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If she was on a Wellcare Advantage plan, which it sounds like it was, Original Medicare was no longer her insurer, Wellcare was and had the responsibility of dispensing her Medicare benefits.
Sounds like she's now back on Original Medicare as of May 1, probably under the trial right which allows her to drop Advantage within the first year. Hopefully, she's done with Wellcare.
I was on Wellcare Advantage. I should have said that to begin with, but now I'm off it and back on regular old Medicare. I do have Wellcare for my Part D, though - I had that originally and I decided to reapply to use that for my Part D again.
If she was on a Wellcare Advantage plan, which it sounds like it was, Original Medicare was no longer her insurer, Wellcare was and had the responsibility of dispensing her Medicare benefits.
Although that is the correct practice, legally and technically Advantage plans are Medicare Plans. It's not "original" Medicare but it is still Medicare. Congress is not willing to pass the provision of the "Save Medicare Act" that provides for the explicit removal and prohibition on using the term "Medicare" or "Medicare Part C" or any wording that its Medicare, they want Advantage Plans to be officially recognized as a Medicare Plan.
Well, whatever it was/is, I am no longer on Wellcare as of today. I'm back on regular Medicare. Woohoo. However, there's a catch to this, as always.
I ended up in the ER a couple weeks ago because of gall stones. I told them my plan then was Wellcare and the hospital insisted I was on Medicare and Medicaid. So naturally, when they sent the first of the bills to Medicare, Medicare rejected it. So now I have to call and direct them to send the bill to Wellcare. What do you want to bet that Wellcare will ignore the fact I was on their plan at that time and just tell them I'm not on any of their plans and sent the bill right back to the hospital?
I know I'm being negative about something that hasn't even happened yet but in this case, I feel like the the worst thing that could happen is always happening. As in, I've seen this play before. LOL
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