Switch Please!!! – 2020

We get this question of switching from plan to plan on a regular basis, especially with folks that develop insulin dependency.

Gordon has been our client for years and called one day out of the blue with a big question. He had developed insulin-dependent diabetes and his co-pays on his current Medicare Advantage plan were awfully expensive for the insulin quick-pens he wanted to use. He first wanted to know if he could switch to a Medicare Medigap (Supplement) with a Part D drug plan. I reminded him that he cannot switch to a Medicare Medigap if he has a permanent chronic condition. “Well, then, what are my options,” he asked?

If an individual develops a permanent insulin dependency, they can then make a switch to a Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan (SNP) the very next month! These are not offered by all carriers.

After reviewing all available plan options, we found a Medicare Advantage SNP plan that offered $0 co-pay for diabetic supplies and had only a $9 co-pay for his insulin pens. Gordon could not believe the difference in the benefits of the new Medicare Advantage (SNP) plan vs. the Medicare Advantage plan he was currently enrolled in.

We explained that not all Advantage plans are the same. This is exactly why you should shop for plans every Annual Election Period from October 15th to December 7th, with your new plan starting January 1st of the new year.

Gordon was a bit ecstatic when he saw that his co-pay for his insulin pens was going to drop from $69 to only $9 and his diabetic supplies were at no co-pay. The other benefit was that this new SNP plan also assigned Gordon to his very own diabetic specialist to work in concert with his Primary Care Doctor. Keep in mind that these Medicare Advantage SNP plans are not available in every county across the U.S.

Some Advantage plans cover hearing aids, some cover dental, some offer pick-up service to take you to your doctor’s appointment if you cannot drive, some offer paying for glasses, etc., etc., etc. Not all Medicare Advantage plans are created equal. It’s up to you, the consumer, to choose. And oh, by the way, there are 56 Medicare Advantage plans to compare in Maricopa County alone. Would you like a Fairy Godmother or Godfather helping you shop and compare?

Call us we can help!

To Work? Or Not to Work

Sounds a tad Shakespearean, doesn’t it? Reminds me of an old joke where it’s Shakespeare’s “To be, or not to be”, or Frank Sinatra “To be, To Be, Toooo”. Hmmm…. I think I got sidetracked there for a minute. So? Working or not working? That’s the question. And whether you’re working or not makes you…you!

There’s many a client meeting where the topic is, when can I stop working, or when do I have enough? The answer is not blowing in the wind, my friend, it’s about each of our personal wants, needs, or, you’re just simply ready to call it a day. Sometimes when making this decision about continuing to work, it is out of necessity. Your household budget still needs the income. Other times it’s answering the question of what the heck would I do all day long with myself if I didn’t have somewhere to go? Other times the answer may be a combination of several of these factors.

Over the years, I’ve gotten dozens of calls that start out with “David, I’ve been retired now for several months and I’m bored out of my mind. What do your other retired clients do to fill their time?” Some of the conversations have a lot of humor in them while other folks are making a serious inquiry.

One of my newer clients called me last year and asked this question, so I gave him a list of volunteer groups and other charity organizations that he could help with a few days a week, but that didn’t interest him. I then asked the question that I save in reserve that makes people think. “As a child, what was your passion; did you have a hobby? What was your favorite thing to do? In this case, he loved toy trains. I suggested he go down and volunteer at our local train park. You know, where we live we are lucky enough to have this park. It’s full of retired trains, kiddy rides on a small locomotive on tracks running through the park, and Pavilions to have birthday parties. It even has a train store for hobbyists. “Go down and see if they take volunteers”, I suggested.

A few months later I got a call and it was Ben asking a financial question, but he ended the call with a thank you for the great suggestion on the train park. Not only did he volunteer, he now works part-time and actually gets paid to do something he loves. He rediscovered his passion. Another client loved her bicycle and got a part-time job at a bike shop. Another client loved sewing as a child and went to work at a hobby store in the cloth and sewing supplies department. Point is, they found something they enjoyed doing, and not just to make a paycheck.

So, to work or not to work is a personal decision and maybe an opportunity to rediscover your long-lost passion from your childhood. And maybe it might be just part-time, or a few days a week, but it gives you something to do. So, what was your passion? Is it time for you to volunteer? Whatever your decision it will make you..., you!

But it’s a dry heat… – 2020

OK, all together now, let’s get it out of our systems because it’s that time of year in the desert that we all say, “BUT, IT’S A DRY HEAT!”
In our desert, we are thankful that during this past winter and spring we had cool temperatures, and we had exceptionally good rain during the winter. But now it’s summer and well…. it’s that time of year we go from our air-conditioned homes to our air-conditioned cars, to our air-conditioned grocery stores. Thank goodness, for air conditioning!

So exactly where did this air conditioning come from? Where, who, when? Well, all the way back to 1851 Dr. John Gorrie thought that heat was the cause for many evil diseases, and he wanted to cool down not only hospitals but entire cities. Knowing the expense to ship ice would be too expensive, he built the first practical air-conditioner (A/C) unit. He never patented his device, but he is credited with laying the groundwork for modern air conditioning.

In 1902, a young engineer named Willis H. Carrier was trying to solve a problem for a printing plant. During the hot, humid summers, their printing would wrinkle. To control the humidity in the plant, he invented the first water-cooled A/C.

In 1947, engineer Henry Galson created the first practical home A/C unit. By the 1960s, A/C units were standard to most new homes in America and we saw a surge of growth in hot states like FL and AZ so folks could withstand the hot or humid summers.

