It is important to understand how your health care plan operates, but far too often the tricky benefit jargon of “deductible, coinsurance, copay, and out-of-pocket max” get in the way. These hard to understand health care vocabulary terms are explained below to help make understanding your health care plan much simpler!
You may have a copay before you’ve finished paying toward your deductible. You may also have a copay after you pay your deductible, and when you owe coinsurance. Your Blue Cross ID card may list copays for some visits. You can also log in to your account, or register for one, on our website or using the mobile app to see your plan’s copays.
A copay after deductible is a flat fee you pay for medical service as part of a cost-sharing relationship in which you and your health insurance provider must pay for your medical expenses. Deductibles, coinsurance, and copays are all examples of cost sharing. For the physicians group $210 is the deductible, $16.06 is the coinsurance, and $64.28 is paid by the plan. So I’m still scratching my head about the $300 copay I had to pay before being given the privilege to pay my deductible then coinsurance. All in all I pay $666.06 and the insurance pays $64.28. Couldn’t make that one up! The difference between copays and deductibles is generally the amount you have to pay and how often you have to pay it. Deductibles are generally much larger than copays, but you only have to pay them once a year (unless you're on Medicare, in which case the deductible applies to each benefit period instead of following the calendar year). Once you’ve met your deductible for the year, you don’t have to. Laws on Waiving Copays & Deductibles. Most health insurance plans require patients to pay a copay for services. For example, the patient must pay $10 upfront for a doctor’s visit and the insurance company pays the rest of the bill. In addition, patients may have to pay out-of-pocket all costs up to their deductible on their insurance policy.
Deductible – the amount of out-of-pocket expenses you pay for covered health care services before the insurance plan begins to pay.
HSA-Eligible Plan | All covered services require you to meet your deductible first and then services will be covered through coinsurance. |
PPO Plan | Some covered services require you to meet the deductible first, while other covered services are paid with a copay. |
Helpful Hint! | The health plan comparison chart shows deductible amounts for Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3, but you should think of your deductible as one sum of the money you have paid for your services. |
Example | With a $1500 Tier 1 deductible on the HSA-Eligible Plan with single coverage, you pay the first $1500 of covered services yourself. If you have met this, you would pay an additional $100 towards your services and then would have met the Tier 2 deductible of $2,500. |
Coinsurance – the percentage of cost of a covered health care service you pay once you have met your deductible.
HSA-Eligible and PPO Plans | For services covered by “coinsurance after deductible” the amount you pay in co-insurance continues to count towards meeting your next Tier deductible. |
Coinsurance % | Most Tier 1 services are covered at “90% coinsurance after deductible,” while Tier 2 services are “75% after deductible and Tier 3 are “60% after deductible.” |
Example | If you are on either plan and have hit your Tier 1 deductible and visit a Tier 1 urgent care provider, the plan covers that service at “90% coinsurance after deductible.” This means you will pay 10% of the cost of the visit and your insurance will cover the remaining 90%. The 10% you pay will count towards your deductible. |
Copay – a fixed dollar amount you must pay to a provider at the time services are received.
PPO Plan | Only the PPO Plan offers a copay option for specific covered services. Your copay does not count towards your deductible. |
Copay Amounts | Copay amounts vary based on the plan design. The health plan comparison chart is the best resource to understand what your copay is for a covered service within any of the tiers. |
Example | If you are on the PPO plan and you see a Tier 1 provider for a standard sick visit, then your copay at the time of the visit will be $20. If you seek a Tier 1 provider for physical therapy, then your copay will be $35. |
Out-of-Pocket Max – the maximum amount you pay each calendar year to receive covered services after you meet your deductible. Once you meet your out-of-pocket maximum, the Plan pays 100% of covered services you receive. In network and out-of-network services are subject to separate out-of-pocket maximums.
HSA-Eligible and PPO Plans | Your out-of-pocket max is the summation of everything you have paid for your medical services received; this includes deductible, coinsurance and copay. |
Helpful Hint! | Out-of-pocket max’s are determined by coverage level (single vs plan with dependents) and salary. On the health plan comparison chart you will see multiple rows with Out-of-Pocket Max figures, so be sure to look in the row that pertains to your situation. |
A copay is your share of a medical bill after the insurance provider has contributed its financial portion. Medicare copays (also called copayments) most often come in the form of a flat-fee and typically kick in after a deductible is met.
A deductible is the amount you must pay out of pocket before the benefits of the health insurance policy begin to pay.
Understanding Medicare Copayments & Coinsurance
Medicare copayments and coinsurance can be broken down by each part of Original Medicare (Part A and Part B). All costs and figures listed below are for 2021.
Medicare Part A
After meeting a deductible of $1,484, Medicare Part A beneficiaries can expect to pay coinsurance for each day of an inpatient stay in a hospital, mental health facility or skilled nursing facility. Even though it's called coinsurance, it operates like a copay.
