Medicare without additional coverage you buy is kind of like Social Security and trying to make it living on just that without any other retirement income. It's just supposed to help out, be a bit of a safety net. What they can cover with so many people enrolled is not enough to make many doctors able to afford to have many clients who only have Medicaid or Medicare and no other insurance AND money to pay for services. I'm miffed because I have to buy insurance for January through October, when I'll go on Medicare and will have to buy the additional plans, etc. so I'll be changing insurances a couple times just this year. I had a state plan but now the state is discontinuing that for the Affordable Care plans. The one I've chosen will only save me about $35-$40 a month in premiums but has a deductible $500 greater than the plan I have now. It doesn't matter, I never meet my deductible so have to pay for everything out-of-pocket anyway, but if I'm hospitalized/seriously ill it would come into play then.