Health Insurance costs continue to rise. The recent national debate on health insurance was ostensibly to lower costs. Many in the industry spoke loud that the proposals being put forward would raise premiums faster than ever before.

Even though the full impact of this is not yet felt, underlying pressure on costs has begun in earnest. One major insurer is sending out notices that include information like this:

Despite our efforts, the cost of care continues to increase dramatically. Factors fueling costs include:

1. Increased use of new medical technologies.
2. Higher prescription drug costs.
3. Pressure on health insurance plans and the private sector to absorb higher costs as funding for public programs like Medicare and Medicaid decreases.

The average increase is a whopping 17.6 percent for PPO insurance plans! The increase applies to both open and closed insurance plans. Insureds of all ages and across all regions and tiers will see an increase unless they are currently in a rate guarantee period.

What can you do about this? Well, neither you or I can change the decisions being made as individuals. However, as individuals – we can change what we pay for.

I have for a long time advocated Health Insurance Savings qualified health plans. I feel stronger than ever that this is a good choice for the majority of persons. I believe that putting a plan like this in place is the best way to cushion future rate increases. I can help you do this.

Recently I have found another good idea. This one works whether you are self-employed or an employee. It works wherever there is a high deductible medical plan. You can protect yourself, and your whole family against many risks by getting your own accident and/or critical (cancer, heart, etc) illness plan. These plans pay with either no deductible or a very small deductible. Either way they will help cushion you against health insurance plans with increasingly high deductibles.

In a word: No!

However, even though that is true, for many Accident Insurance provides them needed protection when Work Comp Insurance is simply not an option for them. Many self-employed individuals do opt out of Work Comp for themselves. Why do they choose to do this?

Its because 1) it is expensive and 2) it basically will not pay benefits for the owner. [These comments have to do with California]. So many wonder why they should pay for something that will not provide benefits.

With all the talk about health care combined with the fact that many are suffering from a lack of work – the self employed have to evaluate the best way to protect themselves. Many do not pay into Workers Compensation

But what is a self-employed construction worker or similar tradesman / woman to do? How does a person provide a reasonable amount of protection on themselves?

Here is a link for a reasonably priced accident plan. A person can combine this with a high deductible health insurance plan. This way a person can cover themselves, at least against medical costs, should they get injured while working, and still partially self-insure for sickness (for all of you who “don’t go to doctors”).

There is more to this that I would like to explain to you, as a person in this situation really should do more than what I’ve addressed in this blog and this blog does not address the whole picture.

However, this will get you started. Please call me if you have questions.

Michael Myers
209-390-1163

What can be done about it now?

There are five scenarios in which Medicare Advantage members may disenroll from their plan.

Scenario #1
If you are disenrolled from an MA plan because the plan is leaving Medicare, stops giving care in their area, or the customer moves out of the plan’s service area, you are eligible to change. Customers in this scenario are guaranteed issue of a Medicare Supplement plan A, B, C, F, HDF, K, or L that are sold in their state by any insurer.

Customers can apply for a Medicare Supplement as early as the day they receive notice that their MA coverage will end, but no later than 63 days after the MA coverage ends.

Scenario #2
You joined an MA Plan when you were first eligible for Medicare Part A at age 65, and within the first year of joining you may exercise your right to switch to Original Medicare. Customers in this scenario are guaranteed issue of any Medicare Supplement plan sold in their state by any insurer. Customers can apply for a Medicare Supplement as early as 60 days before the date their MA coverage will end, but no later than 63 days after the MA coverage ends.

Scenario #3
Or … you dropped a traditional Medicare Supplement to join Medicare Advantage for the first time, less than a year ago and you wish to switch back to Original Medicare. Customers in this scenario are guaranteed issue of the Medicare Supplement policy they had before they joined MA if the same insurance company they had before still sells it. If the former Medicare Supplement policy isn’t available, they can buy a Medicare Supplement plan A, B, C, F, HDF, K, or L sold in their state by any insurance company. Customers can apply for a Medicare Supplement as early as 60 days before the date their MA coverage will end, but no later than 63 days after the MA coverage ends.

Scenario #4
You have been with an Medicare Advantage plan for more than one year and are considering dis-enrolling and returning to original Medicare, and then purchasing a Medicare Supplement.

In most cases, an MA enrollee must stay enrolled for that calendar year starting the date their overage begins. According to Medicare, a customer who has been with an MA plan for more than one year may disenroll if Medicare has made a determination that a Medicare Advantage organization materially misrepresented plan provisions or violated its agreement with the enrollee. Customers in this scenario are guaranteed issue of Medicare Supplements A, B, C, F, HDF, K, and L that is sold in their state by any insurance company. [This one is tough to do].

