Hello and welcome to another exciting
episode of Bridge the Gap:Connecting Business Perspectives with your hosts myself, Colton Cockerell and Trisha Stetzel. Our goal is to bridge the generational, gender, and life experience gap in business through our unique styles of gathering information from our guests. now let's get it started.
Trisha Stetzel:Hello and Happy Wednesday everyone welcome to Bridge the Gap My name is Trisha Stetzel and I'm the owner of Results Xtreme Business Solutions and this is not normally my script. My friend Colton normally introduces me but today I have the privilege of introducing my friend and partner Colton Cockerell.
Colton Cockerell:Oh, that was so beautiful Trisha. Yes, my name is Colton Cockerell. I'm a Certified Financial Fiduciary and independent financial advisor with Sharer McKinley Group and welcome to Bridge the Gap. I also want to welcome our guest today, we have a healthcare special health care health advisor in the house. He specializes really just educating his clients, EPO, HMO, PPV, all these different letters that make no sense. I'm kidding. totally kidding, Ricky. He knows what he is doing HBO, right, all these great, great acronyms. So today we're gonna jump in, and we're gonna learn about but before we do, Ricky, I want to I want to introduce you to our audience. So Ricky Garza, he is, really he's been in the health insurance game for a while now he and I have known each other for over a year. And really, His heart is behind helping individuals. So whether that is getting them in a plan that fits them, or just really pointing them in the right direction. He does a great job. And the cool thing I like about Ricky is he looks at everyone's insurance, health insurance, no cost. And he's honest, even if it means that he just puts you somewhere else where he doesn't make a dime, he's gonna do what is ethical on what helps him sleep well at night. So I trust Ricky, and he is a he's a solid guy. So without further ado, I want to introduce everyone to health advisor extraordinaire, Mr. Ricky Garza.
Ricky Garza:Hey, good afternoon. Thank you so much, Colton. Thank you, Trisha for having me.
Trisha Stetzel:So absolutely. Ricky, we're so excited. You're with us today. So Colton was making a joke with all the PP O's, and HBOs and MMOs, and all that stuff, right. But I know we want to actually head down that path. So if I'm really confused about what I should be looking at what I should be seeing what I should be reading about. I know PPO is one of those things that I hear all over the place. So let's just dive in what in the world is PPO?
Ricky Garza:So whenever it comes to EPO, HMO and PPO, as Colton was saying all the different acronyms and abbreviations and things like that, those are the three that you really want to worry about. So the basic way to put it is whenever I'm talking to a potential client, or just talking to anyone in general, for basic knowledge is look at it as a triangle, right? You have the base, the middle and the top. So you want to flip that over. So this pyramid is upside down, right, so the smallest point is at the bottom now instead of the biggest point at the bottom, and that's where your EPO is going to be. So the EPO, that's whenever it comes to providers with the EPO, that means that's the smallest amount of providers, that means that's the smallest amount of doctors and specialists that your coverage is covering at that time. Now whenever you move up a little bit, and it broadens out a little bit more than now you're looking at the HMO, which means you can go to a little bit more doctors a little bit more specialists, things like that. Now the grand scheme of it is at the very top, and that's what's real popular right now. And that's the PPO plan. And what that means is you can typically go to any doctor, any hospital. Exactly, exactly. So typically, with a PPO plan, that means you can go to any doctor, any hospital nationwide. So even outside of the US and things like that. So whenever it comes to that pyramid, you definitely want the cream of the crop, you know, you want to be at the very top, you want to be able to go into a hospital, you know, with my wife, if God forbid something were to happen with her and I'm rushing into the ER, I don't want to go in there and say, hey, my wife is injured, my wife's sick, something's wrong with my wife, I want the bare minimum coverage to to take care to take care of her and get her out of here. Instead of Hey, I don't care what it costs, I don't care what it is, and they go, Hey, you know what, we got you covered. And so that's exactly what you get with a PPO plan is whenever you go when you don't have that burden of, you know, extra bills coming your way or anything like that. So, I mean, that's the short and the suite of EPO at the very bottom, which we don't want do not recommend at all. If you're on an EPO, you need to contact me as soon as possible. HMO, they're not all bad. I know a huge HMO in this area is Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. And now whenever it comes to corporate plans and different things of that, you know, of course, there's different ins and outs whenever it comes to the fine print of BlueCross BlueShield. Not are all bad. But typically, if you're on a Blue Cross Blue Shield plan of Texas, let's say Colton, and Trisha you know if y'all were together and I was your son, just an example. Right? So I'm your son, you know, you made a pretty looking baby right here, right? So if we live in the state of Texas, and we're on a Blue Cross Blue Shield, state of Texas plan And let's say I decide to go off to college and Oklahoma. As soon as I cross state lines, that HMO plan is no longer covering me. And a lot of people are unaware of that. So as soon as you leave the state line of Texas, typically with a BlueCross BlueShield plan, you no longer have coverage. And a lot of people don't know that. So whenever you go out of town to Florida, you're going out of town for whatever the case may be. Even whenever you go to Mexico, stuff like that. On a PPO plan, that's whenever you're looking at that nationwide coverage, and that's what you want. So whenever it comes to a family such as Trisha, Colton and me, we would highly recommend a PPO plan for us because y'all are aware that I'm wanting to go to college in Oklahoma, so you want to make sure that I'm covered or if in the future, you know, we plan on going on these awesome family trips, doing competitive eating around the world, whatever the case may be, right? We definitely want to make sure that we're covered whenever it comes to our health insurance.
