Under most circumstances when you are covered by Medicare Part B you will be able to keep your current doctor. However some doctors are not accepting new Medicare patients. This is occurring for many different reasons. Some of the reasons are related to the new health care program that is going to take effect in the near future.
When you do change from your current health care provider to Medicare you should ask your current doctor if they have a problem with being paid by Medicare. But you also should let them know if you have a secondary or supplemental insurance that covers the 20% that Medicare does not pay to the doctor if it applies.
Your Medicare Part B is intended to pay for the doctors services that you use. If you don’t have a secondary or supplemental insurance you will have to pay the amount that is not covered by Medicare.
If you move you have to take into consideration that you will have to find a new doctor. You can ask your current doctor if they have any recommendations in the town or city that you will be moving to. There are a lot of rumors about whether there are doctors in many parts of the country that will accept new Medicare patients. These rumors are not always true. You simply have to ask when you choose a doctor and also find out if they accept Medicare assignment. Of course, you can also ask your new neighbors when you move for recommendations also.
If you move or have to change doctors for another reason, you will have to authorize that new doctor to obtain your existing medical records. This is important so the new doctor can see what you have been treated for and what medications you are currently on and have been on in the past.
1 comment:
This is a wonderful post about diabetes and Medicare coverage. Thanks for the great information. One of the main reasons i read this blog every month... Thanks again!
-Loyal reader!
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