Retirement Healthcare and Medicare
Retirement expert Bob Carlson’s research and knowledge on how to get the most out of healthcare options
Found 299 Articles.
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Get Ready for Medicare’s Drug Option
Medicare members are about to be bombarded with information and sales pitches. You have a decision to make that could have a significant effect on your finances and health. You need to start preparing now. The Medicare prescription drug benefit that was enacted in 2003 takes effect in 2006. November 2005 begins the sign-up period […]
Estate Planning – How to Make Health Care Directives Work
Most advanced health care directives are not followed by doctors and loved ones. Studies consistently show that is the case, for a host of reasons. In last month’s visit we discussed why you need more than a Living Will in your estate plan to cover health care decisions. This month, let’s look at the steps […]
Why A Living Will Isn’t Enough
The case of Terri Schiavo captured most of the nation’s attention and spurred greater interest in Living Wills and related estate planning tools. For years at Retirement Watch we’ve insisted that health care documents are an essential part of an estate plan. We’ve even stated that these documents should be prepared while decisions about other […]
Your Home and Long-Term Care In One Package
More and more retirees are looking to solve their housing and long-term health care needs in one move. They are moving into facilities called continuing-care retirement communities, or CCRCs. These also are known as living-care communities. A CCRC has several types of living and health-care facilities in one community. Usually there is an independent living […]
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Don’t Overpay for Medigap
Medical care expenses are rising. Many retirees compound the problem by paying more for medical expense coverage than they should. The premiums on Medicare are increasing by 17.4% for 2005. You can’t do anything about that. But most people on Medicare also purchase Medicare supplement (or Medigap) insurance policies. Too many of these people overpay […]
Behind the Headlines on Prescription Drug Prices
In my files are a series of reports detailing the rapid rise in the cost of medical care for Americans, especially for seniors. The good news is that the numbers in the reports aren’t terribly accurate. The bad news is that these reports are used to scare people, especially those in and near retirement, and […]
HIPAA-compliant Estate Planning
The law of unintended consequences has struck again. Because of it, some standard Estate Planning tools need to be reworked, and existing plans might need some revisions in the next few years. Congress decided Americans’ medical privacy needed more protection, so in 1996 it passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, known as HIPAA. […]
A Medicare Prescription Drug Update
The Medicare Prescription Drug Discount Card program now is up and running, producing both benefits and controversy. Seniors could sign up for a program starting May 1 and could begin using the cards June 1. Advertising for the cards by both the government and card sponsors began in May. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid […]
