The Social Security Break Even Point - Choosing The Right Time To Take

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Everyone wants to know the “right” age to take Social Security, but the answer is not always obvious.

Today’s Medicare Daily Show topic looks at the break-even point, the numbers behind the decision, and why waiting is not always the automatic winner people think it is.

Before you choose your claiming age, hear how a Medicare expert thinks through it.

Transcript

SPEAKER_07 0:03

Deciding when to take Social Security is often the single largest decision that you will make uh when it's time to retire. And you don't want to do it wrong. If you take too early, you can miss out. If you take too late, you could also miss out. So I'm joined here in the studio by my dad, Marvin Music, who's going to break down when you should take and when you shouldn't take, depending on your situation. So stay right here with us. Whether you're just starting Medicare or maybe it's time to start Social Security and you've got questions, you don't exactly know how to navigate this whole big bureaucratic government system. Welcome, you are in the right place. In just a moment, you're gonna learn about Social Security timing and strategies. And if at any point you have a question about your situation, call in. We would love to talk to you. We all get smarter by hearing your questions. What's going on in the real world? So call in. The phone number is 833-824-2004. 833-824-2004. We would love to talk to you. So, Dad, let's get into it. Talk to us about retirement, Social Security, when you should take, and when you shouldn't take, and how much you can get and maximizing things.

SPEAKER_00 1:05

Well, I'm going to begin, Josh, by making sure that uh everyone understands uh what breakeven means. Okay, here's kind of my favorite definition on break-in uh breakeven, it's the age where claiming early stops paying off compared to waiting. Okay, so the age we're claiming early stops paying off compared to waiting. And so as we discuss uh uh a breakeven point, the first thing that you have to understand is that when we take Social Security, we can take as early as 62 and we can take as late as 70. Uh and there is no uh one size fits all answer for everyone. We have to look at your particular situation to see if it makes sense to take early or should you wait. All right. And so uh breakeven just simply means that uh let's say we decide you decide to take your benefits at 62. Uh that means you have a lot more checks, but those checks are going to be less. And so the majority of people right now that are considering taking Social Security uh have a full retirement age of 67. Uh so if you have a full retirement age of 67, that means you were born after 1960. Uh and if you take as early as 62, you took five years early, and that means you lost 30 percent because it's basically about a 6 percent annual reduction. And so you're gonna lose 30 percent. But uh you are also gonna have uh a check, you're gonna have money. So let's keep it real simple. Let's say right now that your uh full retirement age would be a benefit of $2,500. Okay, $2,500. And we're gonna lose 30 percent of that, that is gonna give you a monthly benefit of $1,750. So you lost $750 a month, but you had those checks. And so we simply take uh 60 months of those checks at $17.50, we have a lump sum of money there, and then we divide that by uh that that uh reduction that you had to take. And so in that example I just shared with you taking it 62. If you live to be beyond 79, now that's your breakeven point. So we live beyond 79, uh that means that because we did take early, uh that would cost us in the long run. Uh but again, there's more factors than just the breakeven point. Breakeven i i it really does matter, especially it matters for those of you that have longevity in your in your family. Your mom lived to be 90 and your dad lived to be 87 or something, so when we have longevity, uh you have to kind of bring that into the equation. But we do know that if you take early at 62, uh if you live beyond eighty, then you live beyond that that breakeven point. Okay, so look at longevity. Now, just so you know, the average life expectancy for a man is eighty-three, and for a lady right now it's eighty-six. Um if you're married, uh one of uh two one of you is likely to live to be ninety, and uh one out of three couples uh someone's gonna live to be ninety-five. And so if you do really believe that you have longevity in your life, your family, uh then it's something that you may want to wait. Now, if you need the money, you need the money. Okay, but if you don't need the money, what I would rather do is uh encourage you to draw maybe some from other assets that you have uh that would be low-yielding, CDs and savings and those kind of things. Um because you are losing six percent every year, and if you wait beyond full retirement age, uh now you can actually grow that account uh at eight percent. Uh so if your full retirement age is at 67, you can actually grow that another full 24 percent, uh which means you wait to you wait to 70 to take, and then that break-even is just right about eighty-three. Uh so if you live beyond eighty-three, you would be very grateful that you made the decision to delay that and to grow that account, which is an extra six hundred dollars a month. Okay, so I I know I threw a lot of numbers out there uh to you, but but the point is be sure to take the time to evaluate. Uh do I have longevity? Listen, if if you have a right now a s uh a real critical chronic condition, I would take. So we want to bring into uh you know the health. Uh if you're healthy, uh you may want to wait. I I can tell you what I'm gonna do personally is I plan to wait to 870. Uh my wife is younger, uh, she does not have much Social Security. And so by me waiting, my break-even, I may die before then, but would she benefit from me uh delaying and taking at 870? So if you don't have to have the cash, you have a younger spouse uh that does not have much of their own Social Security, they will benefit by that increased amount.

