is Medicare Advantage the only choice (I'd rather avoid Advantage Plans for me/my spouse as expensive and limiting for coverage) or could i choose Medicare (I qualify) with BofA Retiree as secondary and has anyone found that has worked out for coverage and cost? I have heard from hospital staff I know that BofA Aetna Medical in general is actually good vs others for covering various non-basic expenses for pre-retirees. Happy Easter and to all.
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I've been on Medicare Advantage United Health Care for a couple of years. I keep hearing these advantage plans su-k which is unnerving, but have seen no evidence. I have some very expensive medications , infusions, etc and have never been denied. My copays are small or none.
If someone wants to explain what the horror stories are about, I'd be happy to listen. Maybe I've been lucky, or I haven't hit a certain amount of cost.
My only fear is a future where everything is privatized. And then we get squeezed.
I retired less than 3 years ago with the rule of 60. My high deductible insurance for a family using COBRA would have been $1800. The BAC retirement rate for the same insurance policy was $2800 a month. ?!?!? Thanks for nothing BAC. Well, except for the free checking I mean.
@4crr+1rOrFcBO - have to say, I find it hard to disagree. While I have only looked at costs at this point -- not actual coverages and lifetime limits -- having access to AETNA for ~similar cost may be important enough to me to stay on it. AETNA has never denied any claim, whereas my family's luck with BC/BS or god forbid, Kaiser, not so good.
That said, BAC has GREATLY reduced ALL benefits across the board for retireees.
We don't even get Free Checking anymore (even with >30 years of service!) unless we maintain a very high balance for no yield.
They are essentially voting us off the island, while bragging in the press about how great an employer they are for meaningless magazine awards, which are apparently more important to Management than their actual employees
@2qlt+1rOrFcBO if I understand you correctly you confirm the little research I've done on Medicare in that on some level the premiums are roughly in line with the monthly charges I pay for the luxury of being part of BAC plan. The cynic in me says this isn't accidental. WTF is the difference if my employer who is already giving me the shaft 6 ways to Sunday isn't offering me any more than uncle Sam. WTF am I suffering through the banks daily torment on top of it? I don't need the FIN aggrevation of this place and I will gleefully give them the bird when I'm damn good and ready and every single day I ask myself is this the day.
My goodness, THANK YOU for posting that walkthrough! I'm' the one that asked. Appreciate your time greatly!
Thanks @2cyv+1rOrFcBO. In case it's not clear, you may stay on the current plan, but pay both employer and employee portions. I think you can do that for 18 months. The retiree Advantage plan is different. UHC takes your Medicare payment as a capitation, and you also pay (it's nearly $500/mo for us, probably less in most states), and all together the plan covers just about everything except for some minor co-pays. I suspect this plan is good because BAC HR negotiates it rather than take-it-or-leave-it from the insurer, and also UHC makes plenty from the employee coverage and may not be so avaricious with the retirees. Other insurers offer Advantage plans where you put up from zero to a lot, and get corresponding benefits.
@2gte+1rOrFcBO -- from your home or office computer (or mobile device):
- Go to https://www.bankofamerica.com/information/associates/
- Scroll down below the big image and click on "Benefits" tab.
- Select "MyBenefits Resources" for Active Employees
(you'll be prompted to Authenticate, but it's fine. I check it every year plotting my exit)
- Click on "Update Your Coverage" which will bring up abunch of choices like Marriage, Birth, Adoption, etc.
- Select "Retirement Modeling".
You're Welcome. :-)
Or you can just call the HR Helpline, select Healthcare/Medical, tell the rep your (pretend) FA is asking for an estimated cost of bank healthcare for "long-term" planning. They don't pry and are very helpful. I've called them a few times and so have several teammates. No repercussions at all.
They may just send you to the calculator mentioned above, but either way you'll get a concrete number for the cost of benefits commensurate with what you have now.
Hope this helps.
Where can I find info on this? I searched and didnt locate retiree medical benefits, I'd like to read into it.
As to the costs: Are they age adjusted? What I mean is, I know a 50 year old that is paying the same rate as a 23 year old employee, with me in between paying the same as them, the cheapest HDHP option. Is the retiree medical rate the same exact amount (but both employee and employer portions)? Because...that might be not a bad deal.
If its a marketplace age adjusted plan, then, lol, medicare here we come.
@1pla+1rOrFcBO - not entirely true. Today when you retire (non-legacy), you "get" the option to stay on the bank's medical plan but pay full freight (employee + employer portion).
It's also an EPO instead of the POS plan we get as employees.
(ok, so not a great option, BUT it ain't nuthin either. While pricey, it does not have the same lifetime limits of other non-BofA plans.)
that said, I'd never choose to get locked into Medicare Advantage.
I'm guessing you are a retiree with certain legacy benefits? because today... when you retire, you get nothing.
Oh wait you get a free checking account for life woohoo
In my experience the BofA Advantage plan via UHC is excellent. I don't see any difference from the pre-retirement Aetna plan -- just about everything is covered. OTOH, it is somewhat expensive.
@mbb+1rOrFcBO For sure, because we know how efficiently the government things...
Honestly? Start voting for single payer so it's all free. Health care costs isn't something that any of us should have to worry about.