Page 4 - Cover Letter and Evaluation for Fred Heald

Still, the CSG Actuarial premiums may be helpful in a couple of ways. Like the premiums shown
in Appendix C1, the CSG Actuarial premiums are sorted from lowest to highest, making it easier
to identify the lowest-premium companies. And in most cases the CSG Actuarial comparisons
list the insurers’ financial ratings and the number of years they have sold Medigap policies in
Florida. But the CSG Actuarial comparisons do not list the companies’ phone numbers, which
you can find in Appendix C1.

Discounts

The insurance companies that sell Medigap policies often offer discounts of various kinds. As an
example, some companies offer small discounts for automatic debit payments of monthly
premiums or for paying for a year’s premiums in advance.

The largest discounts are typically the “household discounts” for spouses who buy their policies
from the same company. Not all companies offer these household discounts – Blue Cross Blue
Shield of Florida, which issued your wife’s policy, does not offer them, according to the CSG
Actuarial premium listings. But those that do often have substantially reduced premiums. The
discounts can range between 3% and 10% -- the percentages are shown in the CSG Actuarial
comparisons, but they are not included in the premiums shown.

In addition to discounts, some insurers provide extra benefits such as membership in Silver
Sneakers, which give you access to more than 12,000 gyms and health clubs nationally. One or
two companies even offer some dental or vision benefits.

Enroll in a Medicare prescription drug plan

As you may know, people who get Medigap policies are required to have Part D stand-alone
plans (or another form of creditable drug coverage).

Please review the three drugs, dosages, and monthly quantities shown in Appendix D1. Let me
know if any of these need to be changed, since that might also change the cost estimates.
Appendix D2 lists the lowest-cost plans for these drugs assuming your enrollment were to begin
on March 1. Your costs will be less, of course, because your coverage will not start until May 1.

Medicare’s Plan Finder program only shows costs for the remainder of the year starting on the
first day of the upcoming month (March, in this case). It does not have the capability to show
what the costs will be for coverage beginning May 1, which won’t be available until April.

According to the Plan Finder program, the lowest-cost stand-alone plan for your drugs if you
continue to get your prescriptions filled at Walgreens is the Cigna-HealthSpring Rx Secure-Extra
Prescription Drug Plan. In this plan, your estimated costs for the last 10 months of this year are
$1,306 – including premiums and co-payments.

4