SPEAKER_07 5:11

We have a wealth team or a financial planning team here at MedicareSchool.com. It's kind of a sister division. It's in the same office uh on the other side of the glass. If you guys have questions about how to coordinate um uh 401k or IRA conversions into Roth, how that impacts your Social Security, because you can go a lot deeper in making sure, you know, we all know that you know it's not just what you what you make, it's what you keep. And when it comes to Social Security, there are some special like taxation things you need to be aware of if you have larger 401ks or IRAs. So you can call into our main office line, ask to talk to the financial planning team, and they can go deep dive into your situation. Uh let's talk to uh Tamara. Is that how you Tamara? Hello?

SPEAKER_01 5:53

Yes, hello.

SPEAKER_07 5:54

Uh hi Welcome to Medicare School Daily. What's your question?

SPEAKER_01 5:59

Thank you. Hi, I have two questions. One, um, I turned 65 in October, but I plan to continue to work. Will I be penalized if I don't choose to switch over at this time to Medicare?

SPEAKER_00 6:14

So let me answer this, Tamara. Are you going to continue to work for a while?

SPEAKER_01 6:19

Yes, I plan to continue to work. I'm a school counselor, so I plan to continue to work for a while.

SPEAKER_00 6:24

Okay, okay, that sounds sounds good. Now, are you contributing to a health savings account right now, an HSA through work?

SPEAKER_01 6:32

You know what? I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 6:35

Yeah, well. Yeah. I I would tell you that most people know it when they are because it comes out of your check. Uh sometimes employer you know puts money in uh by themselves, but that's not the most common. So the only reason I ask you that is this. Our advice to you would be uh number one, you're not gonna be penalized as long as you're covered by a group plan that has 20 employees or more on the payroll. You work for a school district, so I know there's 20 or more people that work there. Uh so you're not gonna be penalized uh on anything, uh not A or not B. So you don't have to do a thing. However, if you are not contributing to a health savings account, and I doubt you are, called an HSA, then I still would take the time, Tamara, to enroll into Medicare A only. If you had an HSA, I would tell you nothing, but I don't think you have one, so let's confirm that. And then if you don't have an HSA, I would suggest that you enroll into A only. And you can do that anytime now, 987. So you're uh yeah, anytime after July 1, you can enroll into A only, and I would suggest it. And the reason for that is because number one, it's going to be free. There's no premium for uh uh Medicare A. And then it could be that if you ever were hospitalized while you're still working, uh Medicare A would be in the second payer position, but it will pay some. So your group plan pays first, but Medicare A would pay for it like part of a hospital claim. So I like people to get A only unless they have an HSA. But don't worry about B. Uh, there's no penalties. And what you are going to do is this once you set that retirement date, let's say it's three years down the road, uh, you just back up the clock three months, two to three months, and then you can enroll into Part B and you reach out to us or someone uh and then we'll walk you through that process of enrolling into Part B. It's very simple. Uh there's no penalties, no problems whatsoever. So that's my advice to you. Let's have A only for now. Um again, if you don't have an HSA, and then pick up B at a later date. And don't worry about penalties. Trust me, there will be none for you because you have active employment coverage. Now, I'm assuming you're not thinking about changing jobs between now and when you retire. You're gonna stay at the same school district. I'm set. Yeah. Okay, very good. Okay, because there's rules when we change employers after 65, but you don't have to worry about that. So anything you want to add, Josh?

SPEAKER_07 8:44

No, I'm as long as the uh employ as long as the school has more than 20 employees, which I'm sure it does, you're good.

SPEAKER_00 8:49

That's right. Yep.

SPEAKER_03 8:51

Perfect.

SPEAKER_00 8:52

Well, thanks. Yeah, well, we appreciate you calling in. Great to talk to you. Have a good rest of your day.

SPEAKER_01 8:57

Same to you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 8:59

Bye.

SPEAKER_07 9:01

Let's talk to Nina in Texas. Nina, understanding some questions about your uh your mom and what happens with Medicaid when she changes. Is that correct? Why don't you tell us a little bit more?

