Blue KC may not be the best choice for Medicare Supplement Insurance in Kansas City

There’s no question that Blue Cross Kansas City is a highly respected local insurance company. They insure healthcare benefits for hundreds of thousands of people in 26 counties Kansas and Missouri, and have done so for over 75 years. The old saying is ‘once a Blue KC member and will be for life’.

Within the last five years or so, I’ve worked my way into the senior market for healthcare related insurance products and in particular Medicare Advantage, Part D Prescription Drug and Medigap insurance also known as Medicare Supplement. I’ve always found Blue KC to be a little higher in premium and so I decided to take a look at their newly released Plan G Medicare Supplement. If you are new to Medicare you may not know that ALL Medicare Supplement insurance plans, 10 of them in total, have exactly the same benefits for that particular plan. For example a Plan F from Blue KC has exactly the same benefits as Plan F from Mutual of Omaha. The only difference is the premium that the insurance company charges you.

The cost of Medicare supplemental insurance is different from State to State and even by what zip code you live in. In Kansas City Missouri the rates are much higher that living in Kansas City Kansas. The only thing dividing these two communities is a two lane road called State Line Road. Apparently those folks on the Kansas side must be much healthier as claims experience is the biggest driver in determining those rates.

Research Medicare Supplement

Researching the Medicare Supplement market includes looking at all the companies that sell in your area and as an independent broker, our agency will show you all the rates, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that we would recommend the lowest cost plan for you. The reason being, and based on our experience is that many insurance companies have only recently entered the Medicare insurance field and at first may offer a ‘teaser rate’ just to get you on their books. It’s not often that these companies become insolvent, but it has happened for sure. What is more than likely to happen and as it does in most cases, you will see higher than normal rate increases after month 12 of your policy. You may or may not be able to qualify for another policy based on your health or what State you live in, which means you’re now stuck in that higher rate policy.

So what’s the alternative? We recommend looking at some of the bigger insurance companies like Aetna, Cigna, Mutual of Omaha and TransAmerica for Medigap insurance plans. The reason being they have millions of lives insured and have being doing it for a very long time, successfully.

Blue Cross Medicare Plans

So back to our friends at Blue Cross Kansas City. If you have been enrolled in an employer group plan or an individual or family plan and you’re now getting close to turning age 65 they will start to send you information in the mail about signing up for one of their Medicare plans. You may think that it’s a wise choice to stick with the one you know and trust because they have always taken care of you and paid the bills as promised. But wait! This is Medicare Supplement insurance we are talking about here and it does’t matter one bit that they pay the bills, by law they have to pay the bills. There is no scrutiny or oversight on this. When Medicare approves the claim the insurance company has to pay their part on your behalf. Every insurance company that offers Medigap insurance must adhere to these same exact rules. That is the basis of their contractual relationship with the State Departments of Insurance and the Federal Medicare Program.

Medigap Plan pricing in Kansas City – Highest v’s Lowest Rates.

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Is there any reason regardless of your past loyalty to Blue Cross to pay them an extra $400–500 per year for a Plan F or Plan G?

My name is Paul Bennett and I love to help folks with all things Medicare. We are a small independent agency based in Kansas City, MO and if you would like to check us out please visit our website medigapselect.com or if you want to chat with us please call (800) 405–4802

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