Tag Archives: Medicare

What’s up with that retirement experience?

This week I met with three financial advisors to select the one that will be my coach for the next 20-30 years. #wheniam64 Whew, is that exhausting! 70/30, 50/50, 60/40 and alternatives are great, but who understands all that? The answer is those that study understand all that, and I am ready to commit to a coach to get me from 64 to 94.

Reality is the average life expectancy is 78.something and declining for the first time in decades. I am not ready to concede defeat yet. Hit the gym this morning for a solid workout. Adjusting my eating to offset risks of Alzheimers and keep my brain running at optimum. Brain envy is what Dr. Daniel Amen calls it. Resting more as I age, only working 50 hours a week instead of 60-80. What are you doing to shift? As a life coach, I have to set the example. #wecanhelpwiththat

Now, for healthcare. That medicare decision looms. At 65, you have a period of seven months to make your decision. Three months before, the month of your birthday, and three months after. It gets tricky after that if you want to make significant changes. There are open change periods for advantage and prescription drug once a year. But, supplementals require medical underwriting after that first decision and the rates can go up significantly. #wecanhelpwiththat

Having fun yet? Wisdom tells me that happiness is a key to longer life and well, who wants to be sad? Having a manageable plan you understand that helps you meet lifestyle objectives can lead to a merry heart and that is good medicine. #wecanhelpwiththat

Let me know how we can help. There is never a fee for an analysis of your position and never a fee for healthcare help. We don’t do income management, but have some good partners to whom we can refer you and for smaller amounts ($10k-100k), we can give you some tips. #wecanhelpwiththat

Phil@soluminsurance.com

405.494.0637 – dedicated mobile for you

Comparing Plans – Advantage #wecanhelpwiththat

As we enter the last two weeks of open enrollment, my phone is ringing with last minute comparisons. #wecanhelpwiththat

One of my clients had a tier one, tier two, tier three, and tier four drug prescription. Whew! All of that can get majorly expensive on any provider’s plan. #wecanhelpwiththat

Be assured, there is a good plan that meets your specific needs. As an independent agent, I can compare across plans. Every insurance carrier (United Healthcare, Humana, Aetna, and others) has plans for each zip code. They are competitively priced in different areas of medical need. No one can predict what you will need in 90 days, but you can look ahead using your history and potential needs. #wecanhelpwiththat

So here is a set of needs of a client:

. Keep monthly costs predictable and as low as possible

. Keep extra costs as low as possible (emergencies, added doctor visits, specialists co-pays, etc..)

. Use a specific doctor and their referral network

. Provide for urgent care nationwide (they travel a few times a year)

. Keep it simple to get healthcare

. Support a specific set of hospitals in the area

. Basic dental and eyewear coverage beyond medicare medical coverage

Here are a few needs they do not have:

. Access to a variety of doctors on and off plan

. Nationwide network (one of our advantage providers supports a nationwide PPO network, which I think is pretty cool if it meets your needs)

#wecanhelpwiththat

Based on this set of criteria, we compared a few of the larger companies and found a good HMO advantage plan that reduces their current costs by $140 a month and reduces co-pays to specialists and for their pharmacy prescriptions by a few dollars. Overall, they can potentially save $1800 a year. Look at 5 years and that is $9,000. Wow! It is a simple change for them. #wecanhelpwiththat

They have a plan with a major carrier that they signed up for 10 years ago. Plans change. There are options for you that might meet your needs and experience better than the plan you signed up for in the past. Open enrollment gives you the advantage of taking a look at current offerings in your area and keeping medical costs better contained. #wecanhelpwiththat

Our services are FREE to you.

Phil – phil@soluminsurance.com 405.494.0637

Sweet…. a good quote for a friend

Crazy good stuff… I just finished a full medicare rate quote for a friend that is retiring at age 66. With a supplement policy that covers deductibles and co-pays, his base medicare payment, prescription drug that covers his most common prescriptions at $0 and $1 copays, dental and vision – he is looking at $328 a month with controlled costs. That is better that most company group plans!

Without this package on traditional medicare it would cost him $135 a month plus deductibles. His drugs would be full price. The difference? If he went to the hospital one time and stayed two days under medicare, $1364 deductible plus 20% of all other costs of doctors, meds etc (let’s say those amounted to another $2000 for a $400 charge), plus regular doctor visits during the year and 20% on tests and xrays of another $2000 or $400, and drug costs of around $50 a month or $600 a year, we are looking at $1364 + $400 + $400 +$600 + 1620 = $4384 unpredictable versus $3936 predictable … That doesn’t include $0 coverage for vision and dental and he gets some good options to help there also.

Now, this is just one approach. There are other alternatives based on your budget, expected needs. Last year this client went to the hospital three times due to some tough conditions. Under medicare each time would be the same $1364 plus 20% payouts. When you calculate that, you are getting closer to $10000 versus $3936. Yikes….


And his plan works nationwide, because he wants to travel. No need to worry about HMO or PPO networks that only work in his home metro. But I do have access to some sweet PPO options that have good travel when that is what you want. The costs are not as predictable because of deductibles and copays, but it is all about what do you need for your lifestyle.


The 411 on this? Know your options and choose according to your lifestyle and expectations.


My dream – help you make decisions. I talk to as many people for whom I say, “Keep what you have, you are doing well.” as I do “Let’s find what might be better options for you.” There is no cost to you ever to talk and get comparisons. The insurance carriers pay me to help you.

I really like helping alongside http://grandparentbenefits.org


If all I do is answer your questions, that is good by me. I have helped and am happy to do it.
Here is a link that shows some basic medicare costs: https://www.medicare.gov/your-medicare-costs/medicare-costs-at-a-glance

Phil@soluminsurance.com

405.494.0637 direct

an unexpected service


What should you expect from a a medicare insurance pro?
They are unlike other insurance consultants and agents.

What should you expect from a a medicare insurance professional? They are unlike other insurance consultants and agents.

A medicare insurance professional requires right training and certification from the insurance company or companies they represent, the states they represent and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). You should expect that

A medicare insurance professional is your consultant and educator. Weaving through the decisions in medicare is an important lifetime decision. You deserve right information and access to answers.

A medicare insurance professional is here for you. While they are agents for the insurance companies with whom you may contract, they must also be here for you to assist you in making decisions.

This article does a good job of outlining some items of which you should be aware. Get right service. We are here for you at SOLUM to give you that “unexepected service” that you should expect. Covering Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas. Benefiting the membership of National Association for Grandparenting.

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