- For hospital and mental health facility stays, the first 60 days require no Medicare coinsurance
- Days 61 to 90 require a coinsurance of $371 per day
- Days 91 and beyond come with a $742 per day coinsurance for a total of 60 “lifetime reserve' days
These lifetime reserve days do not reset after the benefit period ends. Once the 60 lifetime reserve days are exhausted, the patient is then responsible for all costs.
For a stay at a skilled nursing facility, the first 20 days do not require a Medicare copay. From day 21 to day 100, a coinsurance of $185.50 is required for each day. Beyond 100 days, the patient is then responsible for all costs.
Under hospice care, you may be required to make copayments of no more than $5 for drugs and other products related to pain relief and symptom control, as well as a 5% coinsurance payment for respite care.
Under Part A of Medicare, a 20% coinsurance may also apply to durable medical equipment utilized for home health care.
Medicare Part B
Once the Medicare Part B deductible is met, you may be responsible for 20% of the Medicare-approved amount for most covered services. The Medicare-approved amount is the maximum amount that a doctor or other health care provider can be paid by Medicare.
Some screenings and other preventive services covered by Part B do not require any Medicare copays or coinsurance.
Understanding Medicare Deductibles
Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B each have their own deductibles and their own rules for how they function.
Medicare Part A
The Medicare Part A deductible in 2021 is $1,484 per benefit period. You must meet this deductible before Medicare pays for any Part A services in each benefit period.
Medicare Part A benefit periods are based on how long you've been discharged from the hospital. A benefit period begins the day you are admitted to a hospital or skilled nursing facility for an inpatient stay, and it ends once you have been out of the facility for 60 consecutive days. If you were to be readmitted after 60 days of being home, a new benefit period would start, and you would be responsible for meeting the entire deductible again.
Medicare Part B
The Medicare Part B deductible in 2021 is $203 per year. You must meet this deductible before Medicare pays for any Part B services.
Unlike the Part A deductible, Part B only requires you to pay one deductible per year, no matter how often you see the doctor. After your Part B deductible is met, you typically pay 20 percent of the Medicare-approved amount for most doctor services. This 20 percent is known as your Medicare Part B coinsurance (mentioned in the section above).
Cover your Medicare out-of-pocket costs
There is one way that many Medicare enrollees get help covering their Medicare out-of-pocket costs.
Medigap insurance plans are a form of private health insurance that help supplement your Original Medicare coverage. You pay a premium to a private insurance company for enrollment in a Medigap plan, and the Medigap insurance helps pay for certain Medicare out-of-pocket costs including certain deductibles, copayments and coinsurance.
The chart below shows which Medigap plans cover certain Medicare costs including the ones previously discussed.
Click here to view enlarged chartScroll to the right to continue reading the chart
Insurance Copay And Deductible
Medicare Supplement Benefits
Part A coinsurance and hospital coverage
Part B coinsurance or copayment
Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
First 3 pints of blood
Skilled nursing facility coinsurance
Part A deductible
Part B deductible
Part B excess charges
Foreign travel emergency
A | B | C* | D | F1* | G1 | K2 | L3 | M | N4 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
50% | 75% | ||||||||
50% | 75% | ||||||||
50% | 75% | ||||||||
50% | 75% | ||||||||
50% | 75% | 50% | |||||||
80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% |
* Plan F and Plan C are not available to Medicare beneficiaries who became eligible for Medicare on or after January 1, 2020. If you became eligible for Medicare before 2020, you may still be able to enroll in Plan F or Plan C as long as they are available in your area.
+ Read more1 Plans F and G offer high-deductible plans that each have an annual deductible of $2,370 in 2021. Once the annual deductible is met, the plan pays 100% of covered services for the rest of the year. The high-deductible Plan F is not available to new beneficiaries who became eligible for Medicare on or after January 1, 2020.
Insurance To Cover Medical Deductibles
2 Plan K has an out-of-pocket yearly limit of $6,220 in 2021. After you pay the out-of-pocket yearly limit and yearly Part B deductible, it pays 100% of covered services for the rest of the calendar year.
3 Plan L has an out-of-pocket yearly limit of $3,110 in 2021. After you pay the out-of-pocket yearly limit and yearly Part B deductible, it pays 100% of covered services for the rest of the calendar year.
4 Plan N pays 100% of the Part B coinsurance, except for a copayment of up to $20 for some office visits and up to $50 copayment for emergency room visits that don’t result in an inpatient admission.
Coinsurance And Max Out Of Pocket
- Read lessIf you're ready to get help paying for Medicare out-of-pocket costs, you can apply for a Medigap policy today.
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Insurance Copay Vs Deductible
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