it states is premium paid and what I owe and since I pay before premiums are due, the balance owed is always zero.  It has important personal HIPAA info on i

Has anyone used this to purchase eligible items on Walmart.com or in store at Walmart, CVS etc? I have $75 to spend on my Ucard which is this years version of 'healthy benefits' which worked great a couple of years ago once they got the wrinkles ironed out.  I go to Walmart.com and choose some refresh eye drops (which are also sold through the UHC catalog at a higher price and Nature's Bounty B vitamins both of which are sold and shipped by Walmart.com Both of these items are eligible items however neither of them triggers the $75 OTC credits either because Walmart doesn't see them as eligible (this is unlikely) or because UHC is not showing them that the card has $75 in OTC credits. My account shows the $75 in OTC credits but under 'details' and OTC it also shows I have zero available OTC credits because I have already spent $75.  This was on the very first day.  I haven't purchased a thing. The only thing I haven't tried and maybe I should

FROM THE ARTICLE. Original Medicare Tests CoveragePreapprovals With an AI Twist. Millions of beneficiaries in 6 states need artificial intelligence’s OK for 13 devices and procedures. By Tony Pugh, AARP. Published February 19, 2026. ➡️[*** Key takeaways! (1) 6.4 million people on Medicare are part of pilot program. (2) 13 services in 6 states now have to pass an AI test. (3) AARP opposes the preapprovals. Murky procedures prompt it. (4) Medicare Advantage struggles with prior authorization. (5) Some favor more accountability in original Medicare. An estimated 6.4 million beneficiaries in six states now need approval before original Medicare will pay for certain equipment, services and supplies that their doctors recommend. AARP and other groups are concerned that beneficiaries’ care could be delayed, denied or unduly influenced by technology-assisted coverage decisions in a pilot program that applies to nearly 1 in 5 original Medic

UPDATE: When I first posted this, I had mistakenly mentioned 'Aetna' instead of 'Cigna'. The post below is the same, I have just corrected the company name. I have also fixed the 'Subject' accordingly.-------I enrolled in Medicare 2 years ago in March and have a supplemental plan-G with UHC. I have not had any issues with coverage. However, the mid-year premium jump last year seemed a bit steeper than expected, and they have removed some of the "premium" wellness perks which they had offered. Given the CA birthday rule, I am considering switching to 'American Retirement Life Insurance Company' (Cigna) which also has community pricing. Their premiums are about $161 compared to $190 for UHC. The Cigna plan does not include any gym benefits, but the basic ones can be added for $25 through 'Silver & Fit', which brings it almost in line with the UHC's premium. However, I don't know what the UHC premiums will be come Apr/May. I will be sticking with plan-G, but wanted to ask if

How is United Healthcare allowed to raise their rates mid year?  People budget on the number they're given when deciding on plans.  They should not be allowed to raise mid year. How does AARP allow that to go through and not negotiate for it's members?  

My Xarelto prescription is included in the list of drugs which have Medicare's negotiated rates for 2026. The Maximum Fair Price (MFP) rate that I have seen is $197 per month.  My UHC prescription plan charged me $619.73 for 3 months ($206.57 per month). I've been trying to understand where the extra charge comes from. I read that the MFP should include all fees such as dispensing fees. Any clarification would be appreciated. Thanks

I went to the Medicare site and looked for a company that might have a plan to replace my pathetic plan by Emblem. My wife and I looked at which doctors were part of the United Healthcare AARP plan. When we started, my primary care provider was listed so I went ahead and applied. I got a confirmation letter. Since my wife is being treated for lymphoma and has more doctors than I do, we looked up all of the doctors treating her and NOT one was listed as participating. We looked up five and none were listed. What really upsets me is the wait for a representative but more importantly that they transferred me three times and I wound up in sales because the other representatives would not help me as they probably wanted to transfer me to sales.The sales person told me that she would look on the list to see if there was a mistake and I had "misread" the doctors list. I am a retired teacher - an English teacher- and to imply that I could not follow the list was insulting. The representat

Does anyone have any new insight into whether United Healthcare has plans to expand its UHICA business to additional states?  UHICA is just United Healthcare Medigap without the wellness extras (like gym), and it is currently offered in just 14 states: Arkansas, Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

OK, I've been hearing for the last month that the ACA, and it's subsidies are gone. Finished. Kaputt.  But, I have some co-workers that are still getting bills from Blue Shield that their premiums are still zero, but mine has gone up from zero in 2025 to $1280/month in 2026. I contacted my insurance guy, and he said that the subsidies are not gone; they just reset the income cap down to $62,500/year. So, he said, if I can get my taxable income below that number ( through IRA, 401K, or HSA contributions ) I can still get the subsidy.  Is this correct? He was able to tell me what I have to do, and changed my CoveredCA income down to get the subsidy. But I'm afraid that, if he's wrong, I can get hit with having to repay the years worth of insurance subsidies.

