{"id":7946,"date":"2016-02-14T07:39:16","date_gmt":"2016-02-14T13:39:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.senioradvisor.com\/blog\/?p=7946"},"modified":"2016-01-18T14:41:48","modified_gmt":"2016-01-18T20:41:48","slug":"va-benefits-vs-medicare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d30braiqprupoq.cloudfront.net\/blog\/2016\/02\/va-benefits-vs-medicare\/","title":{"rendered":"VA Benefits vs Medicare"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>VA Benefits vs Medicare<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-7950\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2016\/01\/VA-Benefits-vs-Medicare-350x293.png\" alt=\"VA Benefits vs Medicare\" width=\"350\" height=\"293\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2016\/01\/VA-Benefits-vs-Medicare-350x293.png 350w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2016\/01\/VA-Benefits-vs-Medicare-768x644.png 768w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2016\/01\/VA-Benefits-vs-Medicare.png 940w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><\/h1>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re a senior veteran, you have some experience with confusing benefits. Navigating the wide world of which benefits are available, who qualifies for what, which benefits are compatible with other benefits and how to make sure you get what you should is an often overwhelming and frustrating task. One of the nice side effects of providing service to our country is that you do get access to a lot of special benefits. You just have to jump through some frustrating hoops to figure them all out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re already 65 or older or approaching it, then you\u2019ve probably starting thinking about where Medicare fits into everything. Should you apply? Will it work against any of the other benefits you get? How does it compare to your veterans benefits? It\u2019s a tricky world to navigate, but here are some of the main things you should know.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Should I Apply for Medicare?<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes! Parts A and B for sure, possibly D as well in some cases. Each part of the program covers different types of care:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b><b>Part A <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is for hospitalization, stays in skilled nursing facilities (in some cases), home health care (in some cases), and hospice. <\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Part B <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">covers doctor\u2019s bills and outpatient costs, like laboratory work, medical equipment, and physical and speech therapy.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Part C <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">functions like a private insurance plan that replaces the need for Parts A and B (as a veteran, you probably shouldn\u2019t worry about part C, unless you feel your <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.veteranaid.org\/apply.php\" target=\"_blank\">VA benefits<\/a><\/strong> are too limited for your needs)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Part D <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">covers prescription drugs. Most veterans will get better coverage for drugs under your VA plan, so the only reason to consider Part D is if you want more options in terms of who prescribes your drugs and where you can get them filled.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Part A won\u2019t cost you anything extra, so there\u2019s really no reason <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">not<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to sign up. Part B costs a little over $100 a month, and C and D will both have varying monthly premiums based on the plans you consider.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>But the VA Offers Everything I Need. Do I Really Need to Pay More for Part B?<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s the smart move, for sure. If you don\u2019t sign up for Part B when you turn 65 and you decide you actually do want it after all at some point later, you\u2019ll pay a penalty for it at that time. It\u2019s hard for you to know now what health services you\u2019ll need in the future and you may well find that the VA doesn\u2019t provide everything you need. Part B allows you to seek out services elsewhere instead of relying on the VA exclusively. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2>What\u2019s the Difference Between My Veterans Benefits and Medicare Coverage?<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Short answer: nearly everything. They\u2019re two different systems entirely.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your veterans\u2019 coverage will only cover you when you go to doctors, facilities, and pharmacies included in the VA system. Medicare will only cover you when you go to doctors, facilities, and pharmacies that are covered under Medicare. While there\u2019s overlap in what types of health care needs the two types of benefits cover, the where and how of the treatment that\u2019s covered under each are totally different. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Having Medicare doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t go to the VA anymore; you simply increase your choices by having both. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2>So, Should I Stick With Going to the VA, or Go Somewhere Covered By Medicare?<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It depends. If you\u2019re happy with the care you\u2019re getting at the VA hospital, are familiar with the doctors and staff, and like to stick with what you know, no one will stop you from continuing to go there for most of your care. On the other hand, if your local VA hospital has a backlog or other issues that make you less than thrilled with your care there, you can branch out and try other facilities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You may also start to find yourself having healthcare needs that the VA isn\u2019t as qualified to help you with as other local doctors and facilities are. If you need a specialist that the VA hospital can\u2019t offer, you can go to any doctor in the area that takes Medicare. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Having both options gives you a lot of leeway to shop around and seek out the care that\u2019s best for your needs.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>This Is All So Confusing!<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yep. But are you really surprised? Any time the government picks up the tab for something, they want to at least try to be careful they\u2019re doing things right and not misspending the allotted funds. Hence all the rules and bureaucracy. Sometimes that means that even those who have earned the benefits have to do some work to be sure they get them.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Of course, if you have experience in the military, you\u2019re probably used to dealing with some bureaucracy. Between all the benefits available to you, you should be able to get much of the care you need largely covered. Trust me, some of your non-veteran peers are having a much harder time of it.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>VA Benefits vs Medicare If you\u2019re a senior veteran, you have some experience with confusing benefits. Navigating the wide world of which benefits are available, who qualifies for what, which benefits are compatible with other benefits and how to make sure you get what you should is an often overwhelming and frustrating task. One of the nice side effects of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[200,414],"tags":[26,203,24],"class_list":{"0":"post-7946","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-families-caregivers","7":"category-veterans","8":"tag-aid-and-attendance","9":"tag-medicare","10":"tag-veterans"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>VA Benefits vs Medicare - SeniorAdvisor.com Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you&#039;re a senior veteran, you&#039;ve probably wondered, what\u2019s the difference between my VA benefits and Medicare coverage? 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