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AARP Medicare Complete is a United Healthcare MAPD plan “Medicare Advantage with Prescription Drugs”.  United offers 4 different versions of Medicare Complete in the state of Connecticut. They have 2 HMO (in network only) plans a PPO plan (That is the AARP branded plan) and a POS plan. (only in New Haven county)  A link to a plan comparison of the plans is provided  below.

United HealthCare Medicare Complete HMO Plan 2-  This is a $0 monthly premium plan with in network coverage only.  United has a substantial network in CT but you must use participating providers on this plan unless it is an emergency.  There are no referrals required to see specialists. The benefits of this option have lower copays and will result in less out of pocket compared to the AARP Medicare complete PPO plan.   If your doctors are in network, this plan will probably be a better value than the PPO.

United HealthCare Medicare Complete HMO Plan 1-  This plan is $99 dollars a month.  It is essentially the same as the HMO plan 2 but has slightly lower copays.  If you do the math on this plan, you will conclude that it is not a good value compared to the plan 2.   It is very difficult to get your $99 a month worth out of this plan because the copays are only slightly lower.

AARP Medicare Complete Regional PPO- The regional PPO is a United Healthcare plans that has the AARP branding.  This plan has in network benefits that are similar to the HMO 2 but it has slightly higher copays, offers out of network coverage and costs $24.00 a month.  The main reason someone would select this plan instead of the HMO 2 is to have the out of network coverage.  This plan will still provide coverage when you visit non participating providers.   This plan should not be confused with the AARP Medicare Supplement plans.  For more info on Medicare Supplement plans CLICK HERE

Please feel free to call our office at 203-796-5403  in the event you need more detail or would like to discuss other plans.  You may also email me at  Edward@Croweandassociates.com

United HealthCare Med Complete Plan 1 and 2 Comparison   (This summary has both CT and MA plan comparisons)

United AARP Med Complete RPPO Summary  (Connecticut only)

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United HealthCare Medicare has one contract that will allows brokers to sell both the Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement (AARP Branded) plans.  Once a contract is completed, there is an online certification that must be completed prior to selling the plans.

Contracting is attached below:  A copy of current E and O certificate and current State Insurance License MUST be inlcuded with all paperwork.

CLICK HERE FOR UHC MEDICARE AGENT APT CONTRACTING – All pages of this contract must be completed and sent in (Street level and In House level)

CLICK HERE FOR UHC MEDICARE AGENT AGREEMENT  (Only Required for Street Level Agents) – All pages must be filled out and sent in

All paperwork may be sent in by any of the following methods:  By email to  Edward@Croweandassociates.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it   or faxed to 203-567-6235 or mailed to Crowe and Associates, 304 Federal Road, Suite 107, Brookfield CT 06804

AARP Medicare Complete is a general name given to a number of different United Health Care Medicare Advantage plans with the AARP logo.   United Healthcare also offers a number of different Medicare Complete plans without the AARP logo.

United has an AARP Medicare Complete branded product in most states.  In some states they have multiple plans.  The AARP branded Medicare Complete plans come in three types: HMO, POS and PPO.  The plans all have the same basic copay structure and more or less operate in the same manner with the only real difference being that the POS and PPO plans have out of network coverage.

Do you have other questions or do you want to see more detail on these plans?  I have a number of blogs on this topic or you may contact the office for more information.

AARP Medicare Complete is a general name given to a number of different United Health Care Medicare Advantage plans with the AARP logo.   United Healthcare also offers a number of different Medicare Complete plans without the AARP logo.

United has an AARP Medicare Complete branded product in most states.  In some states they have multiple plans.  The AARP branded Medicare Complete plans come in three types: HMO, POS and PPO.  The plans all have the same basic copay structure and more or less operate in the same manner with the only real difference being that the POS and PPO plans have out of network coverage.

Do you have other questions or do you want to see more detail on these plans?  I have a number of blogs on this topic or you may contact the office for more information.

United Healthcare offers multiple types of Medicare Advantage plans throughout the US.  Some of these plans are under the United Healthcare name while other are under the United name with AARP branding.

The AARP name is usually added to the United RPPO Medicare advantage plan.  This plan is an in and out of network plan.  If you stay in network (use United doctors and hospitals) there is a copay schedule.  If you see a non participating doctor or hospital, you will pay a cost share such as 30%.  This plan offers  a bit more flexibility than an HMO plan does as the HMO does not allow you to go out of network. Read more

This post is for a review of the United Healthcare Medicare Complete and the AARP Medicare Complete plans for 2013.  If you want 2012 information CLICK HERE

United Healthcare will be making some minor changes for the better to the 2013 Medicare Complete plan line which includes United Healthcare Medicare Complete and AARP Medicare Complete products.  All products listed are Medicare Advantage plans.  Look at seperate postings for information on AARP Medicare Supplement plans. Read more

This post is for a review of the United Healthcare Medicare Complete and the AARP Medicare Complete plans for 2013.  If you want 2012 information CLICK HERE

United Healthcare will be making some minor changes for the better to the 2013 Medicare Complete plan line which includes United Healthcare Medicare Complete and AARP Medicare Complete products.  All products listed are Medicare Advantage plans.  Look at seperate postings for information on AARP Medicare Supplement plans.