Scenario #5
If you dis-enroll from Medicare Advantage, having been on Medicare Advantage MORE THAN one year and are not in Scenario 4, you are NOT guaranteed issue. This simply means that your application will be medically underwritten. You may or may not qualify, but this is something I will likely be able to tell you at the time of application.

I have been helping people with Medicare Supplements since the early 1980′s. In almost all cases, I prefer my clients to be with original Medicare and purchase a Medicare Supplement. I believe that, in the long run, this is the most cost effective decision. It certainly is the decision with the most stability.

Call me anytime if you have questions, or if I can assist you in any way.

Michael

If you have recently been laid off, you may have been offered COBRA. COBRA provides insurance while a person is in between jobs. If you can afford it, you should purchase your COBRA offering, or buy permanent individual health insurance (I can help you with this).

However, if you cannot afford to pay for COBRA, and you are reasonably healthy and believe you will have group health insurance again, you might consider purchasing the “Cobra Alternative”, otherwise known as temporary health insurance. This will in almost all cases be less expensive.

Here is my link to price this for yourself (when you get to the page, look on the right side of the page) …

Michael

With recent rate hikes on individual and group insurance plans, many experts are recommending that consumers shop around as many commonly do with auto insurance. For instance, California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, in a recent statement said,

“As a consumer you need to shop around. A different provider may prove to be a better value for a particular individual or family’s needs, and all of them are looking for new customers. I encourage consumers who are not happy with their rates, co-pays, benefits or service to look at other options.”, says Poizner.

Honest, consumer based evaluation of health plans and carriers are really the need of the hour. We think that this is the role that the insurance intermediary should volunteer to take up. In fact, this is exactly what we have been doing for some time now.

Most people find insurance confusing. I am here to help. My only preference in insurers is the one that will fill your need and circumstances best. This is why I offer the selection of companies I offer.

Whether the need is group insurance, individual/family plans or Senior health plans (Medigap), I save people money with my “Solutions That Work”.

So if you do not have insurance and need it, or if you have it and think it’s too high, call me. I can help.

Call me at 209-390-1163 or 866-301-9652.

Michael Myers

Over the thirty years or so I have been working in sales, I have seen sales gurus come and go. Their advice sometimes has merit, sometimes it simply does not. Some are genuinely interested in helping others in sales learn what it is people want and need. Others just like the sound of their own voice.

One of the worse pieces of self-proclaimed wisdom is the strong idea that a sales person should never become “an unpaid consultant”.

I could not disagree more. Here is why:

Product – no matter what it is – insurance, financial services, legal aid, plumbing, carpentry … well, you get the idea, no matter what it is – it’s just a commodity.

Customers form their strongest relationships with people who give the most value. In today’s selling environment, what you sell — be it a product or service — is, in itself, the least valuable thing that you offer. In fact, it is probably viewed by most buyers as a commodity
But good advice is something people do not get from very many people. Good advice trumps whatever the product is by a 1,000 percent!

So ask me any question about insurance. I am here to help, even if I don’t have something that will be useful to you. The worst case scenario is I will point you in the right direction. And if I can help you, I will give you the choices you need to make a good decision you will be happy with for a long time.

I’ll tell you the complete unvarnished truth.

Take for instance all the talk about bad insurance companies. Now, there is no doubt that there are some bad apples out there. But is the talk you hear in the news really honest and truthful?

For instance …

So whereas I cannot do anything about all the rhetoric (I wouldn’t even try), I can help you by telling you the truth. I give my clients good advice, based on their circumstances. And I’ve been doing it for 30 years.

Call me at 209-390-1163 if I can answer any questions for you. I’m here to help.

Michael Myers

Health insurance has always been something that I have advocated people talk to me about before applying.

Why?

For two simple but very important reasons;

1. People have different expectations when they purchase health insurance, and
2. Health insurance companies only give you the reasons to buy their product. They rarely discuss the thinking that goes into selecting a plan. They will give you all the legally required language (which no one reads), and they will stress the benefits, but they do not discuss things like, underwriting or how this particular health insurance plan fits into your particular goals, or how it fits into your budget (or doesn’t fit into your budget).

That is where I come in. I help a person think about those things – I provide the facts that a person needs to make a decision, before they get to the point of actually selecting a health insurance plan.

So why the heading: “Six Reasons to Apply Online” if I am telling you that you should talk to me first?

Because it’s irrelevant what I think. It’s what you think that matters. And the truth is, many people just want to do it that way.

