However, five years later I can tell you that I was overthinking it too much. You tend to do that with all the info you start getting when you are turning 65. I have always been really healthy and fit my entire adult life. I'm now 70 and still take no meds and have no chronic conditions. I started out just getting a lower level Advantage plan. I figured once I was 70 I would go with a supplemental plan. At 69 I had a strained ligament in my left knee. No big deal, but I needed physical therapy and the copay was $40 a visit/3 times a week. Fortunately, I could do the prescribed exercises at home, so I stopped physical therapy after two weeks. It healed but it was a wake up call that as healthy/active/fit as I was, these things happen and I didn't like the uncertainty of what else might happen. So, instead of waiting until I was 70, I switched to a supplemental plan at 69 and boy, am I glad I did. I have wet macular degeneration in one eye and have had to have monthly injections for a year. Those injections cost over $2,000 for each injection and that doesn't count the doctor's visits! Because I have the supplemental plan, I haven't had to pay one penny except for my $183 annual deductible.
I am so glad I got the supplemental. It costs me $135 a month plus I pay $28 per month for a drug plan (I take no drugs). This is through AARP/United Healthcare. It has paid for itself many times over. I can't even imagine what I would have done without it.
I am not a risk taker and like certainty, so this was perfect for me. I'd rather pay the monthly premiums than worry about how much something is going to cost if I do need care. Yes, you have to be a member of AARP, but their annual membership is really insignificant - about $12 a year.
I will admit that sometimes I get a bit peeved that I pay $28 a month for prescription drug coverage when I don't take any drugs, but like the medical care, who knows if I may need it someday? The peace of mind is worth a lot to me.
Just my two cents.
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