Cover even more gaps with Medicare Supplement and Hospital Indemnity in your insurance portfolio

Medicare Supplement insurance is a cost-share plan that may help you pay for expenses that Medicare does not cover. Also called Medigap — because it fills in the gaps of Medicare coverage — this type of insurance helps you cover potentially expensive medical out-of-pocket costs, like coinsurance, copayments, and deductibles. But when you pair it with Hospital Indemnity insurance, you can cover even more gaps.
 
It’s easy to overlook the additional costs you can incur while you’re hospitalized. A Hospital Indemnity insurance plan can provide you with supplemental cash benefits to use as needed, even for indirect non-medical costs.

What does Hospital Indemnity cover?

Hospital Indemnity differs from regular health insurance because it has no deductible, no coinsurance, and no network, and the benefit is paid out directly to you tax-free.
 
“Each person’s needs are going to be different. If a catastrophic event occurs, you might not be able to cover all the costs with your current income or savings,” explains Erin Bueltel, product specialist for supplemental health insurance. “If you’re on Medicare and are interested in additional insurance but don’t want to pay a high premium, a simple add-on of Hospital Indemnity at a lower premium might help provide relief.”

Hospital Indemnity policies generally have similar base benefits, such as:

• Hospital confinement: It pays a specified benefit amount for each day you’re in the hospital. You can choose the number of days per period of confinement and the amount per day in increments.
• Observation/Short duration: It pays a specified benefit amount per day for a limited number of days per calendar year.                                                                  
• Emergency room: It pays a specified benefit amount per day for services in a hospital emergency room for a covered loss due to an accident or injury.
• Transportation and lodging: It pays a specified benefit amount per day for a limited number of days per calendar year to cover expenses incurred for travel or lodging while receiving treatment in a hospital or medical facility located several miles from your residence.
• Inpatient mental health: It pays a specified benefit amount per day of confinement in a hospital due to a covered mental or nervous disorder for a limited number of days per calendar year.

Depending on the carrier and which state you live in, you may also have access to riders that you can add to your policy to cover even more gaps. They usually cover services, such as:

• Ambulance services
• Outpatient therapy and chiropractic services
• Skilled nursing facilities
• Outpatient surgery
• Urgent care
• Lump sums for hospital confinement or cancer treatment 

The benefits of pairing Hospital Indemnity and Medicare Supplement

Hospital Indemnity insurance can offer protection in a variety of ways for Medicare Supplement policyholders:

• Hospital Indemnity covers the deductible if you’re in a high-deductible plan.
• A lump-sum cancer benefit rider can help cover indirect costs, such as experimental treatments, medicine, or job loss, even if you’ve had a cancer diagnosis within the past 10 years.
• A skilled nursing facility benefit rider can help cover direct or indirect costs due to your hospital stay.
• An outpatient therapy/chiropractic services benefit rider can help cover indirect outpatient therapy costs after a hospitalization.
• A transportation and lodging benefit can help pay for incurred costs for you and one legal adult accompanying you while you’re receiving care in a hospital or as an outpatient.