A Medicare Medical Savings Account is a type of Medicare Advantage plan in which it is paired with a high deductible and a savings account to pay for your care.
How does a Medicare Medical Savings Account work?
After you choose a high-deductible Medicare Medical Savings Account (Medicare MSA) plan, you’ll set up your own account with a bank the plan selects. Medicare then places money in your account each year for your health care. This is your money and any balance remaining at your death will go to your beneficiaries.
You can use the money in your account to pay your health care costs, including health care costs that aren’t covered by Medicare. When you use account money for Medicare-covered Part A and Part B services, it counts towards your plan’s deductible. If you use all of the money in your account and you have additional health care costs, you’ll have to pay for your Medicare-covered services out-of-pocket until you reach your plan’s deductible.
After you reach your deductible, your plan will cover your Medicare-covered services. If there is money left in your account at the end of the year it stays in the account and may be used for health care costs in future years.
"We work for YOU not the insurance companies"
What do Medicare Medical Savings Account cover?
After you reach your deductible, your Medicare MSA will cover Medicare Part A and Part B benefits and may include additional benefits like:
- Dental
- Fitness memberships
- Hearing
- Nutrition programs
- Over-the-counter drugs
- Services for those with chronic conditions
- Transportation to healthcare appointments
- Vision
- Wellness programs
When you can enroll in Medicare Advantage plans
You can enroll in Part C when you first get Medicare. Medicare’s initial enrollment period is three months before you turn 65 and lasts until three months after.
There is also an annual election period and an open enrollment period in which you can get an Advantage plan.
Medicare’s annual election period, or AEP, begins October 15 and runs through December 7 every year.
Medicare Advantage’s open enrollment period is from January 1 through March 31.
During this time you can switch to another MA plan or disenroll and go back to Original Medicare.
There are also special election periods.
These are triggered qualifying life events that allow you to make changes to your Medicare health coverage immediately.
Some examples that would qualify you for a special election period include unintentional loss of coverage, getting married, and moving out of your current plan’s area. But there are many things that would trigger a special election period.
