subject: Do You Know Your Medicare Rights? [print this page] Whether you have Original Medicare (with or without a Medicare supplement insurance plan) or a Medicare Advantage Plan, you have rights. Not just the right to receive service, but a whole list of rights from how you are treated by your health care providers to ensuring the information they collect about you is kept private.
Most seniors probably dont give it a second thought, suggests AlanWeinstock, an insurance broker at www.MedicareSupplementPlans.com. That is until something goes wrong and they need to take action.
If you dont already know what your rights are under Medicare, here is a condensed review of what your Medicare rights include.
Your Right to Proper Treatment
As a Medicare beneficiary, you have the right to be treated with dignity and respect as well as to be protected from discrimination. Discrimination is against the law. Every company or agency that works with Medicare must obey the law. You cannot be treated differently because of your race, color, national origin, disability, age, religion or, in most instances, sex.
Your Right to Information
You have the right to obtain Medicare information that you understand in order to make informed decisions. This includes information about what is covered, what costs are paid, how much you have to pay and what to do if you want to file a complaint. Plus you can have someone help you make decisions when you need it.
You have the right to have your questions about the Medicare program answered and to receive information about Medicare and your treatment choices in a language you understand.
Your Right to Quality Service
Because every second counts when there is an emergency, you have the right to receive emergency care when and where you need it. If you think your health is in danger because you have an injury, a sudden illness or an illness quickly getting worse, you can get emergency care anywhere in the U. S. You dont need permission from your primary doctor.
If you have concerns about the quality of your care, you have a right to file a complaint (known as a grievance) about any payment, service or problem. And if your concern is related to a claim, you have a right to appeal Medicare decisions related to your claim for benefits.
If you need help with filing an appeal, you can have someone else help you. This process is called an Appointment of Representative.
Your Right to Privacy
Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) you have a right to privacy with regard to your health care information.
When Medicare collects information about you as part of its way of doing business, such as paying your health care bills, the information Medicare collects on you is kept private. When they collect it they must tell you why they need, whether it is required or optional, what happens if you dont give the information and how it will be used.
Its important to know your rights, ask questions about them and file a complaint if you feel they have been violated, says Alan. This is true not only of Medicare beneficiaries, but for anyone who is covered under an employer-sponsored, private, Medigap or other insurance plan.
