Humana Medicare Supplemental Insurance--is it any good?

November 8, 2009 11:07 AM

Has anyone here had any experiences with Humana's Medicare Supplemental Health Insurance for seniors?

My mother-in-law currently is paying $400 a month for her supplemental insurance with another insurance company. She recently called Humana and got a quote of $98 a month. Sounds a little too good to be true. Any folks out there have the supplemental health insurance with Humana? Have your experiences been good or bad?

She resides in Tennessee and is in her 80s.

posted by I'm Brian and so's my wife! to health & fitness (5 comments total)

My mother had a Humana Medicare plan here in Florida for two years and we were very happy with it. The only reason I switched her to a different plan was because her primary physician stopped taking Humana and she really likes this doctor. I have nothing negative to say about the coverage or interactions she had with Humana employees for those two years.
posted by Lokheed at 11:32 AM on November 8, 2009

Having worked for a benefits broker I only dealt with the Group insurance programs through Humana (not individual coverage) but I can say that they were incredibly easy to deal with and offered really rich plan designs. We never really got any complaints from the people on the plans either. Our client benefits department that actually dealt with them on a daily basis enjoyed working with them.

The only downside was that in the last year a lot of our clients with them received really high renewals, that may not apply as much to you though. I'm not sure how individual plans are written, especially not medicare supplemental plans.
posted by magnetsphere at 4:33 PM on November 8, 2009

I too live in Tennessee. I have had Humana Part D coverage since Day 1 and am completely satisfied. Their formulary has remained reasonably stable and the customer service is very businesslike.

I do not have Medicare Advantage coverage because my physician's practice group does not accept any Advantage plans. My advice to you (her) is to do nothing until you have checked with the doctors and specialists she most frequently uses, as to whether they accept Humana Plans, which ones (if not all) and whether she will have to file the paperwork after each visit or if they will.

Another thing you can do to satisfy yourself is to ask Humana for a copy of their "Evidence of Coverage" booklet. This sets out in fairly good detail what is and is not covered by their plan. You can compare it with her Evidence of Coverage booklet from her previous insurance company to see if she is getting a straight across equivalent with the plan that only costs $98.00.

Lastly, you can go here, http://www.medicare.gov/MPPF/Include/DataSection/Questions/ListPlanByState.asp and research all of the plans available to her in Tennessee, including customer plan ratings. You can also Google the name of any providers you don't recognize and see if they are in the news. (I found one that was being investigated by Attorney General of two states while they were offering policies in other states. This was not Humana.)
posted by Old Geezer at 7:08 PM on November 8, 2009

My grandma (also in her 80s) has her supplemental insurance through Humana and she's pretty happy with it. I think her monthly premium is just a few dollars more than what your MIL was quoted (we live in WA state). Since she went on Medicare a few years back she's had two major surgeries (a total shoulder replacement and knee replacement) and a couple of emergency room visits, and aside from her regular co-pays she hasn't had any out of pocket expenses.
posted by palomar at 10:18 PM on November 8, 2009

Thank you all. She ended up not going with Humana, as her doctors indicated that they would not be accepting Humana plans in 2010.

Again, thank you for your responses!
posted by I'm Brian and so's my wife! at 2:01 PM on December 8, 2009