If you are one of the 200 people who live in Angle Inlet, Minnesota, this post is for you.
Well, not just for you, but you might find it extra helpful if you do.
Read to the end to find out why.
For the rest of us Southlings who don’t live in the northernmost corner of the lower 48, read on for some unexpected things that Medicare covers:
- Mental Health Services
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- As of January 2024, Medicare allows marriage and family therapists and mental health counselors to provide services.
- Medicare also includes up to 19 hours of intensive outpatient care as a benefit
- Medicare has also expanded its mobile crisis services that can treat people in their homes or on the streets
- For more info, click here: https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/mental-health-care-outpatient
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- Tobacco Cessation Assistance
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- According to Forbes Health, “Medicare Part B covers up to eight counseling sessions annually to help individuals stop smoking or using tobacco products. If a beneficiary’s health care provider accepts Medicare, the individual receives these counseling sessions at no cost.”
- For more info, click here: https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/counseling-to-prevent-tobacco-use-tobacco-caused-disease
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- Diabetes Management
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- If you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes, you can receive outpatient diabetes self-management training under Medicare Part B. Here’s what’s covered:
- 1 hour of individual training
- 9 hours of group training
- 2 hours of follow-up training every year, if eligible
- For more info, click here: https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/diabetes-self-management-training
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- Coverage Outside the United States
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- This one is really just for funsies, because no, Medicare generally doesn’t provide coverage outside of the U.S………UNLESS! And this is for all those folks that live in Angle Inlet, MN………
- When a beneficiary lives in the U.S. but the foreign hospital is closer to their home than the nearest U.S. hospital (regardless of whether it is an emergency), Medicare WILL cover the service (the folks in Angle Inlet know that Lake of the Woods District Hospital in Ontario is their closest hospital – services done there would be covered by Medicare).
- This Medicare benefit benefits very few people (ha!) so it’s always best to assume that Medicare will NOT cover you on foreign soil. If you are planning on taking a trip overseas, it’s best to opt for some travel insurance (which can be surprisingly affordable!).
If I caused some of you geography nerds to whip out Google Maps and search for Angle Inlet, MN, the goal of my email has been accomplished (I did the same thing).