Your benefit card is worth hundreds of dollars a year. Most people never use it.

If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, there is a good chance you were given an OTC card, a flex card, or both. Industry estimates suggest roughly 70% of OTC benefits go unused every year. That is real money, and it disappears if you do not spend it.

Start here

Why this site exists

These benefits are genuinely confusing: every plan has its own card, its own catalog, its own rules, and its own expiration schedule. Insurance companies send the card in the mail with a booklet most people never open. Then billions of dollars in benefits quietly expire.

This site was created by someone who spent nearly 20 years inside the Medicare Advantage industry, watching members leave money on the table year after year. Every guide here is written in plain English, with no insurance jargon, and none of it requires you to buy anything or change your plan.

Three rules that solve most problems

1. Activate the card the day it arrives. Many cards do not work until you call the number on the sticker or register online.
2. Learn your expiration schedule. Monthly and quarterly allowances usually do not roll over. Put a reminder on your calendar for the last week of each period.
3. Check your plan's catalog before you shop. Every plan has an approved item list. Two minutes of checking saves you an embarrassing moment at the register.

Latest guides