SPEAKER_04 9:11

Yes. Yes. Um, I'm getting ready to go get her from Arkansas. I live in San Antonio, Texas, and she's having some medical things going on, forgetfulness and stuff like that. So, and she takes quite a bit of the medicine. She's diabetic, uh, high blood pressure, and just the age thing, you know what I mean? And um she has um Medicaid, uh, hospital part A and uh medical and the medical part B. Uh she's had the hospital part A since uh August the first, two thousand and nine, and she had um her medical part B since um I think that's September the first, two thousand and nine. So I wanted to see if I'm gonna have to change it from Arkansas to Texas and how do I go about doing that?

SPEAKER_07 10:14

Do you know if she has like a Medicare advantage plan as well, or does she just have A and B and then Medicaid, which would be, you know, like state.

SPEAKER_00 10:23

Yeah, the state is that all she has? Does she have anything else? Or do you know?

SPEAKER_04 10:27

I think she does, but I'm not sure. I know she has a part that pays for all her medicine, and and um when she goes in, she she whatever she has to pay on it, like three dollars or whatever, at the end of the year. But I think it's that's done through my dad's um he worked for a company and they pay for that, and then at the end of the year they reimburse her whatever she's paid out of her pocket. So I'm not sure about that.

SPEAKER_00 10:56

But is your dad still limited? Is your dad still alive?

SPEAKER_04 11:00

No, he no, he passed a while back.

SPEAKER_07 11:05

So I I think you probably your first step is probably getting maybe clarification on that last piece because we wouldn't want to enroll her in some plan or do something that interacts with that. I think we need to understand how how that piece works together. So I'd try to track that down. You could ask her, hey, send me a picture, or if you're there with her, look at all of the different insurance cards that she has to use, and we'd be happy to help you compare those. But I think we need an understanding of that. Um secondly, if she moves, uh you're gonna have to reapply for Medicaid, right? Because that's a state thing. That's not a federal program. Medicare is federal, Medicaid is state. So you will have to, you know, I I guess get with a social worker or whatever and apply help, you know, go through that process for the state of Texas. What often happens um is you'll be um kind of uh you're gonna have an option to also get this thing. Yeah, there how how long is that transition? Is it like sixty days or something? Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:02

It will the move is 30 days before, sixty days after on on an advantage.

SPEAKER_07 12:06

Yeah. Yeah. So yeah, you're gonna need to. I would probably get with the Texas Texas Medicaid sooner than later. When is she planning on moving?

SPEAKER_04 12:14

Uh this coming weekend.

SPEAKER_07 12:16

Okay, yeah. Yeah, I'd probably get on that. She'll have some transition time, but I'd I'd get with the Medicaid of Texas, start that process, and then figure out the stuff with that employer reimbursement, whatever was going on there. And then if you want to call back into our office, I can give you our office phone number. You can work with someone on our team if you have all your info, right, that I'm telling you to get, then they can they can say, hey, this is probably the right path forward.

SPEAKER_00 12:42

Yeah. I I I got a couple questions for you. Josh is 100% right. Let me let me ask you this. Do you have any idea uh is there a cost to her for her to be on that insurance that uh that was your dad's? Is there a monthly cost, a premium, or is it free? Or do you know?

SPEAKER_03 13:01

I think it's free. Okay. I'm thinking it's free.

SPEAKER_00 13:04

Is she getting any kind of a pension from your your your dad?

SPEAKER_03 13:09

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

Okay. Yeah, they may they may take it out of the pension if there's a cost, but what what what did he do? What kind of work did he do?

SPEAKER_04 13:16

He retired from he retired from well, he was in the army for several years, and then he was he worked for a company called Cooper Tire in Arkansas. And that's where she gets the m the medicine part from.

SPEAKER_06 13:34

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 13:35

Is there anything let me ask you a question before I forget. Is there anything as a silver and gold that Medicare? Is that an advantage?

SPEAKER_00 13:45

Silver and gold. No, well, uh no. A AC AC plans could have a silver plan, a platinum plan, that kind of thing. But there's a there is a thing called silver sneakers, and that's actually uh a gym membership that uh uh uh advantage plans make available, but silver and gold, never heard that. Okay, so not saying it's that exists, but I'm unfamiliar with that. So that was one thing. I'd like to know what it costs her to be on the dad's plan. And then here's another thing that I would do uh is uh when she does go to the doctor or go to the hospital, I'm assuming she must give them three cards. She gives them her A and B card, her Medicaid card, plus uh that insurance from your dad's work. And so we would like to verify that. Is that what she does? Um because Josh is right.

SPEAKER_04 14:31

I know.

SPEAKER_00 14:32

Go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 14:33

Yeah, but I know she does give out two cards. Now I've never seen her do the third one.

