MEDICARE PRIVATE FEE FOR SERVICE (PFFS) PLANS

MEDICARE ADVANTAGE PRIVATE FEE-FOR-SERVICE PLANS

HOW MEDICARE PRIVATE FEE-FOR-SERVICE PLANS WORK

A Medicare PFFS Plan is a type of Medicare Advantage Plan (Medicare Part C) offered by a private insurance company. PFFS plans aren’t the same as Original Medicare or Medigap. The plan determines how much it will pay doctors, other health care providers, and hospitals, and how much you must pay when you get care.  

IN SOME CASES YOU CAN RECEIVE CARE FROM ANY DOCTOR, OTHER HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL OR HOSPITAL

If you join a PFFS Plan that has a network, you can also see any of the network providers who have agreed to always treat plan members. You can also choose an out-of-network doctor, hospital, or other provider, who accepts the plan’s terms, but your costs will usually be lower if you stay in the network.

Note: With a Medicare Private Fee-For-Servics Plan you can go to any Medicare-approved doctor, other health care provider, or hospital that accepts the plan’s payment terms and agrees to treat you. Not all providers will.

DO PFFS PLANS INCLUDE PRESCRIPTION DRUG COVERAGE?

Prescription drugs may be covered in PFFS Plans. If your PFFS Plan does not include Prescription Drug Coverage, you are allowed to purchase a Stand-Alone Medicare Part D Prescription Drug PLan from any Part D Plan that is available in your Service Area.

Medicare Advantage PFFS Plans are the only Medicare Advantage plans that can work with a Stand-Alone Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plan.

DO I NEED TO PICK A PRIMARY CARE PROVIDER WITH PFFS PLANS?

You don’t need to choose a primary care doctor in PFFS Plans.  

ARE REFERRALS NECESSARY WITH PFFS PLANS IF I NEED TO CONSULT WITH A SPECIALIST?

No, you do not need to get a referral to see a specialist in PFFS Plans.

OTHER IITEMS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT WHEN LOOKING AT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE PFFS PLANS

• Some PFFS Plans contract with a network of providers who agree to always treat you even if you’ve never seen them before.

• Out-of-network doctors, hospitals, and other providers may decide not to treat you even if you’ve seen them before.
• For each service you get, make sure your doctors, hospitals, and other providers agree to treat you under the plan, and accept the plan’s payment terms.
• In an emergency, doctors, hospitals, and other providers must treat you.
• Show your plan membership ID card each time you visit a health care provider. Your provider can choose at every visit whether to accept your plan’s terms and conditions of payment. You can’t use your red, white and blue Medicare card to get health care because Original Medicare won’t pay for your health care while you’re in the Medicare PFFS Plan. Keep your Medicare card in a safe place in case you return to Original Medicare in the future.
• You only need to pay the co-payment or coinsurance amount allowed by the plan for the type(s) of service you get at the time of the service.

ARE PFFS PLANS EXPENSIVE?

Typically, PFFS plans do require a monthly premium. There are not many Medicare Advantage PFFS plans available everywhere, but they are extremely popular with many Medicare beneficiaries, due to the ease of use and flexibility for the members to stay in control of tehir own healthcare, while still receiving the additional “perks” offered by Meicare Advantage plans.