Traditional Medicare and Medicare Supplement Insurance allow you the freedom to go to any doctor or hospital in the country that accepts Medicare.

Medicare Advantage Plans are more restrictive when it comes to doctor and hospital choice. For example, Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Medicare Advantage Plans usually only allow you to go to the doctors and hospitals in their network, while Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) Medicare Advantage Plans typically allow you to go to doctors and hospitals outside their network – but you usually have to pay more.

Traditional Medicare and Medicare Supplement Insurance usually allow you the freedom to go directly to a specialist without a referral.

Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) and Private-Fee-for-Service (PFFS) Medicare Advantage Plans also allow you the freedom to go directly to a specialist without a referral.

Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Medicare Advantage Plans, however, usually only allow you to see a specialist if your primary care doctor approves the visit first.

Once you choose a Medicare Supplement Plan, your benefits will not change from year to year – making it easier to plan ahead for your health care needs.

Medicare Advantage plans often change their benefits from year to year and may even decide to no longer offer their plan in your service area – requiring you to reevaluate your coverage annually.

Traditional Medicare combined with Medicare Supplement Insurance covers most medical expenses in full, allowing you to limit your out-of-pocket costs to the amount of your premium payments and making it easy to budget without worrying about unexpected medical bills.

While Medicare Advantage Plans may have lower premiums, you will also be responsible for copayments, coinsurance, and deductibles – which could potentially lead to thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses, making it difficult to budget for your medical costs from year to year.

Traditional Medicare and Medicare Supplement Insurance will allow you the freedom to go to any doctor or hospital in the country that accepts Medicare.

Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) Medicare Advantage Plans typically allow you to go to doctors and hospitals outside their network, but you usually have to pay more.

Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Medicare Advantage Plans usually only allow you to go to the doctors and hospitals in their network.

Private-Fee-for-Service (PFFS) Medicare Advantage Plans let you choose any doctor or hospital, but they need to agree to accept the plan’s payment.