How interesting. If I had not called my Member Services rep of my health insurance today and gotten ahold of a young, maybe inexperienced staff from Blue Cross Blue Shield, maybe I wouldn’t know now that beginning January 1, there is a NEW deductible for any prescription medications. I have to pay $385 IN JANUARY before I can have any insurance coverage on ANY of my meds. I kept asking questions and that little nugget slipped out. I haven’t got any plans to have surgery or ER visits in 2026, but who knows, I may be unlucky and have thousands more in copays for services.

I take 6 daily meds. These are necessary meds, not optional. 2 are costing me $100 EACH MONTH copay, each prescription, because insurance has them as “out of Formulary” as “Tier 4” drugs. So $2,400 cash out of my Social Security “income”. This “income” is a benefit because I ALREADY PAID INTO SOCIAL SECURITY for over 50 years. I’ve been paying for this each year from every job I had FOR FIFTY YEARS.

Back to my concern about paying for medication I need. In 3 weeks it will become almost $3,000 a year for 2 meds ($385 deductible + $2,400) that I have to pay for. And I’m lucky (?) to have Medicare ADVANTAGE insurance and lucky to have Blue Cross Blue Shield as opposed to some other insurance? And for the privilege of having this insurance a monthly government-required member fee of $172 a month comes straight out of my monthly Social Security check. I have no choice in this. But hey, my insurance tells me all the time how great it is I have Medicare ADVANTAGE. I’m pissed. I have only 2 more business days to research finding a different insurance company. Or I take a chance and get insurance somewhere that will LET ME get just Medicare instead of Medicare ADVANTAGE. I could be denied because of my medical history.

Here’s the corker: Trump’s federal government wants to cut back even further any medical coverage by Medicare. In addition to the billions of dollars in cuts already agreed to in Congress. Cuts the public still doesn’t know will be made and when they will take effect. How will they will be decided on as to what is cut? Is the Trump federal government just going to stop benefits when it wants to? Are medications included in the billions of dollars of cuts, or services? Or both?

Soooo, if I drop Medicare ADVANTAGE will it be worse for me? No one freakin’ knows. #Medicare #MedicareAdvantage #Medication #Insurance #UShealthcare #HealthInsurance