Medicare vs. Medicaid- Both Government sponsored health insurance Medicare’s beneficiaries are primarily age 65 and older or meet other exceptions. Beneficiaries have paid into the Medicare system through payroll taxes over their working life. Medicaid’s beneficiaries are low to moderate income individuals. This program is dependent on income. Premiums: Part A- Most people receive [...]
Did you know that you may have to pay a higher premium for Medicare Part B and Medicare Part D based on a tax return from two years ago? Medicare Part B and Part D use a two-year clawback to determine premiums. The result is a surcharge, known as the Income Related Monthly Adjustment [...]
Medicare is confusing. The main Medicare coverages are Medicare Part A, Medicare Part B, and Medicare Part D. On top of that, there are also optional Medicare supplement and advantage plans. To make things more confusing, you could get stuck with a late enrollment penalty for all your main Medicare coverages. This can happen [...]
If you are a homeowner, you may be wondering if you can itemize your deductions to get a higher tax benefit. To itemize, you first have to be above the standard deduction. If you are, then it is likely that you or your tax preparer can itemize on your taxes. These deductions include, but are [...]
Do you like donuts? If the answer is yes, or no for that matter, here is a donut you may not like- the Medicare Donut Hole. We all know Medicare is complex and confusing. When you start thinking about medications that can make it seem worse. Between the potential deductible, the copays and coinsurances, [...]
A New Year brings new changes to many insurances... this includes Medicare. Whether its changes to the premiums, deductibles, and cost sharing (copays and/or coinsurance) amounts to the actual underlying coverage of services it is hard to keep up sometimes. On top of the normal changes, there are some huge changes to Medicare due to [...]
Are you being bombarded with Medicare Advantage commercials or mailings? If it hasn’t started yet, I’m sure you’ll start receiving or noticing them soon. This is because we are now in the Open Enrollment period for Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage plans. Do these messages seem too good to be true? Are you wondering [...]
Written by: Lynda Lander, Associate Advisor If you are a homeowner and you are above the standard deduction, chances are you or your tax preparer have itemized your deductions. These deductions include, but are not limited to: Home mortgage interest payments City/state/school property taxes Personal property taxes State income taxes Other miscellaneous deductions. First, [...]
By: Lynda Tull, Associate Advisor Have you heard of the IRMAA in regards to your Medicare Part B and Part D premiums? Chances are, if you have then you likely are paying these extra surcharges. These “surcharges” or additional insurance premiums increase your regular Medicare premiums when your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) on your [...]
By: Lynda Tull, Associate Advsior Did you know that you may have to pay a higher premium for Medicare Part B and Medicare Part D based on a tax return from 2 years ago? Medicare Part B and Part D use a two-year clawback to determine premiums. The result is a surcharge, known as [...]
