Posted on 11/30/2024 9:42:08 AM PST by Attention Surplus Disorder
I've finally come to FR for help understanding this total conundrum. I'll admit, I am completely baffled.
This is in regard to these "senior spending cards", or "Medicare allowance cards"."Prepaid food allowance cards".
You cannot go 5 minutes on the net (and 2 minutes on my phone) without seeing an ad for one or more variations of these cards. Supposedly, they are prepaid cards which allow you to buy retail stuff. Groceries, OTC meds, consumables, etc;
"All seniors over the age of XX are eligible" [this is 100% false] "It pains me to know that many seniors are missing out on this ______ [program]
I get up to 17 spam calls a day and at least 5 mail pieces a week offering these cards. I have called the numbers perhaps 50 times. In 50 out of 50 of those cases, I get asked a few Q's by one caller, then switched to a "licensed agent", then I get hung up on after about four questions from the LA. Every. Single. Time.
Yesterday I called the number on one of the mailing pieces I get weekly. After a lengthy hold, I finally spoke to an agent who said:
1: If you have any sort of supplemental Medicare plan or Mcare Advantage, you are ineligible.
2: The cards are not available in many zip codes (mine = no)
I am simply overwhelmed by the sheer volume of these calls.I am not understanding how much advertising effort is being spent to rope people into some sort of arrangement for some sort of supplemental plan. Does anyone have any insight?
Never seen those..and I am in the target age market...you need better spam protection, maybe?
https://www.aarp.org/health/medicare-qa-tool/what-is-a-medicare-flex-card.html
I get telemarketing calls trying to sell me funeral expense insurance.
If I do die it will be in a duel shooting at telemarketers.
:-)
Therein lies the problem.
The funeral guys, I always ask them if they have a special program for my dead solar panels!
Did you give them your Social Security and credit card numbers?
No?
Well no wonder you were turned down! /s
Like any thing else, buyer beware. Read the fine print.
"I have called the numbers perhaps 50 times."
I think I see a connection here. And that is you are obsessed with this spending card issue.
Let it go, man. Find a new hobby to engage your time.
I have a Medicare Advantage plan. Part of the plan includes a pre-paid visa card. I get $50 per month that I can spend on food on this card. No catches, no gotcha’s .... the only thing is that the money doesn’t role over if I don’t use it. Kroger and Walmart both accept the card. (Haven’t tried it anywhere else and don’t know if it works at restaurants.)
For me, the Advantage has been substantially better than the Supplemental insurance that I previously had. But I am relatively healthy.
To get them to quit calling you, pick up the phone and say nothing. If it is a really call someone will say, "hello?"
If it just disconnects it is a robo call and you did not want to talk to them in the first place.
We had them last year with a Medicare Advantage plan.
Each spouse had a $50 card which was reloaded every month. We used it for groceries.
Key Takeaways:
The Medicare grocery allowance is available with certain Medicare Advantage plans.
If you qualify for a grocery allowance, you’ll receive a prepaid card to use on healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables, eggs, dairy products and meat.
Amounts vary, but the monthly grocery allowance can range between $25 and $200 per month.
....................
How Does the Medicare Advantage Grocery Allowance Work?
In most cases, enrollees receive a prepaid card, often called a Medicare food card. Your grocery allowance is typically credited to the card on a monthly basis, says Whitney Stidom, vice president of sales and operations with eHealth Inc., a health insurance broker and online resource provider headquartered in Santa Clara, California.
The food allowance card makes it easy to pay for groceries at the store, but don’t confuse this card with a Medicare flex card, which some Medicare Advantage plans also offer, advises Bob Rees, chief sales officer with eHealth, Inc.
The Medicare flex card is a prepaid card that you can use to pay for certain health care services and products, such as hearing aids, eyeglasses and over-the-counter medications. The concept of using a Medicare flex card at the store to cover your expenses is similar to the grocery allowance but follows different rules.
What Is the Average Medicare Grocery Allowance?
The dollar value of the Medicare grocery allowance varies from plan to plan, typically ranging between $25 and $200 or more per month, Stidom says.
Some unscrupulous marketers try to make it sound like the dollar value is significantly higher, but the benefit is typically fairly modest.
The allowance also needs to be used within the month – the money doesn’t typically roll over from one month to the next. In other words, use it or lose it.
I think one can self insure for food......................
In addition, keep in mind that the grocery benefit is not part of original Medicare. If someone is trying to offer you a debit card for groceries, it’s probably a scam.
Is the Grocery Allowance Available Every Year?
If you rely on a Medicare grocery allowance, “pay careful attention during this fall’s annual enrollment period,” Rees advises. “Due to changes in federal regulations, some plans offering grocery allowances in 2024 may be forced to drop that benefit in 2025.”
“If I do die it will be in a duel shooting at telemarketers.”
A duel seems excessively fair :)
You must have taken a bite at some ad down the road that made you a a target for this crap.
I am 64 and I have never heard of this stuff. And I am getting ALL of that kind of stuff as I approach Medicare age.
just block it and don’t respond.
Needs to stop replying
I plan on sticking with traditional Medicare
Catastrophic coverage is better.
In theory
United Healthcare provides $50 per quarter on what they call a Ucard. The card is for purchase of misc first Aid related medical supplies and devices.
Scam!
I don’t see the ads, don’t the texts or emails.
Perhaps if you had not dialed those numbers or opened the emails & texts. Since you did, they know they have a “live one” on the hook and they stay at you.
Don’t call & report the emails & texts as spam.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.