_:nf6a1aae21952482396cb719ae26ee83exb0
<http://schema.org/description>
" Federal legislation has decreed that any Medicare Cost plan that is in an area served by two or more Medicare Advantage plans will not be doing business next year. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will not accept any new contracts or renew old ones under those circumstances.\nIn 2017, close to 700,000 people had Medicare Cost plans in 14 states and the District of Columbia. By comparison, 20 million are signed up for Medicare Advantage coverage. While CMS has not given a reason for discontinuing Cost plans, it may be because of the small amount of people enrolled.\nWhat is a Minnesota Medicare Cost plan?\nSimilar to an HMO (health maintenance organization), Minnesota Medicare Cost has access to a network of doctors and hospitals that are Medicare-approved. Expenses incurred are paid by Medicare.\nMedicare Cost plans offer more flexibility than Medicare Advantage plans. Eligible people can enroll any time of the year vs. a specific enrollment period. They can also drop out at any time. They can also use doctors out of a network area as long as they accept Medicare assignment.\nThe ability to use doctors out of network with no penalty is particularly attractive to ‘snow birds,’ those people who travel to the south to get away from Minnesotan winters.\nMedicare Cost beneficiaries can also use medical benefits from one insurance company and pharmacy benefits from another.\n"
<https://medicareonvideo.com/medicare-alphabet/>