Complaint Review: Humana - Louisville Kentucky

Although it is currently open enrollment period, the changes that you make don't go into effect until January 1, 2007. This is for all enrollments and disenrollments, this is not Humana's doing, but rather, part of the Medicare law. You may be able to change plans every month if you are dual eligible, meaning you have both Medicare and Medicaid. Additionally, Social Security will continue to draft premiums from your check for quite some time after you disenroll. Reason- they are 90 to 120 days behind in processing the requests to stop deductions. Again, this is not Humana's fault, but Social Security. I think they took on more than they could handle in letting people deduct from their checks. The way the disenrollment will happen- you tell Humana, they update reports sent to Medicare and Medicare then tells Social Security to stop deductions. This whole process takes some time, then more time to wait on SSA. This is the reason I tell people not to sign up for SSA deductions, just pay the monthly bill. It may be about April or May before deductions stop and you receive a refund for those premiums. You can also use Medicare's website to help find a new plan. www.medicare.gov and then click on formulary finder. Also your state's local ship office can help.

If you paid the co-pay on the box of needles, you wouldn't be buying the box of needles. At least I have never had to pay full price for medication (when I've had insurance) and then pay a co-pay on top of that. Your posts make no sense at all. Like I said, the only plauseable expanation I could even find would be that you were in the Coverage gap, otherwise known as the donut hole. This is also explained in the Medicare & you handbook that medicare benificiaries recieve every year. If you are on a limited income, and/or have limited resources there are programs out there to help you lower your bills. You would have to look in the handbook on where to find this help in your state. Most times you just need to apply for Medicaid and they may help you to pay your medicare premiums which, again this year, are going up. They, in some states, I think, also have programs to help you with your prescription drug coverage also. These programs help you in the coverage gap (donut hole). In 2007 the gap starts when the total drug costs(including deductables) have reached $2400 and goes until you have spent $3,850 out of pocket, ($3,051.25 not counting your drug plans premium). I am getting these numbers directly from the Medicare and you 2007 offical gov't handbook. You should have recieved one in Nov. If not you should be able to contact Medicare or Social Security and ask for another one. This lists all the changes to medicare this year, what's covered, health plans, prescription drug plans, and YOUR RIGHTS. You only have a couple of weeks to change your plan, unless you meet certain criteria, which I don't know if you do, and I'm not going to get into that here, but you should probably consult with a volunteer that I mentioned in my earier post to help you pick a plan more suited to your needs. They are not employed by the healh plans, they get no money from the state, they are just there as volunteers to help you make an INFORMED choice. They may also be able to tell you about help with premiums or other assitance that I mentioned in this post too. I'm not sure on that though, every state is different. But I do know that the volunteers will know about the plans. If you don't pick a plan by Jan. 1st, if I'm understanding it right, they do have some sort of penalties this year for missing the Jan. 1st deadline. I am not sure of what those are. You would have to contact Medicare about that. Another option, is to go to the medicare site, they have a place where you can compare plans in your area online. They ask you a series of questions to help you figure out which plans deal with what your specific needs are. Some people need a plan with perscription coverage, some need it with hospital coverage, Some don't need hospital coverage, etc... I wish you luck with your search for a better health insurance provider.

the cost of me being with humana was insurance premiums $420 + the box of needles which was 27.99+ dollars(cost of needles) and the $3.56 + dollars was a co-pay add the $3.56+the $420 =$423.55 this was what I up and payed for humana services.if you can't figure this out .in other words it cost me $423.55 for a box of needles that I could have just walked into any drug store and bought for $27.99+tax.

You have listed a few numbers. I also have Humana and have had both their perscription plan and their PFFS plan. You listed a bunch of numbers ranging from the original $69 coming out of your Social Security check. Then you go all the way up to $420 for something??? Are these copays for medications? You said that you purchased a box of needles for your insulin injections, I'm just assuming you used your insurance for that, and the $3.56 would have been your CO-PAY the way you stated it. NOT savings to you, just a co-pay, like any other insurance. If you go out and get any other insurance, you will run into the same thing. I am wondering if the $420 is the cost of medication that you had to pay for out of pocket when you ran into the "coverage gap". This is where the medicare insurance fails us all and doesn't pay for medications until we hit a certain number of dollars again, then they pay a certain amount again. WE ALL HAVE THIS GAP. So, unless you are on medicaid or the other certain situations that you recieve help paying for your perscriptions/part D, you may have to pay for your perscriptions in full during this gap. Really, you were kind of vauge in your explanation. Every state has people that volunteer that can explain the medicare health insurance plans and programs. I know in my state it's called SHINE. I believe Social Security has a list that they could give you to help you make an informed choice in deciding which plan to choose rather than choosing by which salesman sounds better. I found mine listed in the back of the Medicare & You book that we recieve each year. It was listed under: State Health Insurance Assistance Program. As far as the PPA goes... If you are on any kind of insurance, Medicare/medicaid included, you are NOT eligible. It's on their website. Just click on the astra zenica part and read their eligibility requirements. Most drug companies have this requirements now. Before Medicare got their Part D program I was using a couple of drug company programs to help me with my medications, but that was a struggle to get on those because I had medicaid, but in my state, the medicaid I had, DIDN'T pay for medication, only my medicare premiums. So, in order to get on the programs I had to verifiy (get a letter from the medicaid program) that I wasn't recieving medication help. So, PPA/drug company programs aren't all they're cracked up to be either.