So that is my first reason: it’s what you want to do. So in order, here are my “Six Reasons to Apply Online”:

1. It’s what many people want to do.
2. It saves time.
3. You may do it in the privacy of your home, office, or the local Wi-Fi equipped coffee house.
4. You can do it at midnight, if that is when you have time to do it.
5. Privacy.
6. It’s what you want to do.

Okay, the sixth reason is a repeat, but twice for emphasis, right? Really it comes down to the one reason. You don’t want to meet with someone, as this makes you feel obligated, and you want to just do it yourself.

I understand. And that is fine.

But remember my reasons that you should meet with me first? I’d like you to consider those reasons as being of benefit to you. And so the rest of what I write will deal with those specific things, and hopefully, what I write will benefit you. (But I am always here to help you, either on the phone or in person, should you find you need to know more).

So which of these scenarios fits your thinking best?

Scenario One: I think I’m in pretty good health. I don’t need health insurance for small stuff, but I do worry about something major happening.  California Residents Click Here

Scenario Two: I am in pretty good health, but it really hurts to have to come up with $1,500 for a doctor visit and a few lab tests! I want something that I know what it’s going to cost me if I go to the doctor just like what I use to have when I worked for XYZ Widget Company. California Residents Click Here

Scenario Three: I have some health issues and I don’t know if they will accept me. I know I can’t expect to get the same quality of health insurance I had when I worked for XYZ Widget Company, but I need to have something that will pay toward my costs if I have to go to the doctor or worse, the hospital. California, Kansas and Nevada Residents Click Here

And if you have health insurance, but would like to save money on Dental Expenses, Click Here

And of course, if you cannot find what you are looking for, or have questions, or just need some help sorting it all out, call me. I’m here to help.

Can this be done? In almost all cases, the answer is yes. This will work in groups of 2-50 and the principles of this can even be done by individuals.

I have tried to write a post on how this is done, but my post includes a graph that compares the typical PPO that most people purchase with my Out-Of-The-Typical-Box solution. Unfortunately, if there is a way to put a graph into a blog post, apparently I do not know how to do it.

But if you’d like to know more, please call me 209-390-1163 or email me at michaelpmyers @ gmail.com and I will send the complete post.

It’s not uncommon for people to have the view that insurance is like the lottery … a big gamble.

For a person who has never filed a claim, I guess I understand them having this view. However, I want to examine this conclusion for just a moment.

According to information posted on the Internet:

The odds of winning the California Super Lotto Jackpot are 1 in 18 million! Other lotteries may have slightly better “odds”, such as 1 in 15 million! (Feel better now?)  Here is another way of looking at it:  If one person purchases 50 Lotto tickets each week, they will win the jackpot about once every 5,000 years.

How do those odds compare to the odds of an insurance claim being filed?  For instance, what about the chances of ever needing disability income?

If you are currently 25 years of age, there is a 1 in 44 chance you will be disabled and unable to work at some point in your life.  This statistic increases with age, so that, when you are 55 years of age, the chances have increased to 1 in 27!

Similarly, what about the chances of  needing some type of in-home or facility care (non-hospital) when a person gets older?  To answer this, I will quote from the respected, Wall Street Journal, which stated

… a couple turning 65 has a 75% chance that one of them will need long term care.

This high risk can also affect the entire family where the children are at risk of a negative inheritance, also according to the Wall Street Journal.

Along these same lines, The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys did a study and compared the risk of needing long term care with the risk of other financially devastating risks, such as a major auto accident, or a fire in a person’s home. According to that study, the rates of risk were:

• Automobile accident 1 out of 240 [0.4%]
• Fire damaging your home 1 out of 1,200 [0.08%]
• Needing long term care assistance 1 out of 2 [50%]

Of course the chance of dying is 1 in 1 [100%].

The biggest difference between the two “products” is – the lottery appeals to peoples desires, while properly selected insurance provides “Real Solutions for Real Risks”.  Sometimes the real reason we do not make decisions about insurance coverage, is that we “know” we can’t afford all the types of insurance we could buy, so we just kind of dismiss them all.

I am here to help you.

I will never pressure you to buy this or buy that. I will provide you objective and well-researched information to tailor the product to your need and circumstances.  This is true whether you’ve bought insurance in the past, or if you’ve put off buying insurance. I will help youget the best value for your hard earned dollars.

What is the cost of the insurance? Obviously this depends on you and your needs, but one thing I will assure you: it’s a lot less than buying lottery tickets!

Just ask … I can help! Call me at 209-390-1163 and I will show you the best way for you.