Speak with an experienced advisor! Anyone in Medicare is entitled to a lot of healthcare coverage. It helps people get coverage they would be declined for otherwise. Medicare doesn’t pay for everything, which can be a huge problem for a lot of Medicare participants.
Because of this, many Medicare enrollees will obtain a Medicare Supplement insurance plan. These policies are also called Medigap plans because they fill in the coverage holes of Medicare.
Choosing a Medicare Supplement plan will require that you have a good estimate of your anticipated health care needs, so as to choose the plan that will work the best for you. To do this, you need to look at how financially sound the company is. One company you can rely on is Transamerica.
The History of Transamerica
Transamerica initially began its business in 1904, in San Francisco, California. The company’s founder, Amadeo Giannini created the Bank of Italy in a converted saloon. His goal was to make financial services available to all, and not just to the wealthy few. So, following the San Francisco earthquake in 1906, Giannini set up a makeshift bank on the area’s docks and gave residents loans that they needed for Transamerica has seen a lot of growth through the years, due to both expansion, as well as to mergers and acquisitions. It has several business subsidiaries - including Transamerica Life Insurance Company.
Transamerica Life Insurance Company began to offer insurance products back in 1961, and since that time, the company has grown significantly regarding policyholders and capital and surplus.
The company continues to expand, both internally and through the process of acquiring other like-minded insurance companies. For example, in late 2015, Stonebridge Life Insurance Company merged into Transamerica Life Insurance Company.
Transamerica is known for being a good, solid insurance and financial services company. It is also well-known for the Transamerica Pyramid, which is located on Montgomery Street in one of the most storied sections of San Francisco. The pyramid encompasses an entire city block. And, while this tower is no longer the home of Transamerica’s headquarters, it still stands as a symbol of the company’s guiding principles.
In addition to promoting financial growth and protection, Transamerica also hosts numerous sponsorships that promote physical health, along with financial fitness. Just some of these sponsorships include:
- American Heart Association - Heart disease and stroke are two of the leading causes of death in the United States - and, the American Heart Association is the country’s largest and leading voluntary health organization that is dedicated to fighting these conditions.
- Habitat for Humanity - Through Habitat for Humanity, Transamerica helps people to save and invest wisely to live the lives that they desire.
- Alzheimer’s Association - The Financial Planning in the Shadow of Dementia program that Transamerica hosts provides financial advisors with key tools for helping their clients who may be affected by Alzheimer’s disease.
- PGA / LPGA and the American Junior Golf Association - Transamerica sponsors numerous golfers, both at the professional and the junior level.
- Colorado Rapids - Major League Soccer - The game of soccer plays a key role in the lives of many of Transamerica’s employees, as well as their families. The company strongly supports this team.
- Committed to Fit - It is important to feel fit and confident both in terms of one’s finances, as well as their physical health. This is why Transamerica supports some of the country’s top races and endurance events - including the Rock n Roll Marathon Series, Life Time Fitness / Life Time Triathlon Series, and Ben Hoffman.
Transamerica Company Review
Today, Transamerica and its parent company operates in more than 20 different markets worldwide. Transamerica Life Insurance is headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. As of year-end 2015, Transamerica had a total of $120,036 (in millions) in assets, and total capital and surplus of $6,199 (in millions).
As of that same time period, the company also had $1,068 billion of life insurance in force, and it was licensed to do business in all of the U.S. states - including the District of Columbia - other than New York.
Transamerica Insurer Ratings and BBB Grade
The best way to determine the reputation of a company is to look at the ratings and grades from the experts. For Transamerica, they have some excellent grades and ratings:
- A+ from A.M. Best Company, which is the second highest out of a total of 16 ratings (as of June 24, 2016)
- A+ from Fitch, which is the fifth highest out of a total of 19 ratings (as of September 26, 2016)
- A1 from Moody’s, which is the fifth highest out of 21 total ratings (as of November 30, 2016)
- AA- from S&P Global, which is the fourth highest out of a total of 21 ratings (as of May 12, 2016)
Not only do they have all of these great rates, but they also have accreditation from the BBB, plus an A+ rating. The BBB has is one of the main third party rating companies. They use a dozen factors to determine the grade of the company.
Medicare Supplement Plans Offered by Transamerica
Transamerica sells all of the ten Medigap policies:
Because of the number of choices, individuals in many states can pick the plan that best fits their needs and their budget.
Medicare Plan A gives this basic protection:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First three pints of blood per year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
Every plan has the same benefits as Plan A, along with various additional coverage options. Some plans are more scaled down, while others can be very comprehensive. For example, Medicare Supplement Plan B offers the following set of benefit options:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First three pints of blood per year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
- Medicare Part A deductible
Plan C of Medicare Supplement insurance offers:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First three pints of blood per year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
- Skilled nursing facility care coinsurance
- Medicare’s Part A deductible
- Medicare’s Part B deductible
- Foreign travel exchange - up to the plan’s limits
For more coverage, you should look at the Plan F:
- Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up
- Medicare Part B coinsurance or copayment
- First three pints of blood per year
- Medicare Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment
- Skilled nursing facility care coinsurance
- Medicare Part A deductible
- Medicare Part B deductible
- Medicare Part B excess charge
- Foreign travel exchange at 80 percent - up to the plan’s limits
If you live in the states of Massachusetts, Minnesota, or Wisconsin, you’re going is going to look different than other customers.
In addition to individual Medicare Supplement insurance plans, Transamerica Life Insurance Company and Transamerica Agency Group offer group Medicare Supplement coverage as well.
Every company has to offer the same coverage for the letter plan. So, it is important to compare and shop before you buy.
Where Transamerica Sells Medicare Supplement Insurance Coverage
While Transamerica has been in the insurance business for many years, the company started offering individual Medicare Supplement insurance plans in 2013. Initially, this type of coverage was available in a select number of states, including Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Since that time more states have been approved.
Other Products Offered by Transamerica
Transamerica also sells a range of additional insurance and investment products in order to ensure that its clients can successfully grow and protect their wealth.
Some of the other products that are provided through Transamerica include the following:
- Life Insurance
- Long Term Care Insurance
- Dental Insurance
- Annuities
- Mutual Funds
- Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs)
- 401(k)s
- 403(b)s
- Pensions
Getting the Perfect Medigap Protection
When you’re shopping for Medigap protection, there are a dozen different factors you’ll need to research. Instead of wasting all that time, we can do the work for you.
We aren’t your typical agents who are restricted to one company. Instead, we have the ability to bring you quotes from dozens of highly rated companies across the nation.
We can make the process much more streamlined so that you’ll know exactly what your various plan choices offer and why a certain insurance carrier may be better for you. To get started, it’s easy. Call us at 800-376-0824.