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Insurance 101

An important way to be well protected in retirement is to know the answers to frequently asked questions about insurance. The first fact: Medicare doesn’t cover everything. But you have options to fill the gaps.

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How to select retirement insurance

1
Choose your Medicare base coverage
Your first step is to decide which Medicare part(s) will serve as your base coverage: 1) Original Medicare, which includes Parts A and B; or 2) Medicare Advantage, known as Part C.
2
Research Medicare Supplement plans
Medicare doesn’t cover everything. If you select Original Medicare, you’re next step is to compare the 10 standardized Medicare Supplement plans and decide which one is right for you.
3
Fill gaps with supplemental insurance
You may need additional supplemental insurance, such as Hospital Indemnity or Short-term Care insurance, to help offset Medicare’s out-of-pocket costs, depending on your situation.
4
Don't forget estate planning
Don’t overlook prefunding end-of-life expenses when retirement planning. Preplanning with Preneed insurance allows you to decide every detail of your funeral and set up payments to cover the costs.

    


1. Choose your Medicare base coverage

    

2. Research Medicare Supplement plans

3. Fill gaps with supplemental insurance

  

When should you buy supplemental health insurance?

Kelly Rayburn, AVP national sales and distribution at Wellabe, and Olga Villaverde, from Lifetime TV’s The Balancing Act, discuss when is the best time to purchase supplemental health insurance plans around retirement.

Learn more

More topics at thebalancingact.com

4. Don't forget estate planning

  

Tools

    

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Medicare Select hospital lookup

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Funeral planning guide

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Calculate funeral expenses

Explore and learn more

Wellabe offers life and supplemental health insurance plans to help you prepare for good days and bad. We’ll always be here to empower you to be well — well prepared, well protected, and well loved.

Are you unclear when you hear insurance terms? Like what’s the difference between guaranteed issue and precertification? Our glossary page can help.