So next time you’re standing out in the 115° or 120° heat and step into the nice cool A/C, tip your hat and say a thank you to Messieurs Gorrie, Carrier, and Galston!

Hmmm…it was 101° today, now what did I set that thermostat to? I better check!

Ignorance is… – 2020

We all know the old saying that “ignorance is bliss”. If that is true, why aren’t there more happy people?

Over the past several weeks, I think we all got a real good dose of the average person here in the U.S.A. It’s not that there are bad people, it’s that people being people tend to panic. The hoarding of goods and medical supplies, even by government officials, has been a real wake-up call. State Governors crying for help while they have hoarded stores of ventilators and medical supplies, they thought they could keep secret? Are you kidding me?

Even while the bad apples are acting out their greed, we have also witnessed some of the most heroic acts by every day, front-line service staff personnel. Nurses and medical support staff, truck drivers, food service workers, and millions of folks who have put their personal lives on hold to help others in need. How each of us are reacting to this event determines who we really are! Maggie is a nurse who can’t go home because her grandkids are staying at her house. She works in the emergency room at a hospital and has been exposed to who knows what. After already working long hours, she’s sleeping in her car at the hospital to protect her grandkids. That makes her a hero in my book.

William is a truck driver and has been working 27 days without a day off. He doesn’t mind, because he knows that people need the food that he is delivering to the grocery stores. His biggest complaint? Not the long hours he is driving, but the fact that fast-food restaurants won’t let him use the drive-up window to pick up food. He stopped at a store and bought a loaf of bread, a pack of baloney, and a jar of mustard just so he could eat sandwiches. Another determined hero to make it work no matter what.

Are you your own success story? Have you helped a friend or stranger in need? And don’t feel you can’t go out and have personal contact. There’s much to be done with a simple phone call to that elderly person who lives alone to let them know that someone cares.

I remember one of my elementary school teachers that gave us a rule. “We can learn a lot from a box of crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty, some are dull, some have weird names, and they are all different colors, but they have to learn to live in the same box”.

Let’s hope that through this experience that people have learned to overcome their ignorance.

Together – 2020

OK hopefully spring has sprung and we’re getting ready for summer! The kids have been home-schooling for a few weeks and Mom and Dad still might be working from home? Some of us haven’t had this much together time in …. years? What you are doing, and who you are doing it with makes you …. you!

Are you are making the best of it? Lots of time to bring back old-style entertainment. By now you’ve watched all the movies, you’re sick of TV programs (especially if you binge-watched every season of Game of Thrones). So, …. how about those old board games, card games, home improvement projects, etc. Are you becoming a better cook? What have you been doing with your time?

I have found my challenges by doing my work via video chats, hyperlinks, and other new-fangled modes of communication that’s allowing me to grow with my education with computers and various new software programs. Now, it’s not that we weren’t doing these things in the past, it’s just that I never spent my entire day talking to people via the camera on my computer. It also makes me think that many of us that weren’t working from home, could work from home.
I still prefer meeting with folks face-to-face in person and want to get back to that ASAP. But I now know that it isn’t entirely necessary for me to be in the same room with folks to be able to assist them with their education and decisions about Medicare, Social Security, and Retirement planning.

We wish that every aspect of our lives will get back to something more comfortable and is more like our previous lifestyle before this virus event. But at the same time, we have made strides of what working together, and relying on alternative methods, has gained us the knowledge and confidence that we can and will persevere.

Merrily We Roll Along – 2020

It’s spring, the Queen of seasons, and are we happy yet? With all the ongoing onslaught of media stories on the Virus, it is easy to get overwhelmed. It’s bad, it’s improving, but wait! There might be an even greater second wave. Lions, and Tigers, and Bears, oh my! Chicken Little would be right at home these days with our current American Media totally out of control.

The lead stories are an accounting of the dead from the virus. Well, what about some stories about the folks that are surviving and are recovering? Wouldn’t it be nice to see the positive numbers as the lead news for a change? In my book, I would vote an absolute YES!

The normal statistics our government tracks for the regular flu each year, traffic deaths, medical deaths from cancer, etc., have astronomical numbers each year but you do not see a word about those numbers. All the other categories on death are much higher than the Corona Virus and you don’t see people hoarding food and supplies

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So, what’s the difference? Media corporate Presidents and CEOs are salivating on anything negative they can print to the American public. There is a definite objective in the news these days to print continuing negative news, and almost nothing positive. Why? When the H1N1 virus hit several years ago and had much more devastating results, there was hardly a blink in the news. And as soon as it wasn’t news anymore that topic was quietly and quickly ushered to the waste bin of “old front-page news graveyard”.

Being an Independent, I vote for who I feel is the most qualified person at election times. I’ve voted for Republicans and Democrats alike. Sometimes it’s voting for the lesser of two evils. What I don’t like is the news on the TV during Democrat-led years in more neutral, while any time there is a Republican in office, the news is always bad. Coincidence? I think not. During a crisis we expect our leadership to pull together and do what’s best for the American public. Not bicker about this or that pet project when it comes to relief bills to help folks.

For some of us, we merrily roll along making the best of any situation. Though unlike most people who have a short attention span, I have a long memory, and that affects who I pull the lever for in the next election. Trust me, it will be ugly.

Too Much Trouble – 2020

Keep Positive – 2020

Spring has Sprung – 2020

Surprise, Surprise – 2020

There is more detail to this story than we have space to print, but if this situation ever applies to you, visit www.Medicare.gov and review the section “Medicare Advance Written Notice of Non-Coverage”.