Medicare confusion hurts your health and costs you money. Experts help explain what you need to know

Wrong.

In fact, several recent surveys show that most Medicare beneficiaries are quite confused about Medicare’s coverage and costs.

For example, in a MedicareAdvantage.com survey of 2,013 people aged 65 to 99, 65% of Medicare beneficiaries said the government’s health insurance program was confusing and difficult to understand. This is the third year the site conducted a similar survey and confusion about Medicare abounded each time.

Medicare confusion: ‘surprising and troubling’

“It’s equal parts surprising and troubling,” says Christian Worstell, who conducted the recent survey. “I write about Medicare as my full-time job, and I agree that it is confusing. Imagine how confusing it is for someone not reading about it, researching it and writing about it every day.”

In a Retirement Living survey of 351 beneficiaries of private insurers’ Medicare Advantage plans (the alternative to Original Medicare), only 44% say they fully understand their plan. One in eight misinterpreted aspects of their plan after enrolling.

But, Worstell says, “knowledge is power when it comes to making the most of your benefits and enrolling in the right coverage that fits your needs.”

When Medicare beneficiaries or people about to enroll in Medicare don’t understand how it works, they can wind up paying more for their health care than necessary and miss out on getting the coverage that’s available to them.

In fact, Retirement Living’s survey found that 51% of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries said their confusion led to unexpected bills for uncovered services and 46% said they had higher than expected out-of-pocket…