SPEAKER_07 14:39

Okay. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, maybe go through her wallet with trying to understand, make some phone calls to try to understand exactly what she has, if it's costing anything, and and how that I uh even how that coordinates with Medicaid would be, I think, in an interesting question, too.

SPEAKER_00 14:56

But you do have some time, but I will tell you, yeah, I I you please reach back out to us. Uh every agent that any age you talk to, we're gonna be able to to tell you what her options would be. But we we definitely want to compare it that with this situation with your dad, okay, because we don't do we don't want to interrupt that. If Medicare is paying first, Medicaid second, your dad third, then yeah, that may be the best situation once she gets requalified in uh in Texas uh on their Medicaid program. Okay. And it could take uh you know some time. So I would I would get right on that qualification because you're gonna have uh is she gonna live with you?

SPEAKER_03 15:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:32

Okay, good. Okay, so then you're gonna give uh uh the you know your address to them as far as her home address, and they're gonna ask you, of course, for her income and assets and things like that, and then they'll let they'll let you know whether she qualifies or not. And then you know, it may take them 30 to 60 days to approve that application, but they normally will let you know by phone if she's um uh gonna be on it. But either way, you can call us and we're happy then to see what your insurance options may be. I'm gonna give you our office number. Do you have that?

SPEAKER_04 16:01

Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 16:02

You can give it to me at a 8-800-782-782-6676. 800-782-6676. And we're very familiar with all the plans in Texas. Texas is one of the primary states we serve amongst, I mean we serve them all, but a lot of people in Texas, so we help a lot of people in Texas, period. So give us a call and we can walk through that.

SPEAKER_00 16:24

Yeah, I just want you to do one thing. I just want you to write write this down. Uh if if we get her on a Medicaid, there's a plan called, it's it's an acronym, D, and then S as in Sam, and N as in Nancy, P as in Paul, dual SNP, D S and P. And so that could be a wonderful option for her. And I know that that also would coordinate with you with your father's insurance. Yeah, it'll coordinate with Medicare, Medicare. Yeah, so that's that could be awesome. It could give her some additional benefits, some, you know, over-the-count. There's just a lot of things that come with that. Uh, every every state's a little bit different, but Texas has some very good dual SNP plans, and our agent could talk about that if that would be a good fit or not. Okay.

SPEAKER_04 17:03

Okay. I got one one more question. Does it does it matter how much she pays into Medicare? You know, they take her uh Social Security out, how much that is that it's probably hundred dollars.

SPEAKER_00 17:19

Yeah, it's two yes.

SPEAKER_04 17:20

No, it's it's over three hundred.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

Okay. Okay, let me ask you this, then if that's the case, is is does your mom have uh other income beyond her Social Security? How much money is she making annually?

SPEAKER_07 17:31

No.

unknown 17:31

Okay.

SPEAKER_07 17:32

Is she making over $109,000?

unknown 17:36

No.

SPEAKER_07 17:37

Yeah, I wouldn't think so.

SPEAKER_00 17:38

Okay, so let me tell you what I think of a penalty. Well, it could either be a penalty, but or there also could be a premium on that plan.

SPEAKER_07 17:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:45

Uh that uh he has to show you.

SPEAKER_07 17:46

Yeah, that retiree plan could end up being some sort of like a Medicare Advantage plan that has a premium, or who knows? You need to learn about that.

SPEAKER_04 17:52

That's what I was thinking about.

SPEAKER_00 17:53

Yeah, I think that and and there's a lot of them out there like that, so that may not be an herprise. Generally those retiree plans, they're not. If they're Medicare Advantage, I just go a normal market plan. So that could be it. And and and it could be a penalty, but I tend to think not. I think it's primarily a premium on that on that uh work advantage plan. Okay. And she probably can beat it with Medicaid, so um yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:14

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 18:15

Okay. But we're happy to evaluate. Nice to talk to you. All right, bye-bye. You know, it is interesting how that works. I mean, you think about it. If Medicaid is the second payer uh and then this advantage plan is over the third, or maybe it's ver a reverse, but to pay a premium on advantage plan um sometimes is unfortunate. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So I I know these companies, um uh, you know, they they uh not always will they charge it, but sometimes they do, and that's not a good deal.

SPEAKER_07 18:50

Okay, let's go to uh Faina in Florida. Faina, welcome to Medicare School Daily. What's your question?

SPEAKER_02 18:57

Hello, hi thank you for Yeah, hi, thank you for taking my question. Okay, so my husband is 25, 5, and he needs to rule in the care. But when we'll be on fixed income. And okay, fine.

SPEAKER_00 20:55

Okay, let me let me just interject here a couple things. Number one, um, I think as long as you are not contributing to an HSA, so no HSAs, would that be correct?