Getting ready to sign my spouse up for AARP UHC Medigap/Supplemental plan G in a few months. When entering some personal info for the price quote, it offers a premium discount for Auto/EFT premium payments and also another “multi-insured” discount. (as follows) “You may be eligible for a discounted premium rate based on your answer below. This question will help determine the best discount available to you.At the time your plan would become effective, will two insureds be on one account and each be insured under an eligible AARP-branded supplemental insurance policy from UnitedHealthcare?“ What does this mean by “will two insureds be on one account” ?What “account” ? On the same AARP membership/account ? My spouse IS currently listed as an additional household member on my AARP account. Do I use the My (i.e. our) AARP membership/account number when I fill out the Medigap application inorder to get this discount ?

Two questions: I turned 65 and started on Medicare in March 2025, and purchased a Supplemental Plan G from UHC.  My monthly premium was $148.  I received a notice that it would increase to $173 in March 2026.  I was also told that UHC might raise premiums again in June 2026.  Is there a limit on how many times or how often UHC can raise premiums in a year? I currently receive a discount because my wife is also an AARP member.  She turns 65 later this year.  If she chooses a UHC supplement plan, I believe I would get a larger discount - anyone know how much that discount would be? 

’Im an AARP member and enrolled in Medicare through UnitedHealthcare and dental through Delta Dental via AARP. When I changed plans, canceling both was unnecessarily difficult — and both continued billing me into January. UnitedHealthcare took hours to reach the right person, and I was told I’d get a refund but given no timeline or confirmation beyond “watch your bank account.” Delta Dental was worse: you can’t cancel online, only by calling a general number and fighting through prompts to reach an agent. Even after canceling, I was charged for two months of coverage I didn’t need or use. AARP markets these products heavily and benefits financially from promoting them. If that’s the case, AARP should also provide clear “how to cancel” guidance when members change plans, including direct cancellation phone numbers — and ensure those lines are properly staffed for AARP members. Right now, the experience feels designed to keep billing going. Based on this experience, I won’

I am writing to share my concerns and feedback regarding my experience with AARP member discounts. As a senior living alone, I do not feel that many of the advertised discounts are fair or truly beneficial. Most restaurant offers require the purchase of a second meal in order to receive a discount or a complimentary item. For someone who dines alone, this does not represent real savings and often encourages spending more rather than less. Additionally, the auto insurance offerings associated with AARP have not resulted in lower or competitive rates for me. Based on my comparisons, the insurance options provided through AARP are not more affordable than other insurers available to the general public, which is disappointing given that seniors often join AARP expecting meaningful financial relief. I joined AARP with the expectation of practical, everyday savings that would support seniors especially those on fixed incomes or living independently. Unfortunately, I do not see

I have been going exclusively to the VA. What should I sign up for? Do I really need the alphabet of medicare? Will parts of the medicare packages effect my VA coverage? I am a disabled veteran for hearing and have been receiving 100% of my medical services through the VA. What won't the VA cover if I do not sign up for medicare other than part A?Thank you,John

OK, I've been hearing for the last month that the ACA, and it's subsidies are gone. Finished. Kaputt.  But, I have some co-workers that are still getting bills from Blue Shield that their premiums are still zero, but mine has gone up from zero in 2025 to $1280/month in 2026. I contacted my insurance guy, and he said that the subsidies are not gone; they just reset the income cap down to $62,500/year. So, he said, if I can get my taxable income below that number ( through IRA, 401K, or HSA contributions ) I can still get the subsidy.  Is this correct? He was able to tell me what I have to do, and changed my CoveredCA income down to get the subsidy. But I'm afraid that, if he's wrong, I can get hit with having to repay the years worth of insurance subsidies.

 KFF.org - 01/26/2026-Sick of Fighting Insurers, Hospitals Offer Their Own Medicare Advantage Plans Seems like a normal course of change - rather restrictive in some cases but it seems like it should work pretty well.  Several already do this -  I would imagine most are HMO type but there could be some PPO types too. Wonder if beneficiaries would trust this type of MA plans any better than those from  MA insurers. What do you think?  Anybody have one - I guess Kaiser could be one and is a good model but what about other hospitals in your area - are they going this way and would you consider them as your MAPD insurer?Are they all HMO type plans ?  What about offering other benefits like dental, vision, hearing?