What does Medicare cover?
My husband has had 2 aortic valve transplants. First transplant and 3 bypasses was in 1993 at age 63. He was under school insurance Blue Cross which covered it all. He taught that following year and then retired. At 65 he went on Medicare and Premera Blue Cross Supplement. Since then he had a stent put in his heart in 1999. He had a bleed in his brain 2001 and was in rehab for 1 month. Lab tests every 2 weeks because he had to be on Coumadin for the artificial valve. Then he had a stent put in his leg. In 2010 he had to have the artificial Aortic Valve replaced and another bypass. This time they put in a pig valve and he no longer has to be on Coumadin. In 2012 his kidney levels went low so they hospitalized him for that. He now has Parkinsonism and has seen doctors for that.
I have been fortunate and have not had to have but one hospital stay over night (because my doctor had a concern that didn't pan out) My mammograms and all our doctors visits have been fully covered, We chose the cadilac supplement that would allow us to go to whatever facility or doctor we wanted to go to.
I’m really not the one to answer these questions. I have never paid a bill in my 50 years of marriage. I’ve also never decided our health care. I’m the handy man cook in our marriage. My husband at age 70 finally went on Social Security and Medicare. He is a year older than me so when I reached 68 I went on social security and when he reached 70 I then had my healthcare changed to medicare and a suppliment. By waiting we are getting more in payments. I also signed up in the late summer for social security and a couple months later a woman called and asked if I had a problem getting my payments from earlier in the year. I thought what the heck. I asked her if it cut into the amount of money I get in the long run and her rely was no. I would have been nuts to have not taken the money. Sorry I can’t help you. I can give advice on plumbing, toilet, dishwasher, new locks, how to get a car security system to stop when you can’t get in using the driver side.