The future of Medicare

By David MacQueen

‎‎July ‎6, ‎2021 ‏‎4:08 pm ET

Medicare has always been a bit of a mystery for most people. As providers, we have all had patients who were under the assumption that once they hit that golden age of 65 they were completely covered for all their medical, dental, vision and hearing needs covered.

Unfortunately, we are often given the unfavorable job of bringing them the bad news.

Medicare will only cover certain procedures and services that deemed medically necessary

Vison

Eye care if you have a chronic condition like cataracts.

Surgical procedures to repair them due to certain chronic eye conditions.

Dental

Dental care is rather limited with Medicare at the moment and basically will only be covered if it is deemed necessary for a procedure. For example, a surgery to treat fractures of the jaw or face.

Hearing

Again Medicare will not cover any hearing-related costs, other than in rare cases of physician-ordered tests.

Big Changes

Thankfully we may get some big changes starting later this year. Sen. Bernie Sanders and others are pushing for a more robust Medicare. Which would include dental, vision, and hearing coverage.

This will be a big game-changer in the Medicare provider world. We will be given new ways to help our patients and offer them support.

With an ever-aging population, this is an essential step forward in healthcare.

The possibility of Medicare including preventative care such as teeth cleaning, Fillings, Hearing Aids, Eyeglasses, and more will provide patients with a sustained boost in quality of life. Dental, vision, and hearing have always been something many of us are guilty of putting off and suffering from the issue until there is a major issue, due to the cost. Only to later end up needing procedures potentially costing thousands of dollars. With these new changes, we can help save patients time and money.

Episode Alert will be monitoring the progress of this potential new Medicare and will keep you updated on any new developments.