I’m a veteran and have been able to use VA Healthcare for the last ten years. I am also lucky to have been healthy for most of this time. When I was under 65 years old and not eligible for Medicare, the VA was my healthcare, allowing me to avoid signing up for Obama Care. Obama Care would have cost me upwards of $500 per month.
I didn’t qualify for VA Tricare, so my healthcare was not free and did not include dental care. It cost me co-pays, approximately $50 to see my primary care doctor and $125 for medical tests like CT scans, etc. The VA was still an incredible bargain because I had complete healthcare should I need it without any deductibles.
Once I hit 65 years old, I qualified for Medicare. I could still use the VA or also sign up for Medicare. Part A of Medicare would start when I turned 65 and cost me nothing as long as I had a work history of 10 years. Part A would cost me about $465 per month without a work history. As it is, Part B would cost me $170 per month. I would now have a decent health plan for just $170 per month, but this would come with deductibles.
For example, if I went to the hospital overnight, it would cost me about $1650 and 20 % of other costs. I could, of course, choose from dozens of hospitals. I could choose to go to the VA hospital and avoid this substantial deductible. I could choose to decline Part B coverage and save $170 per month. I would then strictly have VA coverage. Not activating part B will have penalties attached should you choose to start it years down the line.
My experience with the VA has been good overall. Saving $500 a month for years helped me cope with any inconvenience I might incur.
For example, I did have to wait for one year one time to see my primary care doctor when I called because I was sick. Had I been seriously ill, I could have gone to the VA hospital. Now I am over 65 years old and still wait weeks or months to see some doctors thru the VA if I choose that route. I still consider myself lucky to have both Medicare and the VA.
Fortunately, I made Medicare my Primary Medical plan because of the availability, convenience, and doctor choices. I learned a valuable lesson when I was 68 and discovered I had cancer, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, to be exact. Cancer came out of the blue, considering I was not sick and felt great.
When I was told I had cancer, I didn’t believe it. Now, I could choose to go to the VA for Cancer treatment. I also knew I did not want to wait for days or weeks to verify that diagnosis. I knew that if I did indeed have cancer, I wanted the best treatment available, no matter where I could get it in the US. I chose the Mayo clinic. Mayo was reputed to be the number one hospital in the US. It was also within driving distance of my location.
I realize our healthcare system is not perfect, but I also felt the system could help me and save my life. It was a comfort believing that I had many choices and could get second opinions or with the VA third opinions. My need for medical was now critical, and the last thing I wanted to concern myself with was the cost of treatment and if I had few or no choices.
I will explain more in my next blog.
I will tell you how I can have the best of both worlds with the VA and Medicare. I will tell you how I can have excellent Medical, Dental, Prescriptions, and other benefits because I have many choices.