SilverSneakers is free only when your health plan includes it.
SilverSneakers says it is available at no cost for adults 65+ through select Medicare plans. Its site names Medicare Advantage plans.
This is general information, not medical advice. Check with your doctor if you have concerns about starting a new activity.
Do you qualify? Check your plan type
Your plan type is the first clue, so start with what is printed on your insurance card.
- Medicare Advantage plan: this is the route SilverSneakers names. Medicare.gov describes these as Medicare-approved plans from a private company that are an alternative to Original Medicare. It says most offer extras such as vision, hearing and dental.
- Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plan: Medicare.gov explains that Medigap is extra insurance from a private company that helps pay your share of costs in Original Medicare. The program’s pages name Advantage plans, so ask your Medigap insurer directly.
- Original Medicare only: the program’s pages name Advantage plans, not Original Medicare itself.
Having a plan type that can include it is not a guarantee. Your own plan has to say yes.
How to check your own plan
SilverSneakers offers an online check on its site. You can use the SilverSneakers eligibility check to see whether your Advantage plan includes the program.
You can also call the member services number on your plan card. Ask one plain question: does my plan include SilverSneakers?
If the answer is yes, ask how to sign up. If the answer is no, ask whether a fitness benefit under another name is offered.
What members get
SilverSneakers says a member whose Advantage plan includes it gets location access, classes, on-demand videos and other perks at no additional cost.
Its site lists these parts of the program:
- Locations: SilverSneakers lists thousands of participating locations nationwide. It notes that a location’s participation can differ by health plan.
- Classes: it lists instructor-led group fitness classes, plus Community Classes held at community centers and parks.
- Online: live online classes and workshops, and an on-demand library of classes, workouts and how-to videos.
- App: the SilverSneakers GO app helps you find locations and get your member ID.
Check that a gym near you takes part under your plan. A long list of locations does not mean every one of them accepts your plan.
A 2020 study in the Journal of Applied Gerontology compared SilverSneakers members with similar nonmembers, using survey answers. Membership was linked to more physical activity, less social isolation and better self-rated health.
The study’s own disclosure notes that two authors work for Tivity Health, the company that owns the SilverSneakers trademark, and own stock in it.
In that study, less social isolation was itself linked to better self-rated health.
If you do not qualify
Walking, chair exercises and light strength work cost nothing and need no membership. A regular walk with a neighbor is one free way of exercising with other people.
If you are unsure where to begin, you can start slowly at home with a few minutes a day.
Your next step today
Find your plan card, then call the member services number printed on it. Ask whether your plan includes SilverSneakers, and write down the date and the name of the person who answered.