“My dad doesn’t have Medicare!” A friend said to me on the phone a few months ago.
“What?” I responded. Thinking: This seems unlikely. Pretty much everyone over age 65 has some form of Medicare and my friend’s dad is at least 90 years old.
Then he explained, “Dad has something called ‘Blue Cross advantage.’”
“Ohhhhh…. Okay.” I got it now.
I explained that his dad does have Medicare but it’s a particular form of Medicare that private health plans (like HMOs) offer. It’s called “Medicare Advantage” and people eligible for Medicare can sign up for it instead of the original or traditional Medicare.