Michiganders, take a gander at the excellent Medicare Advantage plans offered in 2021. Read on to find the best one for you!
If you’re searching for the best Medicare Advantage plans in Michigan, you’ll be happy to know that you have options—169 to be precise. In recent years, there has been a surge of Medicare Advantage enrollments in Michigan. Enrollment in private healthcare plans in 2020 represented 42 percent of total Medicare enrollment in the state. This upward trend has certainly played a factor in the increase of MA plans made available, going from 156 plans in 2020 to 169 currently in Michigan.
While having many options can be great, narrowing them down to the best ones can quickly become overwhelming. To help you make the best choice for your healthcare, we’re covering the top-recommended Medicare Advantage plans and providers in Michigan. Plus, we’re reviewing the top Medicare essentials you need to know to make an informed decision.
Did you know that you can use the Insurify Medicare comparison tool to find the right Medicare Advantage plan for you? Start with your ZIP code, and you’ll be comparing plans in your area in just 60 seconds. It’s fast, easy, and confidential!
The best Medicare Advantage plan for you is subjective—it all depends on your personal preferences and needs. And don’t forget your budget is also important! Once you’re crystal clear on your needs, you should then review the options available in your area. A good place to start your search is with the highest-ranked Michigan Medicare Advantage plans. Here, we’ll take a look at the top plans ranked 4.5 stars and up.
**1. Erickson Advantage Liberty with Drugs - Score: 64.81
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2. Erickson Advantage Signature with Drugs - Score: 63.19
3. BCN Advantage Prime Value - Score: 62.73
4. HAP Senior Plus Medical Only - Score: 61.48
5. HAP Senior Plus - Score: 61.48
6. AARP Medicare Advantage Open - Score: 61.48
7. HAP Choice Medicare - West Michigan Option 1 - Score: 61.48
8. HAP Choice Medicare - West Michigan Option 2 - Score: 61.48
Let’s take a closer look at each of these plans.
Monthly Premium: $0
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $400
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $6,700
The Erickson Advantage Liberty plan comes with a prescription drug plan and coverage for popular services like hearing, preventive dental, vision, and more. It’s important to note that while preventive dental coverage is covered, comprehensive dental services are not. This includes services like restorative services, extractions, and oral surgery. If you’d like those services covered, you can select an optional supplemental package that includes comprehensive dental for $40 per month.
Monthly Premium: $199
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $0
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $2,600
This zero- deductible plan offers low co-pays, a prescription drug plan, and additional sought-after benefits, like hearing, preventive dental, vision, mental health services, skilled nursing facilities, rehabilitation services, and more. You can upgrade this plan to also cover comprehensive dental services (extractions, oral surgery, etc.) for an additional $40 per month.
Monthly Premium: $0
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $50
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $4,500
This plan, with it’s low monthly premium, drug deductible, and out-of-pocket limit, comes with a lot of other low-cost coverage. You get $0 to $11 copays on Tier 1 and Tier 2 drugs from preferred retailers. And you’ll get $0 copays for primary or preventive care doctor visits whether you choose in-network or out-of-network. Seeing a specialist is $45 in or out-of-network. That’s a lot of flexibility.
And you’ll also find low cost diagnostic services, urgent care visits, and copays for hearing, preventive dental, and routine vision care.
Monthly Premium: $0
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: n/a
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $4,000
First, we should note that this plan does not offer prescription drug coverage. That means you’ll need to purchase a stand-alone Part D plan, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Shopping a la carte can be a great advantage for some beneficiaries. And this plan packs in a ton of coverage otherwise.
Doctor visit costs are quite low, with $0 copays for primary and preventive care visits. Specialists are just $20 a visit. If you need to stay in the hospital for an extended period, you’ll be relieved to know that your $200 copay per night only lasts for the first week. It’s $0 for days eight through 90!
You’ll also find affordable coverage for hearing, preventive dental, and routine vision services.
Monthly Premium: $0
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $175
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $4,900
This plan offers a prescription drug plan with a low deductible and generally low co-payments for doctor visits, preventive care, emergency care, and urgent care. However, the hospital co-payments are on the higher side. In-network inpatient coverage is $325 per day for the first six days, and in-network outpatient hospital coverage can be up to $275 per visit.
Monthly Premium: $0
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $0
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $4,300
This plan comes with $0 to $25 copays for Tier 1 and Tier 2 drugs from preferred providers. Doctor’s visits are $40 for specialists, $0 for primary and preventive care. Most diagnostic services are low-cost, including some diagnostic radiology services.
You’ll also find $0 to $40 copays for hearing exams, $0 for preventive dental, and $0 for routine vision care. That includes $0 for contact lenses, eyeglass frames and eyeglass lenses.
Monthly Premium: $0
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $0
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $4,800
The HAP Choice Medicare Option 1 plan offers greater service area coverage, made available to four Michigan counties. This plan comes with a zero- deductible prescription drug plan and low co-pays on generic drugs. It also covers most of the bases when it comes to additional benefits, covering preventive dental, vision, hearing, and more. If you’d like to add comprehensive dental coverage to your plan, you can choose between three supplemental packages priced at $19, $21, and $40.80 per month.
Monthly Premium: $30
Health Plan Deductible: $0
Prescription Drug Plan Deductible: $0
Out-of-Pocket Maximum: $3,900
Available in four Michigan counties, the HAP Choice Medicare Option 2 plan offers greater service area coverage than some of the other top-rated Advantage plans. This plan comes with a zero- deductible prescription drug plan and wide coverage for a variety of additional services (vision, hearing, mental health, etc.). Medicare Part B drugs, like chemotherapy, have a 20 percent coinsurance fee. Comprehensive dental care services can be added to this plan by purchasing one of three optional supplemental packages priced at $19, $21, and $40.80 per month.
