Medicare Supplement Insurance

Retirees want to live their lives to the fullest. With special benefits designed for Retired Indiana Public Employees Association (RIPEA) members, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield provides a health plan that helps retirees be their healthiest to enjoy the things they love. 

When combined with Medicare, Anthem benefits for RIPEA members can help round out health coverage. Participating members are protected from many of the costs not covered by Medicare and receive benefits that go beyond Medicare coverage. These Anthem plans are available to all RIPEA members and their dependents over age 65 enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B.

One of the plans is a comprehensive plan that mirrors Medicare supplemental plan F. The other plan is a Medicare supplement plan G. These are excellent insurance plans that cover you anywhere you travel in the United States. They have been negotiated by an experienced insurance consultant retained by RIPEA.

Members who enroll in the Comprehensive Plan may also add the Value Plus Option which would enhance their coverage for certain routine expenses not covered by Medicare such as dental, vision, and hearing exams. If you are enrolled in the F or G plan and did not select the Value Plus option but are interested in a dental or vision plan, please click on AMBA Insurance Benefits.

Download 2024 Plan Brochure and Application (PDF) to learn about the benefits and application process.

For more information and/or a packet describing this plan, please contact us.

When can you enroll in Medicare Supplemental Insurance Plans?

  • Within 90 days of your 65th birthday.
  • Within 90 days after your retirement date.
  • Annual open enrollment in December of each year.

 

NEW for 2024 - Prescription Drug Plans to Complement Medicare Supplements

RIPEA is now able to offer two optional drug plans from Anthem that pair with RIPEA's Supplement Plans F & G. Click here to learn more about RIPEA's new Part D options. Contact our Medicare Navigators to help you determine what your prescriptions would cost under these plans: 1-800-345-9214. 

  

Additional Perks with RIPEA Plans

DISCOUNTS
Anthem Insurance Plan insureds are eligible for Special Offers - discounts. These discounts include health care items, personal products and services (For example gym memberships) from major companies and over 20 other offerings. Click Here to read about the special discounts that are available now.

Anthem Insurance insureds who would like to read the most up-to-date list of discounts must register at: www.anthem.com to be able to access the information from the Anthem website. Once you are registered, login to the Anthem.com website and click on the “Discounts” tab.

 

24/7 NURSE LINE
Anthem Insurance plans for RIPEA make it easy to get care when and where you need it. They include a toll-free Nurse Line that is available 24 hours a day - 7 days a week to answer your health questions. Registered nurses help RIPEA members get answers about medical concerns and help them decide if they should go to the doctor’s office, emergency room, or urgent care. Click Here to learn more about the 24/7 nurse line.

 

ANTHEM MOBILE APP
Click Here to learn more about the Anthem Sydney mobile application.

 

Medicare Advantage Plan

The RIPEA Advantage Plan is offered and administered by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.  

Check out the 2024 Enrollment Kit. 

Although the (RIPEA) Anthem Advantage Plan works though a large national PPO provider group, insureds may receive services in or out of the network and the coverage is the same in or out of network. This Advantage Plan works through a national PPO provider group that will allow RIPEA members across the US to have access to a largest group of providers.  In fact, the RIPEA Advantage Plan offers the very best provider availability, since insureds may receive services in or out of the network and the coverage is the same in and out of network.  Consequently, network availability is no longer an issue, and you may keep all your current providers.

The biggest advantage of a Medicare Advantage plan is that you may be able to get coverage for benefits that "Original Medicare" doesn't cover; such as prescription drugs, routine dental and vision benefits, hearing test and hearing aid coverage, as well as included memberships in fitness programs. Another advantage is that all these coverages are available in the Medicare Advantage Plan; you don't have to purchase several different plans.

Also, you still have Medicare rights and protections. Out of pocket costs are typically lower, since medical provider cannot charge you more than "Original Medicare" for certain services like skilled nursing facility care and chemotherapy.

THINGS TO KNOW:

ELIGIBILITY: To qualify for Medicare Advantage Plans, you need Medicare Parts A and B.  Normally you would need to live in the plan's service area; however, with the RIPEA plan, the service area is the United States.  People with End-Stage Renal Disease (permanent kidney failure) generally can't join; there are SNPs (Special Needs Providers) for them in certain areas.

