In a town forum Friday, seniors in North Conway expressed that they were caught off guard when they found out many of their Medicare Advantage plans were cut before open enrollment in early October. After carriers like Aetna and Humana pulled out of the market, many Carroll County seniors were left with only one option if they wanted a Medicare Advantage plan.
Over 60 seniors shared their concerns with New Hampshire Insurance Commissioner D.J. Bettencourt in an open forum hosted by the state insurance department at the Gibson Center for Senior Services in North Conway. Another forum took place earlier in the week at a church in North Conway.
Some seniors whose plans were cut must now figure out how to enroll in a new plan for the first time in years. Others said they were worried about their plan options, increase in premiums and changes to the drug prescription plans.
Bettencourt advised seniors to take advantage of the option for free help through the state and work directly with a licensed insurance broker to find the plan that’s the best fit for them:
“When you're working with … an agent or a broker who are going to sit down with you and get to understand you as a person, what your needs are, what your background is, your history, and then get to work trying to find the best arrangement possible for you."
Bettencourt also said that if they can afford it, seniors should consider going with Medicare Parts A and B and pairing with a supplemental plan.
He also warned them that with narrow options, seniors should watch out for scammers that are taking advantage of people desperate for help. Bettencourt said the state insurance department can put people in touch with licensed agents.
“Utilize your resources, but do your due diligence to ensure that the resource you are using is a legitimate source of information,” Bettencourt said. “If you have questions about that, call my department.” The NH hotline for Medicare Advantage questions is (603) 271-2261.
He advised seniors not to wait to look at their options before the extended enrollment period closes on Dec. 31. That deadline is for those who have lost their current Medicare Advantage coverage or their Part D drug plans. The regular deadline is Dec. 7.
“We can hand you off to someone who can deal with your particular challenge in the event that we cannot,” Bettencourt said. “So use us. Use the agents, use the brokers. We're here to do our very, very best to help you through this difficult time.”
Protestors with the Mount Washington Valley Resistance — a group that’s organized No Kings protests in the area— gathered outside the open forum to call on Bettencourt to speak to potential rate hikes in health insurance marketplace premiums if enhanced premium tax credits are not extended by the federal government.
One attendee, Siena Kaplan-Thompson, said for her family, premiums could triple— from $116 a month to $350. She said they are considering choosing a lower tier plan to adjust because this is a time where budgets are tight for her household.
“Housing costs are going way up, food prices are still elevated,” Kaplan-Thompson said. It's just a cruel moment to cut the assistance that people are relying on for health insurance.”
At the forum, Bettencourt said he’s “been clear” that he believes the tax credits should be extended.
“I've talked to the federal delegation very clearly about that,” Bettencourt said. “I've said unless you're going to bring additional reforms forward to the ACA to help on the premium side of things, those tax credits ought to be extended.”
Kaplan-Thompson said she is disappointed and concerned that New Hampshire's U.S. Senators have agreed to reopen the government without achieving an extension on subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.