You should expect to pay about $94.88 a month for your Medicare Advantage premium. You should also set aside $180 to cover your deductible. Beyond the deductible, you should budget for copayments and coinsurance. Copayments are typically $25 to $50. Coinsurance rates, when applicable, vary from policy to policy.
The price you pay will depend on a few factors including:
Your location
The size of your plan’s network
The plan you purchase
Your health conditions/medical needs
So, while looking at averages is a good way to estimate costs, it’s by no means the definitive answer. Always personalize your estimates to your needs.
Below is a table showing the total annual costs (estimated) from each of the top plans in Michigan. This should give you a better idea of how to budget for your Medicare Advantage plan.
Medicare Advantage, also known as Part C, is a popular alternative to Original Medicare (Part A and Part B). In addition to covering everything that Medicare Part A (known as Hospital Insurance) and Medicare Part B (known as Medical Insurance) cover, Medicare Advantage plans also offer additional benefits, such as vision, dental, and hearing.
What makes Medicare Advantage plans difficult to shop for is that they can vary greatly in cost and coverage. Unlike Original Medicare, MA plans are administered by private insurance companies. That means each insurance plan will range in the benefits offered, service area coverage, monthly premium, deductible, and more.
Although Advantage plans are regulated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), there are a lot of varying factors to consider when narrowing in on a plan. That is why it’s essential to carefully compare the plans available to you. Remember that you can always easily find and compare Medicare Advantage plans in your local area by using the Insurify Medicare comparison tool.
There are a few types of Medicare Advantage plans, including:
Health Maintenance Organization (HMO): Recipients of an HMO plan will have access to a network of healthcare providers (doctors, therapists, hospitals, etc.). These providers have a contract with your insurance company that results in a more affordable cost of care. The potential downside to an HMO plan is that you are limited to the providers within your network and usually need a referral to see a specialist. If you are considering an HMO plan and have particular physicians you have developed trusting relationships with, check that they are in the plan’s network.
Preferred Provider Organization (PPO): More flexibility and freedom come with a PPO plan. Recipients can see healthcare providers outside of their plan’s network (although the cost of out-of-network care will be greater than in-network care), and you won’t need a referral to see a specialist. However, with more freedom come greater expenses. In general, PPO plans tend to be more expensive than HMOs.
Private Fee-for-Service (PFFS): This plan allows you to see any healthcare provider who accepts Medicare and agrees to your plan’s policies. The freedom and flexibility of PFFS plans can be very appealing, but at the same time, they can be confusing. You will need to verify coverage with every visit. Some patients prefer to have a list of approved healthcare providers they know they will receive coverage for, rather than having to verify for themselves with each appointment.
Special Needs Plans (SNP): This type of plan is available to people with chronic long-term illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS, end- stage renal disease, or diabetes. Those living in long-term care facilities, such as a nursing home, are also eligible for SNPs.
Medical Savings Account (MSA): These are high- deductible Medicare plans where beneficiaries can draw from medical savings accounts to pay for care. This is not a very common or popular Medicare Advantage plan type.
Michigan residents can enroll for Medicare Advantage (also known as Medicare Part C ) if they meet the following eligibility requirements:
Current enrollment in Original Medicare (Part A and Part B)
Being a U.S. citizen or lawful U.S. resident
Living in the service area of the Medicare Advantage plan you’re considering
Not having end- stage renal disease (with some exceptions)
There are three main enrollment periods to enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan:
Initial Enrollment Period: You initially become eligible for Medicare three months before your 65th birthday. This is the start of your Initial Enrollment Period, which extends until three months after your 65th birthday. During this seven-month period, it’s extremely important to enroll in Medicare to keep premiums from increasing. If you are approaching your Initial Enrollment Period but are unsure whether you want an Advantage plan, you can choose Medicare Parts A and B and later switch to an Advantage plan during one of the two enrollment periods covered below.
General Enrollment Period: If you are enrolled in a Medicare program, like Part A, Part B, or a combination of the two, you can choose to join a Medicare Advantage plan instead during this time. Every year, the General Enrollment Period is from January 1 to March 31.
Open Enrollment Period: If you are enrolled in any Medicare coverage program, you can choose to join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage plan during Open Enrollment, which is between October 15 and December 7 every year.
If you have questions about the enrollment process, you can always call 1 (800) MEDICARE, or 1 (800) 633-4227; TTY users can call 1 (877) 486-2048.
Medicare Advantage offers additional benefits that do not come with Original Medicare. Medicare beneficiaries who would like prescription drug coverage and other services, like vision, dental, hearing, mental health services, and more, will appreciate the comprehensive benefits that Advantage plans typically offer.
Many Medicare Advantage plans include a prescription drug plan (PDP) or the equivalent of Medicare Part D. However, this is not the case for all Advantage plans. If you'd like prescription drug coverage, make sure to read the details of the plan you are considering. If you like an Advantage plan that does not include drug coverage, you have the option to join a separate PDP.
Medicare Supplement Insurance, also known as Medigap, is only available for those enrolled in Original Medicare. You cannot have both Medicare Advantage and Medigap.
Choosing Medicare coverage is a highly personal decision. The best way to know that you’re getting the right coverage and the best value is to determine your personal needs and preferences and use that information as you shop.
You will want to consider:
Monthly premiums
Out-of- pocket costs
Deductibles
Prescription drug coverage
Vision, dental, and hearing coverage
Wellness programs
Size of network
Plan provider customer support
Which features are most important to you? Keep those priorities front of mind when comparison shopping. If you’re ready to find a Medicare Advantage plan that works for you, use the Insurify Medicare comparison tool to find the best plans near you. Start with your ZIP code, and you’ll be comparing plans in less than two minutes. Find better Medicare today!
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