Hi KiittyLady,

It can be very confusing and it takes a lot of research to find out what works best for each person's individual circumstances.

Part C is called an Advantage Plan.

Maybe this will help you a little.

If eligible for Medicare, you have basically 3 choices. (NOT exactly but I am just trying to keep it simple.)

Choice One: Traditional Medicare alone (Parts A and B) and you can add Part D (drug coverage)

Choice Two: Traditional Medicare (Parts A & B) and ADD a Supplemental plan that helps pick up some of your out of pocket expenses, like the 20% co-insurance you pay with Part B of Medicare. With THIS choice you have your traditional Medicare AND you purchase another policy through an insurance company. This is having two policies, one is Medicare and the second is from an insurance company.

Choice Three: INSTEAD of having traditional Medicare, you could have an Advantage Plan that replaces Parts A, B, and sometimes D, and it is administered by an insurance company and is referred to as an Advantage Plan or Medicare Part C . They are similar to HMO's and PPO's.


Choice TWO gives you the most coverage but it is also the most expensive.

Does this help any?

For MY situation, after much research, I went with an advantage plan. It gave me the most coverage without having to pay the higher premium for a supplemental plan.

Please feel free to ask if you still have questions. It can be very overwhelming and confusing. NO one can tell you what YOU should do but we are here to help you understand the choices you have available. Everyone's situation is different and what works best for one person may not be the best choice for another person.