Medicare For Dummies, 4th Edition

Patricia Barry is a recognized authority on Medicare who has written extensively about the program for consumers. For nearly two decades, as a senior editor of AARP's publications, she wrote hundreds of articles on Medicare and served as the online "Ask Ms. Medicare" columnist, answering thousands of questions sent by Medicare beneficiaries across the nation.

Introduction 1 Part 1: Getting Started with Medicare 7 Chapter 1: The Nuts and Bolts of Medicare: What It Is and How It Works 9 Chapter 2: Spelling Out What Medicare Covers (A Lot, but Not Everything) 19 Chapter 3: Understanding What You Pay Toward Your Costs in Medicare 45 Chapter 4: Reducing Your Out-of-Pocket Expenses in Medicare 63 Part 2: The Hows and Whens of Medicare 93 Chapter 5: Qualifying for Medicare 95 Chapter 6: Enrolling in Medicare at the Right Time for You 111 Chapter 7: Discovering How to Sign Up for Medicare 145 Chapter 8: Understanding How Medicare Fits In with Other Health Insurance 169 Part 3: Making Smart Choices among Medicare's Many Options 193 Chapter 9: Making Sense of Medicare's Many Options 195 Chapter 10: Choosing Wisely If You Go with Traditional Medicare 215 Chapter 11: Making Smart Choices If You Opt for Medicare Advantage 241 Chapter 12: Getting Help in Making Medicare Choices 255 Part 4: Navigating Medicare from the Inside 269 Chapter 13: Starting Out as a New Medicare Beneficiary 271 Chapter 14: Getting the Inside Scoop on Using Certain Medicare Benefits 301 Chapter 15: Changing Your Medicare and Medigap Coverage 331 Chapter 16: Knowing Your Rights 351 Part 5: The Part of Tens 367 Chapter 17: Top Ten Medicare Mistakes 369 Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Stay Healthier beyond Age 65 377 Part 6: Appendixes 385 Appendix A: Sources of Help and Information 387 Appendix B: Glossary 399 Index 405