ENROLLING AND UNENROLLING:

A) You can only join at certain time during the year unless you qualify for a Special Election Period (SEP). In most cases you are enrolled in the plan for one year.
B)The Medicare Open Enrollment Period allows insureds to switch to another plan or return to Original Medicare and enroll in a Medicare Supplement plan, if they are unhappy with their Advantage Plan.
C) If you enroll in the Medicare Advantage Plan and become unhappy with it, you are eligible during the first twelve months of coverage, to make a switch back to your original coverage.

KEY POINTS IN THE RIPEA ADVANTAGE PLAN:

A) This benefit plan is based on an HMO network, that allows members to receive the same coverage in and out of network.
B) These plans provide Silver Sneakers
C) This plan does not require referrals for hospital care
D) Everything is on a copay or deductible basis.
E) There is an "Out of Pocket" maximum that limits the overall expenditures.
F) There is no age rating; therefore, you will not receive an age increase each year at your birthday. Rates are based solely on claims utilization and medical industry inflation.
G) You may change plans any year during “open enrollment” without completing a “health questionnaire”.  In the RIPEA plans you do not have to be concerned with pre-existing conditions.

You may change plans anytime during “open enrollment” without completing a “health questionnaire.”  In the RIPEA plans you do not have to be concerned with pre-existing conditions.

Please review the plan to understand how it differs from "Original Medicare", and refer any questions to our Insurance Consultant Bill Murphy (1-833-351-0073).

Medicare Prescription Plan Assistance

Bill Murphy, RIPEA’s Insurance Consultant, can help you decide which Medicare Advantage Prescription Plan is best for you based on the medications you are currently taking. If you would like to take advantage of this service, there is no cost associated with it.

Click Here to download a form that helps RIPEA check for plan compatiblity with your prescription drug needs. Please fill out the form and email it to donna@ripea.org or mail to: RIPEA Insurance Trust, 2415 Directors Row, Suite M, Indianapolis, IN 46241.

 

Medicare Summary Parts A, B, C, & D

Medicare was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 and became law on January 1, 1966. It provided a national health plan for senior citizens over the age of 65 and under age 65 with certain disabilities. It was called Medicare. Original Medicare had two distinct parts:

Part A: Hospital Expense
Part B: Physician Expense

View Full Summary

Learn about recent changes to Medicare Parts A and B for 2023.

 

Prescription Drug Plans are divided into 4 distinct categories, listed below:

DEDUCTIBLE: Many prescription drug plans have a deductible, but not all. Deductibles will vary, but they cannot exceed $545 for 2024. The deductible is applied upfront and begins in January each calendar year. After the deductible is met, the actual prescription drug coverage begins.

Prescription drugs are assigned to tiers, according to the cost of the drug. The higher the drug cost, the higher the tier to which it is assigned, and therefore, the higher the copay.

 

REGULAR COVERAGE: During this phase, you pay the deductible (if any) and the copays stipulated by your Prescription Drug Plan. You will continue in this coverage category until the total retail cost for all of your prescriptions (not the drug copays) for the year equals $5,030.

 

DONUT HOLE: The Donut Hole begins when the total annual cost of your prescription drugs reaches $5,030. While you are in the donut hole, you must pay more of the cost of your drugs. In this phase, you are not charged a copay, but you are charged 25% of the retail price. You will remain in the “Donut Hole” until the total retail cost of your drugs reaches $8,000.

 

CATASTROPIC COVERAGE: This phase is designed to offer some relief to those who have carried a heavy prescription drug cost burden over the course of the year. It begins when the total retail cost of your drugs reaches $8,000. (Remember: you did not actually pay the retail price; you paid a deductible, then copays, and finally 25% of the cost of the drugs to get to this point.) New for 2024, in this tier, you will no longer pay for your drugs, for the remainder of the calendar year.

INFLATION REDUCTION ACT was recently passed into law that provides helpful changes to current prescription drug coverage:

  • Beginning 04/01/23, enrollees started seeing lower out-of-pocket costs for certain Part B drugs and biologics.
  • As of 07/01/23, enrollees will not pay more than $35 for Part B insulin and insulin pumps under the Durable Medical Equipment (DME) benefit.

If you have additional questions, please call the RIPEA office (317-789-0244).