SPEAKER_02 21:07

Correct. No HSAs.

SPEAKER_00 21:08

Okay, very good. Okay, so uh what I would do with your husband for your position, sounds like you have a very good group plan, sounds like you like the plan, sounds like the cost is very reasonable. Uh I like the fact that it includes uh dental envision for you all. And so what I'd recommend you do is just enroll into A only, and that is it. Uh you can do that with an SSA.gov account. Uh you log in there and you'll just um uh enroll into Medicare and it'll say you're re-enrolling into Medicare. So uh what will happen as you're enrolling into that is gonna ask you, do you want Medicare Part B? And you're gonna say no to that question. And when you do that, uh uh there's gonna be a little alarm kind of uh screen that comes up and will say, Are you sure you don't want to enroll in part B? Because you could be penalized. And you will not be penalized, so disregard the warning. Don't worry about it all. Just say no to B and take uh Medicare A only. Okay? Uh and then as you all prepare here in two or three years where you get ready to retire, then what I would do is about 60 to 90 days prior to you know when you're going to stop your coverage. Let's say you're going to stop your coverage, you know, December 31, you're going to retire January 1, just back up the clock a couple months, 60 to 90 days prior, and then you will enroll in part B. And when you do that, all we would have to do to help you, and we'd love to do that, is to verify that your husband has had credible insurance all the way back to 65 through your group plan. And that's all that's necessary. So take A only uh and then pick up B at a later date. Now in regards to your question about G or N, we like both. Okay, we do. I happen to be on a G plan because I live in a state where there's not really a very large difference between the G and the N plan. Uh in Florida, there is a big difference. I think what, $75 to $100 a month, something like that. Yeah. And so Josh is going to share with you kind of where the market is right now. But I just want you to know, Athena, if you were to take G or N either one, those are great decisions. Uh G is a tad bit more comprehensive, but again, it's more expensive. And so you do not take on a tremendous uh amount of risk by going with an N plan. In many situations, I would encourage people to do it. Uh just remember this that the N plan will not cover uh the excess charges. That really is the big difference. G covers excess and does not. But the reason that's not a huge issue for you is because uh excess charges rarely happen. They happen occasionally, uh, but you can always ask a doctor in advance. Uh do you take assignment? Do you charge excess? And again, there's about a 97% chance uh you're gonna get an answer of no, we don't charge those anyways. Uh so that would be your big difference between G and N. And uh Josh will give you prices here uh in just a second. Then the last thing is this when you take an end plan, you are going to be responsible for a $20 co-pay. So you see a doctor, you see a specialist, you'll pay a $20 copay. Then after that, that end plan will pay the rest of your coinsurance. Uh G covers all the coinsurance, N covers all of it except uh $20 copay. So again, they're really truly good plans. I love them both because you can go to any doctor that takes Medicare. Uh you don't have to worry about pre-authorizations with either one of those plans. They're lifetime plans or portable plans. So all the benefits uh of having a med-sup plan exist with both G and N. So I don't think you can truly make a bad decision. For me, it just kind of boils down uh to where you want to be on a monthly basis. Okay, Josh, go ahead.

SPEAKER_07 24:35

Yeah, I was just looking Plan N, you are you're in one of those expensive uh uh zip codes or counties in Florida. Not all of Florida is this expensive, but where you are, it is, unfortunately. Plan N looks like the lowest I can see is around 275. Does that sound about right to you compared to what you've looked at?

SPEAKER_02 24:53

I didn't look yet.

SPEAKER_07 24:56

Yeah, and then yeah uh let's go plan G is almost $100 higher. So that's a lot of money for sure, comparatively to most of the rec, you know, some other parts of Florida than the rest of even the country.

SPEAKER_00 25:09

Exactly right. Well, then what you and and again, I I if I were in your position and that fits the budget, I would do it. I still would. However, uh just know that in Florida, and and there's a couple places we have this in uh some spots in Texas, we have the other spots in California where uh advantage plans are very attractive in regards to max out-of-pocket. You can be on a vantage plan some places where it's max out of pocket is about $2,000 for the year. Now, I don't know what that's gonna look like for you in two or three years. That could definitely change as we see the Medicare landscape is uh Medicare advantage landscape is definitely changing. Uh, those plans are not as favorable really as what they used to be, but they're still gonna be around. And so uh what I would suggest doing for ENA, uh uh let's I wouldn't worry about it just yet. You're not making the decision just yet. Let's kind of see what the market looks like in two to three years. Uh but uh many people in Florida do go with advantage plans because the max out of pocket is a couple grand. You're gonna spend you're gonna spend about thirty, three hundred dollars just in just in premium alone. And so you may find an advantage plan that would work for you. Now, here's what you got to remember, though. Uh you have to make sure all your doctors take the plan, the hospitals you want to go to take your plan, our medications are covered well by the plan. So there's a lot of variables that are going into that. And I think you're wise for for planning ahead right now, but truly, in two to three years, the landscape could look just almost completely differently at that time. So um we want to be helpful to you, but because you know you're saying two or three years down the road we just don't know what's uh whether it's gonna look like go ahead, Josh.

