Medicare in Tustin, California

Tustin sits a few minutes from our Orange office, so we meet many people here face to face. The conversation almost always starts the same way. Someone is about to turn 65, or has just been handed a pile of mail, and wants to know what actually matters. This page is that conversation, written down.

Start with the four letters

Medicare comes in four pieces. Part A covers hospital stays. Part B covers doctors, tests, and outpatient care. Part C is Medicare Advantage, where a private plan delivers A and B as one package. Part D covers prescriptions, bought alone or bundled into Part C.

Then pick one of two roads

• Original Medicare plus a supplement. Access to any provider who takes Medicare, few referrals, a higher monthly outlay, and a separate drug plan.
• Medicare Advantage. A lower monthly outlay, drugs usually included, extras such as dental or vision, a set network, and prior approval on some services.

Neither road is the better one. The right road keeps your doctors and your medicines, at a monthly cost you are comfortable with. People who travel often lean toward the supplement. People who stay close to home and like a bundle often lean the other way. Our Advantage and Medigap pages go deeper on each. Write both lists down before you compare anything. That single page of names does most of the work.

Prescriptions: read the list, not the price

A drug plan is really a list of medicines with rules attached. Two plans at a similar monthly cost can treat your medicine very differently, and one may require a step before approving it. Every plan year brings a new list and new rules. We compare your own medicines before you commit, not after.

Orange County is the boundary that counts

Three ways in

The first door is the seven month window around your 65th birthday, three months on each side of your birthday month. The second is October 15 to December 7, open every plan year to anyone on Medicare. The third covers special events, like leaving a job or moving across a county line. Missing the first door without cause can mean a charge for life.

The part people skip: the yearly review

A Medicare plan is not a one time purchase. Each plan year, carriers change drug lists, networks, and the rules for approval. Your own health changes too, often faster than the plans do. We recheck both lists every fall and tell you whether to stay or move. Staying put is a fine answer, as long as it is a checked answer. It takes about half an hour.

If Medi-Cal is part of your picture

People with both Medicare and Medi-Cal have a dedicated option. Dual eligible plans coordinate the two programs and cut down the back and forth. A surprising number of people who qualify never apply. We can look at it with you in a few minutes. Bring any letter you have from the county, since it usually shows which help you already receive.

Working past 65 in Tustin

If you are still on the job, do not guess. The size of the employer decides whether you can delay Part B without a penalty. A large employer usually means you can wait. A small employer usually means you should not. Bring the plan documents and we will go through them.

What we actually do for you

We are an independent agency founded in 2015, so we compare across many carriers rather than selling one. Before you enroll we confirm your doctors and check your prescriptions. Then we file the enrollment and stay available afterward. None of that costs you anything, and our process spells out each step.

We do not offer every plan in the area, and we are not connected with the government. Plan availability and benefits vary by plan and by area, and they can change. A licensed agent should review your own circumstances. Verify anything at medicare.gov, at ssa.gov, or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE.

Meeting from Tustin

Because the drive to Orange is short, meeting in person is easy here, and plenty of Tustin clients prefer it. Video and phone work just as well and are often quicker to book. Either way, bring your lists. Call (714) 922-0043 or begin at the Tustin city page.