A FEW UNIQUE MEDICARE QUESTIONS: Who even thinks about these things?

1. What type of drug is most frequently prescribed for Medicare-aged Americans?

If you guessed the obvious—painkillers—you were right. According to the Centers for Disease Control, analgesics, followed by antiemetics and then electrolytes and minerals, were the most prescribed drugs in all the 359.0 million prescriptions given to patients at hospitals each year. (See www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/drug-use-therapeutic.htm)

2. Why did Medicare insurance supplementation plans come into being?

Back in the 1980s, enough questions about Medicare coverage had been asked that gaps in the plan were discovered. In an effort to protect these folks who’d been paying into the Medicare system through tax revenues, an amendment to the law that created Medicare was passed to allow ways to cement the gaps. From there, several more amendments had to come into being (to protect the government from fraud, and to protect medigap coverage purchasers from high out-of-pocket and premium costs).

The Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act was passed in 2003, and in 2008, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act was passed into law.

While congress has done much to protect those who are Medicare eligible, finding the supplement plan that is right for you can be confusing. You may be able to have some of your questions answered by a Google search, but it’s always best to speak to an agent in person about your own medical history in light of Medicare’s history.

3. What is the best, most truthful joke about Medicare?

It might be this one:

Patient: Doc, I’ll be 65 six months from now. What do you think I need to know?

Doctor: It’s that Medicare is like a hospital gown. It doesn’t cover you as much as you think it does.

While aging isn’t always funny, it’s as much a fact of life as humor. Keep smiling!YOUR 65th BIRTHDAY: “Happy Healthday!”