SPEAKER_07 26:38

I'm gonna uh just uh tell you a couple of things that are come gonna come down the road for you. Because he's taking Medicare uh Part B at a later date. Did you go through this? I don't think so. And did not because he's taking Medicare Part B at a later date, there's gonna be a couple of documents, a couple pieces of paper that you are gonna have to get filled out so that A, he can come in when he wants to, start Part B when he wants to start it, and number two, not get penalized, right? And so those forms, and whenever you get down, call us, you know, get down the road, uh probably 90 days before you retire, call us. We will send you these forms and walk you through it. But just so you know, one of them is called the L564, and that's basically your employer. We we get this document, get it to your employer. The employer says, Yeah, he was covered with employer coverage since the time he turned 65. So you're gonna get that form done. And then there's another one called 40B, and that is the one that makes you fill out or will help you fill out to do the application to start Part B because he's already gonna have part A. So those two documents are then gonna go into the Social Security office, and then that is what will allow him to start Medicare Part B when he wants to, um, as well as uh without any penalties. Now, one of the questions we get a lot is like, what happens if you get laid off and he's 65 and you get laid off abruptly, you don't even know what's going on. Uh, is he gonna get penalized? Is there gonna be a gap? And the answer to that would be no, because uh the way the special enrollment period works, which is what those two forms are doing, it actually allows you eight months to get all of that done. Now you're never gonna wait that long. But don't worry about having an issue. If you if that layoff happens or something happens, just call us right away, and we can always get you started the first of the following month. And usually your benefits last till the end of the month anyway.

SPEAKER_00 28:21

Yeah, Fanny, if if you called us today, today, what is it, 29th? Yeah. We literally could assure you that your your coverage would begin July 1. You would not have your cards. Yeah, we wouldn't have to be a good idea. We could we could make sure you had coverage. Exactly. So don't be worried about that at all. Okay, you're doing the right thing, take A only, and then uh pick up B uh at a later date. And if you do reach out to us, we'd be delighted to hold your hand through the whole process and do it right.

SPEAKER_02 28:46

Perfect. One more question I regarding uh plan G high deductible.

SPEAKER_06 28:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 28:54

Can you please let me know how beneficial it because I heard and I read online that it's cheaper, but at the same time, people are having concerns. So will it be suitable enough?

SPEAKER_07 29:08

Yeah, I think I think for for very we don't recommend it often for very specific situations. Um it could make sense, especially, you know, you're in an area where plan N's are very high, plan G's are very high. Um you would be, you know, a plan N is gonna run you what, about thirty, three hundred dollars in yearly premium. The plan G would probably run you a thousand bucks, right? But then you or pardon me, the high deductible is gonna probably maybe run you a thousand dollars. I would have to calculate that to get closer. But then you're also gonna have almost a $3,000 deductible. So do you really come out ahead? I don't know. You know, it depends if you never hit that deductible. I guess you would come out ahead, but you can't guarantee that forever. But absolutely, let's get, you know, when you get two years down the road, we can compare all of those, the high deductible, the g, the n, and the advantage, all four of those together to decide if it makes sense. We don't often recommend high deductible G, but in situations like you, places like New York, like some of these other places where the plans for a a regular supplement plan are just so expensive, it may make sense.

SPEAKER_00 30:10

Yeah, and I want to add two things to that. I think Josh is a hundred percent right, just two things. Uh one of our agents the other day, Josh, was making a real, I think, a good point. Uh he he said he was telling a lady that one of the issues with the hygiene is sometimes people will really not go to the doctor or whatever they want to do because now they're conscious they have to be that out-of-pocket. And I think that's a valid point. We know this to be true because people today they have uh uh high deductible plans at work oftentimes don't use them because they don't want to be out of pocket. So I just we want you to use your insurance without having to have that hesitancy. So that's one issue. The second issue is let's say down the road uh you want to get off that high G and go on a regular G or even an N. Now you have to medically qualify to do that. So those would be the two factors, finding that we would like to discuss with you as you approach that decision.

