Medicare Q&A Center

Your spouse can be enrolled in the Medicare Advantage retiree medical plan if he/she is age 65 or over, is eligible for Medicare, and has Medicare Parts A and B.

Your spouse will continue to stay on the pre-65 PPO plan until he/she is Medicare eligible. At that time, he/she will move to the Medicare Advantage plan.

Premium information is available on the Retiree Medical Program page.

Yes. You will receive Medicare Part A, but you will need to continue to pay your Medicare Part B premium.

Yes. Medicare Advantage plans are often referred to as "Medicare Part C."

No. Your Medicare Advantage plan includes prescription drug coverage.

Yes. You are free to use physicians that accept Medicare. For example, if your doctor is affiliated with the Northwestern Memorial Healthcare network and accepts Medicare, you can continue to see him/her. To determine if a doctor accepts Medicare, you can access www.medicare.gov or you can call Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois' Medicare Advantage Customer Service at 1-877-299-1008 (TTY/TDD users should call 711) from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Sunday.

In addition to the DePaul medical premium, participants in the over-65 medical plans will have to pay a premium to Medicare for Part B. Depending on your income level, you may also pay an income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA). More information on the Part B premiums can be found on the Medicare website. Additionally, while you do not have to sign up for Medicare Part D separately, Part D is included in the Medicare Advantage plan. You may be required to pay a Part D income-related monthly adjustment amount (Part D-IRMAA). More information can be found on Medicare's website or by reading Medicare Premiums: Rules for Higher-Income Beneficiaries.

You may contact Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois' Medicare Advantage Customer Service at 1-877-299-1008 (TTY/TDD users should call 711) from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Sunday. If you are unable to reach and speak to Blue Cross and Blue Shield Customer Service, you may contact DePaul's Human Resources Benefits Department at 1-312-362-8232 or at hrbenefits@depaul.edu.

There is no group number on your Medicare Advantage ID card, as one is not necessary to receive services from providers under the Medicare Advantage plan. When seeking services, the alpha prefix "JLX" and your ID# are sufficient for providers to submit claims for processing.

The bills are mailed on or around the 15th of the month, for the upcoming month's premium, unless you have a credit linked to your account. Please call Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois' Medicare Advantage Customer Service at 1-877-299-1008 if you have any questions about your Medicare Advantage bill.

Yes. You can pay from one month to one year in advance by submitting the extra payment(s) with your monthly premium statement. The extra amount will show as a credit and be applied to your plan each month until the credit runs out. You can confirm receipt of the extra payments by contacting Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois' Medicare Advantage Customer Service at 1-877-299-1008 14 days after mailing in your payment. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois can also set up an ACH monthly debit from your checking or savings account. Information on a monthly debit approach can be found in your BCBS welcome kit. Please click on the Automatic Premium Payment Form link or contact Customer Service for assistance.

For payments made directly to DePaul for the pre-65 PPO or HMO Illinois plans, only checks are accepted.

• Go to www.bcbsil.healthmine.com
• Click the blue "Let's Get Registered" button
• Follow subsequent prompts

BCBS has confirmed that there is a timing delay for requests to "Do Not Call" - it can take about a week for those requests to be reflected on BCBS's records and for the calls from their third-party vendors to cease.

EviCore is contracted with BCBS to provide utilization services for the Medicare Advantage plan. Please see this link for additional information about the preauthorization services.

If you were enrolled in an Active Medical Plan with DePaul or enrolled in the PPO pre-65, then you will receive a 1095-C but the months that show coverage will not include the time enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan. If you were enrolled in the Medicare Advantage plan for the full year, you will not be receiving a 1095-C from DePaul but may receive one directly from Medicare.