Every American is entitled to Medicare at age 65. Some people will qualify for Medicare before age 65, such as though with kidney disease. Medicare is a government-sponsored health care insurance that covers nearly all medical expenses. On Medicare, individuals have many health care expenses paid for by government funds.
In todays society where so many on health insurance are denied treatment for pre-existing conditions or have insurance that cuts them off, Medicare is perhaps one of the most generous insurance plans in this country. The average premium for private healthcare coverage in America is $350 per person per month. Deductibles average around $1000 per year before that insurance pays for anything.
Medicare has low premiums. Medicare has low deductibles. On Medicare, the co-pay is as low as $10 for doctors visits. The prescription plan is less than $100 per month. Then the co-pay for prescriptions is another $10.
Medicare offers virtually unlimited doctor’s visits, even to specialists, at the low co-pay rate. All procedures are covered, and co-pay remains very low. Medicare covers home help and nursing home care for up to 3 months. Over the years, Medicare continues to take on more and more expenses in medical care.
Many elderly have very little and most would not have insurance at all if they did not apply for Medicare. The government stepped in and provided Medicare so that the elderly would have access to medical care.
Unfortunately, Medicare is going broke. With medical costs rising exponentially each year and the elderly living longer and longer, Medicare is experiencing a dramatic rise in costs. As the baby-boomers are beginning to apply for Medicare, the costs are growing even faster than before. The system will not be able to support the future generations if the costs continue to rise at these same rates. As people are living longer and costs of medical care increases, Medicare will have to adapt to these increasing financial burdens.
For those that are younger than the baby-boomers, it would be a good idea not to rely on Medicare of Social Security. It is unlikely they will be the same programs in 20 years, if they even exist. It s likely that we will see dramatic changes to Medicare before the rest of us reach age 65.