SPEAKER_07 30:56

Yeah, and it is a little bit of a like you probably maybe have up more on in your Citibank plan. You probably have a high deductible option than a regular. You can switch back and forth between those every year. You know, if you're super healthy, you're just gonna probably you could take the high deductible. I don't know if you have or not, but you could. But what if you had something come up, you need a re knee replacement, you have a cancer, you have a heart issue, you have something that comes up. That next year at open enrollment, what are you gonna do? You're probably gonna switch to the the lower deductible plan because you know you're gonna use the plan. What happens on Medicare is you don't have that option to make that switch every year. You can't be high deductible this year, next year not. You choose high deductible, something changes in your health, you want to switch to just a regular G or a regular N, you're probably stuck.

SPEAKER_00 31:39

Yeah. Okay. That's exactly right. So, well, Fina, we look forward to talking to you in the future. So hope this was helpful. Uh we appreciate you calling in, and please, please stay in touch with us. Again, about that 60 to 90 day window before you know you're gonna retire. That's when you need to get serious. And listen, remember Josh taught you about the L5 and the 40B? You cannot submit those four or five months in advance. It has to be no sooner than 90 days of the effective date. Okay.

SPEAKER_07 32:04

When you call in, though, whoever you talk to at our company, they're all been trained by my dad Marvin. Okay, so they're all gonna know how to walk you through both the comparison of the options, but also the enrollment paperwork, who needs to get it, how to fill it out, all that sort of stuff. So you can really be hands-free and it doesn't cost you anything to work with us. Okay. So be happy to do that. Okay. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 32:25

Thanks so much. Take care. Thanks. Thank you.

SPEAKER_07 32:28

See ya. If you have similar questions or you have a similar situation, and it's time for you to start your Medicare benefits, we would love to help you. Uh, everybody on the our team is right here in Kansas City, and we all speak English natively. We're ready and willing to help you. Phone number uh to call into our office to either talk to someone live who can help you compare your options and enroll or schedule an appointment for down the road. That phone number is 800-782-6676-800-782-6676. Our services are free. We don't work for free, we're paid by the insurance carriers uh from whatever plan you happen to choose. Okay, let's talk to you Donald in South Carolina. Donald. Yes, hi, how are you? I understand you're gonna move and curious about provider access.

SPEAKER_05 33:17

I'm considering moving back to North Carolina, but that county, I'm not gonna mention the name, has a hospital building, but no doctors. I can't get the extra benefits uh like you can have with a county that has a hospital, actual hospital, uh, has I have to go by social security, not the extra benefits. Is there any way around that?

SPEAKER_00 33:59

Well, so I think what you're saying is that uh uh advantage plans have the extra benefits. Is that what you're talking about? Yes. Okay, okay, very good. So And I have that now. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_05 34:09

I understand South Carolina.

SPEAKER_00 34:12

Are there any other uh hospitals in that area you're going to or or is it the only one? In that county, there's no other Okay. I understand what you're saying. So that that hospital does not take probably doesn't take the advantage plan any longer, is what I'm assuming.

SPEAKER_05 34:29

Well, they don't have doctors. They can take a splinter out of your finger, but they don't have doctors per se.

SPEAKER_07 34:41

So what plan are you on right now? Yeah, what if it's related to Medicaid?

SPEAKER_05 34:47

Um and uh special plan. I don't pay for Medicare, I get money back. Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_07 34:56

So are you on Medicaid as well?

SPEAKER_00 35:00

No. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 35:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 35:01

Yeah, so you have you yeah, you just he has a give back plan. Let me are you getting your are you getting your medications through uh that plan or are you getting them through the VA or some other uh group? I only take one medication. It's ten dollars a month. Okay, but but I'm healthy. I know, but do you use your insurance to get that medication or you just pay cash because you don't have any any any uh prescription drug coverage?

SPEAKER_05 35:25

I joined the insurance. You did? Because it keeps going up if you don't join it. Oh, okay. I understand. Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_07 35:34

What what what plan are you on? What's the name of the carrier?

SPEAKER_00 35:37

Like Humana, you know, healthcare, a wellspring. I mean uh well care uh health springs.

SPEAKER_05 35:45

Uh I think it's well springs. Okay. They changed. Yeah, they merged with another.

SPEAKER_00 35:52

Yes, that was Signet Signa Health Spring, probably. Okay. Okay.

SPEAKER_06 35:56

Sorry, I said a Wheelspring.

SPEAKER_00 35:58

Yeah. There's a Wellcare and a Health Spring. Do you pay any premium for that? Or not at all? He's getting a give back.

SPEAKER_05 36:05

So I give I don't pay and I give get back. Okay.

