Ahip 2025 final
Mrs. Lyons is in good health, uses a single prescription, and lives independently in her own home. She is attracted by the idea of maintaining control over a Medical Savings Account (MSA), but is not sure if the plan associated with the account will fit her needs. What specific piece of information about a Medicare MSA plan would it be important for her to know, prior to enrolling in such a plan?
All MSAs cover Part A and Part B benefits, but not Part D prescription drug benefits, which could be obtained by also enrolling in a separate prescription drug plan.
You will be holding a sales event soon, at which you would like to offer door prizes to attendees. Under guidelines from the Medicare agency, what types of gifts or prizes would not be allowed in this situation?
Gift cards or gift certificates of $15 or less that can be readily converted to cash.
Mr. Sanchez has just turned 65 and is entitled to Part A but has not enrolled in Part B because he has coverage through an employer plan. If he wants to enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan, what will he have to do?
He will have to enroll in Part B.
Mr. Wendt suffers from diabetes which has gotten progressively worse during the last year. He is currently enrolled in Original Medicare (Parts A and B) and a Part D prescription drug plan and did not enroll in a Medicare Advantage (MA) plan during the last annual open enrollment period (AEP) which has just closed. Mr. Wendt has heard certain MA plans might provide him with more specialized coverage for his diabetes and wants to know if he must wait until the next annual open enrollment period (AEP) before enrolling in such a plan. What should you tell him?
If there is a special needs plan (SNP) in Mr. Wendt's area that specializes in caring for individuals with diabetes, he may enroll in the SNP at any time under a special election period (SEP)
Mr. Torres has a small savings account. He would like to pay for his monthly Part D premiums with an automatic monthly withdrawal from his savings account until it is exhausted, and then have his premiums withheld from his Social Security check. What should you tell him?
In general, he must select a single Part D premium payment mechanism that will be used throughout the year.
Mrs. West wears glasses and dentures and has enjoyed considerable pain relief from arthritis through massage therapy. She is concerned about whether or not Medicare will cover these items and services. What should you tell her?
Medicare does not cover massage therapy, or, in general, glasses or dentures.
Mr. Rainey is experiencing paranoid delusions and his physician feels that he should be hospitalized. What should you tell Mr. Rainey (or his representative) about the length of an inpatient psychiatric hospital stay that Medicare will cover?
Medicare will cover a total of 190 days of inpatient psychiatric care during Mr. Rainey's entire lifetime.
Mrs. Paterson is concerned about the deductibles and co-payments associated with Original Medicare. What can you tell her about Medigap as an option to address this concern?
Medigap plans help beneficiaries cover Original Medicare benefits, but they coordinate with Original Medicare coverage.
Mr. Carlini has heard that Medicare prescription drug plans are only offered through private companies under a program known as Medicare Advantage (MA), not by the government. He likes Original Medicare and does not want to sign up for an MA product, but he also wants prescription drug coverage. What should you tell him?
Mr. Carlini can stay with Original Medicare and also enroll in a Medicare prescription drug plan through a private company that has contracted with the government to provide only such drug coverage to eligible Medicare beneficiaries.
Mr. Landry is approaching his 65th birthday. He has signed up for Medicare Part A, but he did not enroll in Part B because he has employer-sponsored coverage and intends to keep working for several more years. But he is considering enrolling in Part D prescription drug coverage because he believes it is superior to his employer plan. How would you advise him?
Mr. Landry is eligible for Part D since he has Part A, and his initial enrollment period (IEP) for Part D will continue for three months after his 65th birthday.
Mrs. Radford asks whether there are any special eligibility requirements for Medicare Advantage. What should you tell her?
Mrs. Radford must be entitled to Part A and enrolled in Part B to enroll in Medicare Advantage.
Ms. Gibson recently lost her employer group health and drug coverage and now she wants to enroll in a PPO that does not include drug coverage. What should you tell her about obtaining drug coverage?
She can enroll in the PPO, but she will not be able to purchase a stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription drug plan.
One of your clients, Lauren Nichols, has heard about a Medicare concept from one of her neighbors called TrOOP. She asks you to explain it. What do you say?
TrOOP stands for true out-of-pocket expenses that count toward the Medicare Part D catastrophic limit and include not only expenses paid by a beneficiary but also in some instances drug manufacturer discounts.
Anita Magri will turn age 65 in August 2023. Anita intends to enroll in Original Medicare Part A and Part B. She would also like to enroll in a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plan. Anita's older neighbor Mel has told her about the Medigap Plan F in which he is enrolled. It not only provides foreign travel emergency benefits but also covers his Medicare Part B deductible. Anita comes to you for advice. What should you tell her?
You are sorry to disappoint Anita, but a Medigap F plan is no longer available to those who turn age 65 after January 1, 2020. Anita might instead consider other Medigap plans that offer foreign travel benefits but do not cover the Part B deductible.
Mr. Barker enjoys a comfortable retirement income. He recently had surgery and expected that he would have certain services and items covered by the plan with minimal out-of-pocket costs because his MA-PD coverage has been very good. However, when he received the bill, he was surprised to see large charges in excess of his maximum out-of-pocket limit that included some services and items he thought would be fully covered. He called you to ask what he could do? What could you tell him?
You can offer to review the plans appeal process to help him ask the plan to review the coverage decision.
A Medicare beneficiary has walked into your office and requested that you sit down with her and discuss her options under the Medicare Advantage program. Before engaging in such a discussion, what should you do?
You must have her sign a scope of appointment form, indicating which products she wishes to discuss. You may then proceed with the discussion.
Mr. Kelly wants to know whether he is eligible to sign up for a Private fee-for-service (PFFS) plan. What questions would you need to ask to determine his eligibility?
You would need to ask Mr. Kelly if he is enrolled in Part A and Part B and if he lives in the PFFS plan's service area.
What impact, if any, have recent regulatory changes had on Medigap plans?
b. The Part B deductible is no longer covered for individuals newly eligible for Medicare starting January 1, 2020.
Mrs. Mulcahy, age 65, is concerned that she may not qualify for enrollment in a Medicare prescription drug plan because, although she is entitled to Part A, she is not enrolled under Medicare Part B. What should you tell her?
An individual who is entitled to Part A or enrolled under Part B is eligible to enroll in a Medicare prescription drug plan. As long as Mrs. Mulcahy is entitled to Part A, she does not need to enroll under Part B before enrolling in a prescription drug plan.
Agent Chan is conducting a sales presentation on senior issues where he hopes to enroll some attendees in the Medicare Advantage (MA) plans he represents. What action(s) may Agent Chan take during the event?
Discuss plan specific information such as premiums and benefits.
Mr. Zachow has a condition for which three drugs are available. He has tried two but had an allergic reaction to them. Only the third drug works for him and it is not on his Part D plan's formulary. What could you tell him to do?
Mr. Zachow has a right to request a formulary exception to obtain coverage for his Part D drug. He or his physician could obtain the standardized request form on the plan's website, fill it out, and submit it to his plan.
Mrs. Chou likes a Private Fee-for-Service (PFFS) plan available in her area that does not include drug coverage. She wants to enroll in the plan and enroll in a stand-alone prescription drug plan. What should you tell her?
She could enroll in a PFFS plan and a stand-alone Medicare prescription drug plan.