(upbeat music) (paper rustling) - Hi, this is Janae with AARP. I lead workshops in my community to help older adults stay connected and age successfully. In this advanced learning, we'll talk about how Medicare handles, or doesn't handle, dental, vision, and hearing coverage. Let's start by watching a short video. (paper rustling) (bright music) - [Presenter] What doesn't Medicare cover? - [Presenter] In general, Medicare covers most of your medical needs, everything from hospital care to doctor visits to tests to lab work. With a separate drug plan, the program covers prescription drugs. But Medicare doesn't cover everything. - [Presenter] What about vision, hearing, and dental? - [Presenter] Those are the big coverage gaps. For vision, Original Medicare covers cataract surgery and only your first pair of glasses afterward. It doesn't pay for routine eye examinations, contacts, or regular glasses, neither does your Medigap plan if you have one. As for hearing, Original Medicare and supplemental plans currently don't cover routine hearing tests or hearing aids. And for dental, that's the third big gap in original Medicare, and it doesn't cover routine dental checkups or big-ticket items like dentures or root canals. Some Medicare Advantage plans, which are private insurance alternatives, do provide vision, hearing, and dental coverage, but be sure to check on exactly what they pay for. You can also buy standalone insurance policies for vision, hearing, and dental needs. (paper rustling) - So that's the general idea of the gaps in Medicare's dental, vision, and hearing coverage. Of course, neglecting the health of your eyes, ears, and teeth can have a cascading effect on your overall health. So let's take a closer look at your options for dental, vision, and hearing coverage when you enroll in Medicare. The first key thing to understand is that the Medicare program consists of two major options: Original Medicare plans, which are also called Parts A and B, and Medicare Advantage plans, also known as Part C. Both Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans offer comprehensive health insurance. But one of the biggest differences between the two is how they each handle dental, vision, and hearing. Let's start with Original Medicare. Kim Timpson from Rhode Island Office of Healthy Aging is here to explain how Original Medicare covers dental, hearing, and vision coverage. Kim, can you share with us what Original Medicare does and doesn't cover for dental care? - Sure, Original Medicare doesn't cover any routine dental care or procedures. Dental services that Medicare will cover are surgery to treat jaw fractures, some dental services to prepare for radiation treatments of oral cancer, or an oral exam in the hospital before a kidney transplant. - Good to know. How about hearing services? - Original Medicare doesn't cover hearing aids. It might cover a physician-ordered hearing test or treatment of a hearing-related medical condition. Original Medicare offers limited vision coverage related to particular chronic conditions. Original Medicare doesn't cover regular eye exams, glasses, or contact lenses. You can buy a standalone insurance plan for dental or vision care to supplement Original Medicare, or there may be some extra benefits that are built into your Medicare Part C plan, but not for hearing. The FDA recently approved the sales of cheaper over-the-counter hearing aids for people with mild to moderate hearing loss. You can buy them without a medical exam or fitting. - Thanks for sharing your knowledge about Original Medicare. Now let's look at Part C, or Medicare Advantage. These plans are offered by private insurance companies and cover the same healthcare services as Original Medicare, but they also may cover additional healthcare services that aren't covered by Original Medicare, like dental, vision, and hearing coverage, but their coverage really varies. Kim is here to explain some of the details you should know. Kim, can you share more details on the coverage of these plans? - The coverage in these plans vary greatly because there is no government standard for what dental, vision, and hearing needs Medicare Advantage plans must cover. It's important to look at the details of the plan before you buy. Medicare Advantage plans may have relatively large out-of-pocket costs like deductibles and copays. Some plans may not cover dental problems that you have had before or may limit the coverage when you do enroll. For example, they might not pay to replace a tooth that was missing before your coverage started. That's why it's important to look at the details of a plan before you buy. - So if you're considering a standalone dental or vision insurance plan, or if you're looking at Medicare Advantage plans to cover your dental, vision, and hearing needs, it is beneficial to do your research. You can find out if a plan you're considering has a provider network and if your current dentist is included in its network. Even if your current dentist is in their network, it never hurts to see how many other in-network dentists are available in your area in case your dentist leaves the plan. And you can check to see if a plan covers out-of-network dentists. Some of them do, but you will pay more out of pocket. In short, it really pays to do your research. With some planning, you'll be better able to care for your dental, vision, and hearing health when you enroll in Medicare. Thanks for watching. (paper rustling) (upbeat music)

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