The United Healthcare Medicare Complete product is very similar to the AARP branded version but most versions do not have out of network coverage as they are usually HMO plans.  The in network benefits tend to be a little better than the AARP branded in network benefits as a result.  for 2013 the United Healthcare branded products will look similar to the 2012 version with a few improvements such as a lower annual out of pocket max, a outpatient surgery benefit that offer more than 80% coverage and  a lower primary doctor copay.  The improvement to the outpatient surgery benefit is the most needed change overall and this will reduce costs for many members.

The AARP Branded Medicare Complete plan took on a $20 monthly premium in 2012 and it looks like that will stay for 2013 as well.  The outpatient surgery benefit and out of pocket max on this plan will also be improved over last years version.   The AARP branded plan is on a PPO platform in most states and offers out of network coverage as a result.  Last years version only provided for 70% coverage out of network.  It is not yet known if this will be improved for 2013 or not.

The drug coverage in both versions will be mainly the same for 2013 with some very small ($2 or $3) increases in the name brand tiers of the drug coverage.  While the United and AARP Medicare Complete plans did not compare well to competitors in 2012, it should be in a much more competitive position for 2013.

WANT TO LEARN MORE? REGISTER FOR OUR “HOW TO CHOOSE A MEDICARE PLAN” WEBINAR – CLICK TO REGISTER

There are a limited number of Medicare Advantage plans available in Connecticut for 2012.  The list includes plans from Connecticare, AARP/United, Aetna, Anthem BlueCross BlueShield and Wellcare.   Our agency has clients with all companies and plan types in Connecticut and we are happy to share the good and bad of them with you.

Please click the link below to view the comparison.   Call or email with any questions or requests.  Email: Edward@Croweandassociates.com or phone at 203-796-5403   Review our BBB rating here   Click for BBB Rating

Medicare Advantage comparison 2012 CT

AARP Medicare Complete is a PPO Medicare Advantage plan offered by United Healthcare. (By the way, If you do not have a basic understanding of how Medicare Advantage plans work, please refer to our other blogs for a quick tutorial.) The plan is offered on a regional basis is Connecticut, Mass, RI and Vermont. It was a $0 monthly premium plan in 2011 but now has a $20 monthly premium for 2012.

Here is a basic summary of the strengths and weaknesses of the plan.                   (Looking for AARP Medicare Complete 2013 Info?  CLICK HERE)

Network- United has built up a strong network in Connecticut. The AARP Medicare complete network is second only to the network of Connecticare. Overall, they are very good with network.

In Network Benefits- The AARP Med Complete plan certainly had some benefit changes for the worse for 2012. The most notable changes are Hospital inpatient charge ($400 a day 1-4), Outpatient surgery and Major Radiology at 20% cost share. Copays went up slightly for a primary care doc ($20) and a specialist ($45). Many Advantage plan members, worry about about office copays but the concern should be with the Outpatient surgery and Major Radiology. At 20% cost share, there can be substantial out of pocket costs for the insured.

Out of Network Benefits-The out of network benefit feature is a plus due to the freedom it allows. The fact that the cost share is 30% to the insured is of a concern however. The combined in and out of pocket max for this plan is $10,000 which seems to be a bit excessive.

Overall- While this plan may not look as good as the Anthem PPO (click here for info on the Anthem PPO) on paper, it tends to run much more smoothly. We receive far more client plan and benefit issues from the Anthem PPO than we do with the AARP Medicare Complete PPO. Again, the benefits do not compare well with the Anthem PPO but the administration of the plan is far better on the United side.

If you have specific questions or need any additional information, please email Edward Crowe at Edward@CroweandAssociates.com or call at 203-796-5403

For a link to the Application, Benefit Summaries and Rates click the link below

Click here for Benefit Summaries, applications and rates

WANT TO LEARN MORE?  REGISTER FOR OUR “HOW TO CHOOSE A MEDICARE PLAN” WEBINAR:  CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

United Healthcare has made  changes to their current suite of AARP branded Medicare Complete plans for 2012. The majority of changes are to the basic co pay structure of the plan.  Some of the bigger changes are detailed below.

The AARP Medicare Complete RPPO $0 premium plan will no longer be $0 premium for 2012. The plan will now have a $20.00 monthly premium but will have the same platform as last year (PPO with in and out of network benefits). Office vist copay for 2012 are $20 per visit primary doctor and $45 per visit specialist. The Inpatient hospital copay has been changed to $400 a day for 4 days in 2012 vs. $320 a day for 5 days last year. The Rx benefit copays have increases slightly to $5.00 tier 1 generic, $8.00 tier 2 non-preferred generic, $45.00 tier 3 name brand and $95.00 for tier 4 non preferred name brand.  The biggest change is in the outpatient surgery benefit which is now a 20% cost share.

The plan still offers in and out of network coverage and maintains one of the larger Medicare Advantage plan networks in the northeast.  United HealthCare will also be offering their Non AARP branded Medicare Complete Plan 1 and Plan 2 HMO plans in most Northeastern states.   The Plan 2 option will still be $0 monthly premium.

More detailed information can be found by clicking on the links below

 AARP Medicare Complete Choice RPPO Summary of Benefits CT, MA, RI, VT

AARP Medicare Complete Choice RPPO CT MA RI VT Application 2012

AARP and United Medicare Complete plans comparison

United Medicare Complete Plan 1 and 2 Application CT