Speak with an experienced advisor! If you are in the Original Medicare, Medicare Part A and Part B, then it is likely that you are well aware of the many different charges that you can be hit with, such as deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance costs.
In many cases, these charges can truly add up - especially if you frequently use your Medicare health care coverage. But, the good news is that, with a Medigap plan, you can reduce - or even eliminate - these charges every year.
Purchasing a Medicare Supplement plan - also known as Medigap - can require that you carefully review which plan will be right for you. This is because there are a total of ten different Medigap plans available, each offering a different set of benefits.
Medigap A offers a basic set of protection, while some of the more comprehensive plans, such as F and G, provide a more comprehensive list of protection.
While all Medicare Supplement plans are restricted by the law to provide the same protection, they aren’t required to offer the same rates. Two Plans F’s from different companies could be hundreds of dollars apart. By simply comparing companies, you could save yourself hundreds of dollars.
Not only should you look at the price, but you also need to consider the quality of the company, their service, and their financial security. To help you along, we’ve reviewed Thrivent Financial Company.
The History Of Thrivent Financial Company
Thrivent Financial Company is a not-for-profit membership organization that is geared towards marketing to Christians. In doing so, the company offers financial growth and protection strategies so that Christians can be wise with their money, as well as to live generously.
The company has been in the insurance and financial business for more than 100 years, due to a merger of Lutheran Brotherhood and Aid Association for Lutherans in 2001 - and it has grown and expanded greatly over time. Given its different way of thinking about money - as a tool rather than a goal - Thrivent has helped thousands of individuals, families, and companies. The company is headquartered in Appleton, Wisconsin.
Thrivent Financial Company Review
Today, Thrivent Financial Company services more than 2.3 million members across the United States with its blend of faith, finances, and generosity - which it terms as being The Thrivent Way.
Thrivent Financial Company has achieved many awards and accolades over time. For example, in 2016, the company was listed in Ethisphere Institute’s “World’s Most Ethical Companies.” That same year, Thrivent Financial Company was listed as one of Ward’s 2016 Top Performing Life and Health Insurers. The company is also ranked as number 318 on the list of Fortune 500 companies (as of June 2016).
In addition, in 2015, Thrivent was ranked by Workplace Dynamics as being one of America’s Top Workplaces, and in 2013, The Wellness Council of America ranked the company as one of America’s Healthiest Companies.
As of year-end 2015, Thrivent had more than $109 billion in assets under management and nearly $188 billion of individual life insurance in force. Also, the company had an annual surplus that was more than $8 billion.
BBB and Other Grades
Thrivent Financial Company’s financial foundation is one of the strongest in the insurance and financial industry - and because of that, the company has been rated highly. It has received a rating of A++ (Superior) from A.M. Best Company.
In addition, Thrivent Financial Company has been a Better Business Bureau (BBB) accredited company since April 2, 1999, and the BBB has provided this company with a grade of A+.
Through the years, they’ve had a few complaints, mostly about billing or collection.
Medicare Supplement Insurance Plans Offered By Thrivent Financial Company
One of Thrivent Financial Company’s primary product offerings is Medicare Supplement insurance. The company has been offering the Medicare Supplement insurance product line for over 30 years - and it has paid out nearly $50 million in Medicare Supplement insurance policyholder claims. Currently, Thrivent has roughly 25,000 members who own a Medicare Supplement insurance plan.
Medigap plans that are offered via Thrivent Financial Company include Plan A, Plan D, and Plan F. Plan A offers a basic coverage, which can help to provide essential coverage, while at the same time, helping to keep premium payments down.
Medicare Supplement Plan A offers the following list of benefits:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs - up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits have been used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First 3 pints of blood each year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
Alternatively, Medicare Supplement Plan F gives the most protection. This is because Plan F provides coverage for all possible Medicare Supplement coverage, which includes:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs - up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits have been used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First 3 pints of blood each year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
- Skilled nursing facility care coinsurance
- Medicare Part A deductible
- Medicare Part B deductible
- Medicare Supplement Part B excess charges
- Foreign travel exchange - up to the plan’s limits
In order to help with keeping the premium lower, there is also a high-deductible Medicare Supplement Plan F option. With this particular plan, there is an annual deductible of $2,200 (in 2017) that must be met by the policyholder before the plan will begin paying out any of its benefits.
For a more middle-of-the-road Medicare Supplement insurance plan option, Thrivent Financial offers Plan D, which includes the following benefit offerings:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs - up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits have been used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First 3 pints of blood each year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
- Skilled nursing home facility care coinsurance
- Medicare Part A deductible
- Foreign Travel Exchange benefits - up to the plan’s limits (in this case, it is 80 percent)
To buy a Medigap plan, you have to meet a few categories:
- Be age 65 or older - or, if younger than 65, be qualified for Medicare due to a disability and/or by having End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD)
- Be enrolled in Medicare Part A and Part B (Original Medicare) - and be currently paying the Medicare Part B premium
- Reside in the state in which the particular Medicare Supplement insurance plan is sold
It is also important to be aware of when one’s initial open enrollment period is for Medicare Supplement, as enrolling during this window of time can assure you that you will not be turned down for coverage - or even charged a higher rate of premium - due to an adverse health condition.
Other Available Products
Thrivent Financial also offers a variety of other protection options as well. These include:
- Life Insurance - This includes both term and permanent life insurance coverage options.
- Disability Insurance - These plans can help to protect a policy holder’s ongoing income if he or she becomes injured or ill and is unable to work and earn an income.
- Long Term Care Insurance - With long-term care, some or all of the cost of care services can be paid out by the policy, which can, in turn, assist a policyholder with preserving their assets and income.
- Retirement Annuities - As people are living much longer now than ever before, ensuring that retirement income lasts throughout one’s lifetime is important. A retirement annuity can offer an option for lifetime income - regardless of how long the individual lives.
- IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts) - Savings for retirement is also an important part of one’s overall financial planning. Individual Retirement Accounts allow tax-advantaged saving for the future. Thrivent Financial offers both traditional and Roth IRA accounts.
- Investments - The investments that are offered through Thrivent Financial Company include mutual funds, as well as managed accounts - as well as the services of a professional money manager.
- Group Plans - Having an employer-sponsored retirement plan can allow a business to find and to retain good, quality employees. These plans are also offered through Thrivent Financial Company. In addition, the company offers church and institutional financing.
- Business Banking Options - Thrivent Financial Company also offers a variety of business banking options, as well as its line of Thrivent Federal Credit Union Products for Businesses.
- Student Lending - In conjunction with Thrivent Financial Company, cuLears helps credit unions with finding the right financing for college students.
How To Get The Best Rates On Medicare Supplement Insurance Coverage
For some seniors, they don’t want any additional coverage aside from what they’re getting with Medicare. Other people feel unsafe with all of the gaps left behind.
If you’re one of the people who wants more protection, them Medigaps are a good route, but you need to do some comparing.
There are hundreds of carriers out there. The plans are standardized by the government. They have to offer the same protection, but the rates can be all across the board.
Instead of wasting your time, let one of our agents do all of the work for you. We have relationships with a dozen different companies. We can bring all of the quotes straight to you.