SPEAKER_07 36:12

And so your your concern is that plan's not available there, or there's no plan available there.

SPEAKER_05 36:18

Probably no plan. We live we live in the upper right hand corner of the county, just a few miles from the county line. But since we live in that county, there's no bid and fit.

SPEAKER_07 36:36

Yeah. So, but 29316 is still South Carolina, is that right?

SPEAKER_05 36:41

No, North Carolina. Very center to the state. 29316.

SPEAKER_00 36:49

Yes. And that's a North Carolina zip code?

SPEAKER_07 36:52

That sure looks, I mean, I don't know. Maybe so in Spartanburg, South Carolina, 29316. It's very close to the 29301 that you gave me.

SPEAKER_05 37:04

I may have 2735 27356. 27356.

SPEAKER_07 37:13

Okay. Good. That is in Montgomery.

SPEAKER_05 37:16

Yes. Okay. I lived in Bowling Springs for a couple of years and then we moved. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 37:22

That's what I thought. Yeah, what's happened, Donald, what's happened in that area is uh and this has happened across the country. Uh these rural areas uh rarely now have advantage plans available. So there is no advantage plan available in that particular uh zip code. And the reason is because the insurance companies could not put they could not put together a network of providers to make it work. Uh it was not profitable for them, so they have pulled them. So what's going to happen whenever you move to that, if you do decide to move there, uh you would have to return to original Medicare and uh you're you are gonna lose all those extra benefits and you can get a supplemental plan. Uh you would not have to go through underwriting to do that, but again, you're gonna spend more money out of pocket. Uh so uh let me ask you I understand all of that.

SPEAKER_05 38:06

I was just wondering if you knew uh backdoor ways to get it. Unfortunately. No, sir.

SPEAKER_00 38:15

No, sir. Because what's gonna happen?

SPEAKER_05 38:16

I understand that.

SPEAKER_00 38:17

Yeah, and they'll cancel that plan when you move anyways. You'll you'll give some time, of course, to to uh you know make a decision, so I'm not trying to put you.

SPEAKER_05 38:25

I'm probably not gonna move since it's gonna Okay. It's gonna penalize me.

SPEAKER_00 38:32

Yeah, yeah. I understand. I I don't blame you. I I I don't, because it's gonna uh definitely affect your health insurance options for sure. You'd have to go back to original Medicare.

SPEAKER_07 38:40

How is your health?

SPEAKER_05 38:43

Excellent. Okay. I have leukemia since before the pandemic hit. I am stage zero, no symptoms.

SPEAKER_00 38:59

Any treatment? No. No treatments at all, but you still have leukemia.

SPEAKER_05 39:05

No. Okay. Well, technically, uh my checkup before last, my doctor said your white blood count is almost where we want it to be. Back in North Carolina, my doctor told me to take a woman's multiple vitamin and vitamin D. Check a read for him. He said vitamin D doesn't cure anything, it sort of freezes it in place. I work hard. And uh I've got a few aches and pains, but I chased my dog around in the yard for the ball and uh I shovel dirt.

SPEAKER_00 39:54

That's pretty good for 78, sir. Yeah, I think that's I think that's awesome. That is. Yeah, that's really good. Hey, we we've got another caller waiting. I just want to suggest this to you. If you do not want to spend any more money than what you're already spending right now, uh, and of course you're getting $150 back on your Social Security check with that advantage plan. So if you don't want to spend any more money, then you're not gonna want to move. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. It would be it would be a pretty probably Yeah. Not only are you gonna lose the $150, but what's it what's the supplemental plan?

SPEAKER_07 40:24

It's $135.

SPEAKER_00 40:25

Yeah, $135. So it's gonna cost you almost $300 a month extra if you move. Now, in my opinion, you're gonna have excellent insurance, but you're gonna have to pay for it. That's about $300 because you'll you you lose your $150, and then you've got to pay a premium to get a supplemental plan in right now, is $135, and we got to get a drug plan. So I'm saying that move is gonna cost you about $300 a month. Okay? All right, Donald, we're we're gonna let that. Okay. Appreciate the information. You're welcome. Sorry we couldn't help you any further. Have a good rest of your day, sir. Thank you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_07 40:57

In life, uh, we don't want to make mistakes, but we all do make mistakes, and mistakes are a great opportunity to learn in order to make better decisions next time. But there are five mistakes that you can make on Medicare that you can't redo. I've always said for a long time there are no do-overs in retirement, and there's probably some minor ones, but there are at least five big Medicare mistakes that you can make that will impact you the rest of your life, and there's no way to reverse it. Join us tomorrow as my dad shares with us what those five mistakes are.