Welcome :: The Goal of this Web Site is to Help
Retirees Who First become Eligible for Medicare in 2012

 Medicare and Alcatel-Lucent Annual Enrollment is Closed

     • Medicare allows for some changes in 2002 for those who enrolled in 2011. Anytime during 2012, a retiree can opt out once, from a Medicare Advanatage Plan, and choose another that has a 5-star rating. Also, a retiree can drop a Medicare Advanatge Plan with prescription drugs between Jan 1 2012 and Feb 14 2013 and sign up for a stand-alone Part D plan. See more details on what can be done in 2012 by clicking here.

    • Newly Eligible for Medicare in 2012. These indivduals will receive a mailing from Alcatel-Lucent and from Medicare explaining options to consider. This website has links to help understand the choices available to the retiree. If a retiree first becomes eligible for Medicare and a spouse or other dependent is not, the spouse may not be eligible for Alcatel-Lucent coverage if the retiree does not stay with Alcatel-Lucent. BE SURE TO CHECK WITH THE BENEFITS OFFICE (888-232-4111).

Useful Documents and Places to Access

»  Alcatel-Lucent Guides
         (click for Alcatel-Lucent Benefit Answers site)
         (click for 2012 Alcatel-Lucent "Action Guide") 
         (click for 2012 Alcatel-Lucent "Benefits at a Glance")
»  United Healthcare Guides
         (click for "Your Plan Explained" brochure for 2012)
         (click for "Summary of Benefits" brochure for 2012) 
         (click for list of providers(doctors and hospitals))
         United Health Care says the following about out-of-network services:
           "You pay the the provider who doesn't accept the UHC PPO plan and
             submit the bill to UHC; UHC will reimburse you what we would have
             paid the provider."
»  Medicare Guides      
         (click for "Medicare and You 2012")
         (click to read the Medicare Medigap guide)
          Medicare offer a 12 minute video to explain Medicare.gov. Click here to view.
»  Consumer information.
       • There's a special issue of Consumer Reports that ranks commercial Medicare
plans in most states.  Click here to read the rankings at the Consumer Reports web site.

Other Places to Visit and Learn

» Share experiences with others on the LRO Message Board
» Keep up to date on national health care issues with this industry newsletter NCOA
» Ask us a question at benefits@lucentretirees.com

 What are your Medicare options? 

    • Option 1 :: Sign up with Alcatel-Lucent. Management retirees may select the health and prescription drug plans offered by Alcatel-Lucent - a Medicare Advantage PPO plan from United Healthcare that uses a network of providers, with options to use doctors and hospitals out-of-network. (In some areas only an HMO plan will be available). If you choose an Alcatel-Lucent healthcare plan, you must also include the Medco prescription drug plan.

    • Option 2 :: Choose a commercial Medicare Advantage Plan. You can select a commercial Medicare Advantage plan with features similar to the Alcatel-Lucent plan. Alternatively, there are HMO plans with different features and costs.
    
    • Option 3 :: Choose a Medicare supplement insurance plan (Medigap). You can choose to sign up for a Medigap Medicare supplemental plan to help pay many of the costs not covered by Parts A and B of the Original Medicare plan. Be sure to check whether you can apply WITHOUT a penalty for pre-existing conditions. Click to read the Medicare Medigap guide
        
» You may need to consider a commercial prescription drug plan. If you choose a commercial healthcare plan, you may need to consider signing up for a commercial Prescription Drug plan. See the [Drug Plans] link.   

This Web site has been designed to help you find and compare choices

» Read the Easy to Understand "Medicare Made Clear Guide"
         << this download takes quite a while but the information is very useful>>
This provides retirees with facts about various alternatives for Medicare-eligible retirees and how to compare them. It explains Medicare Advantage and Medicare supplement (Medigap) plans for you to consider. The Alcatel-Lucent plan is an HMO or PPO option depending on where you live..

» Step-by-step guide to finding health care choices. The web site link [Step1 - How to Find] provides downloads and instructions that can help you find current Medicare Advantage PPO plans at medicare.gov and Medicare supplement plans (Medigap) at State Health Insurance web sites. There's a summary sheet that allows you to understand the pros and cons of each type of plan.

» Step-by-step guide to comparing health plans. The web site link [Step 2 - How to Compare]  helps you compare alternatives to the Alcatel-Lucent plan and the many marketplace plans. It provides ways to find and compare important criteria, like monthly premiums, deductibles, copayment, coinsurance and providers (doctors/hospitals).

» Prescription drug options. The link [Step3 - Drug Plans] provides ways to compare various options for your Medicare prescription drug choices. Since the Alcatel-Lucent offer has a combined premium for health care and Rx plans, you'll need to know the alternatives to make a full comparison.

For those Who are pre-Medicare, there are Changes to Consider Now

The Health Care reform legislation affects pre-Medicare retirees. Read a complete description by clicking here. Two items of immediate impact on pre-Medicare retirees:
  » Alcatel-Lucent has applied and received funding to encourage continued healthcare coverage to early retirees. According to HHS, these funds "must be used to reduce or offset increases in plan participants’ costs, to offset increases in employers’ costs to provide coverage, or both.“
  » Alcatel-Lucent will not be covering dependents up to 26-years of age. Read the Wall Street Journal article with quotes from Alcatel-Lucent by clicking here.

Alcatel-Lucent healthcare documentation for all retirees, including previous years mailings, is available on their web site at http://www.benefitanswersplus.com/

Thre are many sources of health care information for pre-Medicare retirees published with the support of the health industry. Non-health care industry sources:
  » The US Department of HHS has just introduced a Web site with access to many pre-Medicare healthcare plans. Click here for healthcare.gov. 
  » Georgetown University is noted for its independent recommendations for health care. Click here to go to their website.