Final answer:
A health insurance plan sold by private companies to cover what Medicare does not is known as a Medicare Supplement Plan or Medigap policy. It helps cover additional expenses like deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance. Medicare Part B covers some outpatient expenses and requires beneficiaries to pay part of the cost, while other private insurance options exist for broader coverage.
Step-by-step explanation:
A health insurance plan sold by private insurance companies to help pay for healthcare expenses not covered by Medicare is commonly known as a Medicare Supplement Plan or Medigap policy.
These plans are designed to aid in covering costs that are not paid for by the traditional Medicare program, such as deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance. People who are on Medicare can opt to purchase these supplemental plans from private companies to ensure more comprehensive healthcare coverage.
Medicare Part B is an optional insurance component that covers outpatient medical expenses, such as physician services, medical tests, and outpatient visits. While the government funds a significant portion of Part B costs, beneficiaries are required to pay a monthly premium, deductible, and copayments for services.
Private healthcare consists of plans like employment-based insurance, which may cover the employee and their family, and direct-purchase insurance that individuals buy directly from a private entity.
These private options are especially critical when public healthcare, such as Medicare or Medicaid, falls short of covering all healthcare costs, or when government-funded health care is deemed too expensive for certain groups, like low-income individuals or the elderly.