This is where you have to start comparing drug prices and formularies of the plans. If you don’t take much or just low cost generics it may be cheaper to pay out of pocket using Good Rx for example. We pay almost nothing for our limited plan but it works for us.
If you take expensive medication or one that isn’t common then you need to find out if that drug is covered by a plan and for how much.
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Same here. And my husband’s premium for the Advantage plan is zero dollars. He has had every procedure and lab test covered. He usually pays a few dollars at most in co-pays. One year, 11 months to go for me, at $1,000+/month for crappy insurance.
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I pay $79. Not even sure why I made that choice because there is also a similar plan for free. I am near Boston and all the hospital systems are covered and with a PPO I can go where I want. Glad your husband is doing well.
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Another thing to remember is that if a drug is not on a formulary, look at Mark Cuban’s cost plus, Amazon pharmacy and good RX for the meds. I have signed up for the free (no monthly premium) rx plan for the rest of the year b/c DH and I don’t need any refills, but I may stick with it after reviewing what then pricing is on the plans next year, b/c the one med that wasn’t covered by the WellCare plan is super cheap on Amazon pharmacy
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One has to be very careful in what one picks when one first gets on Medicare.
We may be paying higher for our traditional Medicare plan, but we have great peace of mind with the variables going on in our future. If I travel out of the country, I can pay for some extra coverage while overseas. We are looking to probably moving OOS to being where DD1/SIL/grandkids are - in 2026/2027, and will stick with either the BCBS supplement we now have - or if we need to change. I don’t think we will need to change, but will cross that bridge when it comes.
Costco is great for meds if you’re a member. H chose a free-to-us Part D plan because his maintenance med is $0 on his Part D & instead of around $150 on his Part D plan, his other drug is $35 with his Costco member price (that’s for 90 days).
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We do not use our supplement our Medicare B plan company. DH and I buy different part D drug plans each year based on the meds we take and the most cost-effective drug plan for each of us.
We are Costco members, but the Costco is a 20 min drive (or worse in traffic) and I would probably spend $$$$ at Costco if I am there!!!
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I am spoiled by the lack of traffic in my area compared to what others deal with. It would be worth a few extra bucks to skip the traffic if I lived in your area!
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Somebody mentioned a discount if you and spouse both get the same medicare supplement (BCBS) - how do you do that if you must have separate accounts?
You have to check first to see if your state offers discounts for couples or people both living in the same home. If so, when you go on the Medicare site, you just click that option when looking at the plans
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I think for those of us in states that can’t change between plans, it’s hard for us to think about what we need at 65 is not what we might need at 85 or 90.
My husband picked a plan G, the Cadillac of plans. That’s the plan he will have for the rest of his life. He can’t in our state pick an advantage plan and if that doesn’t work, switch to a supplement. He will have to pass underwriting to switch plans. It’s hard to know what to do.
If things were the same in every state, and pricing was similar for all the options, doing this would be less nerve racking.
My husband also has a tier 5 drug, that’s going to be another layer of worry as which drugs are covered change every year.
One of the drugs my husband is on, no drug plan covers. Luckily, mark cubans drugs does for much less money. It’s been a great relief that we will be able to stay on that drug. His tier 5 drug, hopefully it will still be covered in 2026.
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DH and I signed up with BCBS as supplement at the same time, and our state plan said nothing about discount, and I have not seen anything in our state with discount on BCBS as Medicare supplement (Alabama).
BCBS probably doesn’t offer a spouse discount in your state. They don’t offer one in mine (or at least not in my Medicare zone within the state).
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Also, the changing marketplace of providers and what they prefer can make the plan you select at 65 less suitable at 85.
For example, suppose you live in an area where the big providers are Kaiser (need to have the Kaiser Medicare Advantage plan) and Sutter (prefers various other Medicare Advantage plans; does not accept traditional Medicare new patients), while some other providers are out of network for many Medicare Advantage plans but accept traditional Medicare. Can you predict how the provider marketplace will look over the next few decades and which choice now will be best over the next few decades?
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Consumer Report Sept/Oct 2025 (pages 48 -53) “The Best Medicare Choices Right Now”.
A worthy read.
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I use Costco’s online pharmacy and I’m not a member. I can get cheaper meds from them, self-pay, than I can at my local pharmacy with Anthem insurance! It’s crazy. My doctor’s office just messaged me that Anthem denied the refill for my weight loss med, phentermine. And I don’t care, so there! How short-sighted, though - don’t help people lose weight for pennies a month when you can spend many, many dollars on them when they get diabetes. 
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My Medicare Advantage plan will cover up to 12 months out of state, and provide a PCP in that state. I have not checked on over seas coverage as yet.
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I’m wondering whether those of you who have what they consider very good Advantage plans have plans associated with their former employers or unions?
Anyone have a personal/family dental plan they like?