Part D Donut Hole
This video shows you how to use the medicare.gov website to determine if and when you will go into the Part D donut hole. If you take an expensive drug, you are probably going into the coverage gap and...
View ArticleEMPLOYER HEALTH INSURANCE AND MEDICARE
If you are eligible for Medicare and still working, or if you have employer health insurance through your spouse, there are some rules you need to know. If you are 65 and still working – and your...
View ArticleSee your claims at mymedicare.gov
If you use your Medicare card when you see your doctor (you are not enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan), you can set up an account on mymedicare.gov. This account will allow you to see what...
View ArticleHearing Aids and Medicare
Congress barred Medicare coverage of hearing aids 50 years ago because “people thought hearing loss was just a normal part of aging,” said Dr. Cassel, one of the authors of a recent JAMA editorial on...
View ArticleHelp with Medicare Costs in 2016
People in Arizona can use an online application at www.healthearizonaplus.gov QMB income & resource limits in 2016: Individual monthly income limit* $1,010 Married couple monthly income limit*...
View ArticleMedicare and Health Savings Accounts
I’ve had questions recently from clients who have Medicare and health savings accounts (HSA). They were wondering how they can use their HSA once they are on Medicare. Some highlights from a Money...
View ArticleObamacare Tax Questions
I don’t recall hearing so much last year about Obamacare tax questions. But this year I’m seeing all kinds of emails about new paperwork requirements for tax forms and how insurance agents can help...
View ArticleMedicare Advantage Enrollment in Tucson
Each year at this time I like to look at Medicare Advantage enrollment in Tucson and which plans added members and which ones lost from one year to the next. Tucson (Pima County) has lots of...
View ArticleCost of Insulin is Skyrocketing
The cost of insulin is skyrocketing. I have written about clients of mine who are severe diabetics and are clobbered by the cost of their insulin. Their stories are sad and disturbing. The post Cost of...
View ArticleDiabetes Rose 400 Per Cent in 25 Years
The world has seen a nearly fourfold increase in diabetes cases over the last quarter-century, driven by excessive weight, obesity, aging, and population growth. In 2014 422 million people were...
View ArticleMedicare Coordination of Benefits
Don’t get caught up in a coordination of benefits mess when you enroll in Medicare. Some people have Medicare as well as employer health insurance. This has caused confusion for a few of my clients....
View Article$126,000 Hospital Bill and Medicare
My client was shocked by his $126,000 hospital bill. When you spend the night in the hospital, you would assume you had been “admitted” to the hospital – but you could be wrong. And this definition of...
View ArticleMedicare Advantage Networks
Some Medicare Advantage networks are large and some are small. Some Medicare Advantage networks change often while others rarely lose doctors. About once each month, someone calls me to say they are...
View ArticleUnitedHealthcare Compass Network is Lousy.
The UnitedHealthcare Compass network is lousy in Tucson, AZ but this is not a big news story. The big story in the news this week is that UnitedHealthcare is dropping out of the under-65 health...
View Article2018 Medicare Help
Medicare help comes through two programs: 1) The Medicare Savings Program; 2) Extra Help. People with income below certain levels can get help with their Medicare Part B premium and even their co-pays...
View ArticleBad News For Medicare
The House Republican Study Committee (RSC) has released their budget plan for fiscal year 2019 – and it is bad news for Medicare and Social Security. According to Republicans: Curbing spending is the...
View ArticleWhat Does Medicare Cost ?
What does Medicare cost? Most people think their $134 Medicare Part B premium covers the cost of their Medicare – but they are very wrong. You can see from the charts below that there are three parts...
View ArticleMedicare Marketing Rules
Medicare Marketing Rules are set by CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) and they are getting more liberal now that they are being set by Republicans. Medicare Advantage and Part D plans...
View ArticleArizona Community Physicians Dumping BCBS
Arizona Community Physicians Dumping BCBS Medicare Advantage is the big news for the 2018 Medicare Annual Enrollment Period. Over 6,000 seniors in Pima County who are enrolled in Blue Cross Blue Shield...
View Article2019 Medicare Choices
Your 2019 Medicare choices can be confusing. Take a look at this short video that clearly and concisely explains how Medicare works and different ways to get your coverage. The video explains Medicare...
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