Trisha Stetzel:Colton I really feel like Ricky wants to be our kid. I'm just saying.
Ricky Garza:That's the grand scheme of it, though. whenever it comes to the EPO and the PPO, I know I said that's the shortness sweet. So is it really is so much more that goes into it in the fine print.
Colton Cockerell:So let me ask this so so PPO, it's a nationwide HMO, it sounds like that statewide. So what EPO? Would that be more just local? Correct.
Ricky Garza:So whenever you get on an EPO, not only is it local, but that's whenever people typically buy their health insurance kind of like they do vehicle insurance or car insurance, believe it or not, they go to health Sherpa, they go to america.gov. They put in their information, there's a their age, their you know, whatever their basic information is, and they look at these little blocks of how much their coverage is going to be a month. And so if I look go on there, and I put in my information for me, my wife, and I'm like, Whoa, me and Jenna can get coverage for $48 a month. Are you kidding me? That's awesome. So I jumped on that plan without even looking at it's a really not so good EPO plan. So every time I'm going to the doctor, I'm out of pocket, tons of money and stuff like that, as opposed to Well, what's an HMO? What's a PPO? Let's look at those costs. Yeah, it's gonna cost a little bit more, but the benefits and the coverages there. So EPO is, that's what a lot of people are on whenever it comes to cost.
Colton Cockerell:And that's interesting Trisha, I always kind of make this point is that, you know, a lot of people whenever you're, whenever you're doing in life, you want to talk to professionals, especially, it's not going to cost you anything. So if you're looking for health insurance, why not consult with a health advisor? Why not consult with a financial advisor? If you're trying to figure out retirement? Why not talk to a business coach, you're trying to figure out, you know, how do I really can set goals? And how do I achieve these? It's just it's mind boggling how everyone thinks that they can do all this stuff on their own? Because why in the world? Are we the professionals that have gone through all the training and taking all the time to be where we're at? Whenever someone thinks they can just do it on their own? Just because they read an article or something right? It just it makes no sense. That's so spot on. Now I do. Since we're playing the game of Trisha and I, and you're the kid. Now tell our audience, because a lot of people may not know this, you as a child, when do you fall off of our insurance? When can we not cover you with our health insurance
Ricky Garza:in the state of Texas at the age of 26. So 25 and a half, they need to start looking at benefits to either individual or depending on if they are going to college as an advisor. That's where I talk to you and say, Okay, well, is there a clinic, you know, on the campus and things like that in those clinics, nine times out of 10 whenever it comes to universities are outstanding, so that's gonna save you and Mama Trisha a ton of money. So
Trisha Stetzel:yes, I'm so excited about that. passes. So I want to circle back around to this upside down pyramid. Ricky, no one has ever described EPO, HMO and PPO to me like that. And I appreciate you taking it to such an easy place, I was able to draw it. And I even showed it to you, which our listeners can't see. But I showed it to you in the in the zoom window. And and I and I do it correctly, of course. But it was it's such a simple model for somebody like me, who is not an expert, realizing that you know, so much more behind each of those pockets, right? And that's why we need someone like you to help get us in the right direction. So based on Colton's question about young people, I know some older people who have been laid off from their jobs and they've lost their insurance and they're having to go to what, what I know as Cobra. So can we talk about that
Ricky Garza:for a minute? Absolutely. So whenever it comes to COBRA plans whenever you're on, like a big corporate job or something like that, such as Walmart, Exxon, I know a lot of oil and gas. Me and Colton have talked about this a lot in the past with the layoffs and COVID. You know, unfortunately, a lot of people were hit hard. So they're offered these plans that are known as COBRA. And a lot of the time they call me and say, Hey, what is this, you know, from people I used to work with in the oil and gas and they're like, why am I going to be on a plan that's named after a snake, you know, and before before the big hit of Cobra Kai, so it wasn't as cool to imagine being on a plan like that. So the thing is with COBRA, nine times out of 10, and I know I keep using this nine times out of 10 a lot, but it's the truth. It's a very big margin of people and a very slim amount of people that are the ones that don't understand and things like that, but whenever it comes to COBRA, they're short and sweet of that. Let's say I'm on a big corporate plan, I'm working for Exxon Mobil, my benefits are outstanding for me and my family of five, just for an example, right. And as soon as they say, Hey, we're going to lay you off, we're going to force you in an early retirement, whatever the case may be. But here's a COBRA package. Now, instead of my benefits only being $45, a check, which is $90 a month, now, it's going to be $2100 a month, which is a huge skyrocket because you're looking at an 85 to 95% increase on what your health insurance costs whenever you're on a COBRA plan. And that's where a lot of people, whenever it comes to COBRA plans are unaware that there's a lot of different options out there outside of the marketplace, or Obamacare, or whatever the place, whatever the case may be, there's such as private insurance options, there's fixed indemnity options, you know, and there's also special enrollment eligibility that a lot of people don't understand about as well. And that's where it's really important to get in touch with someone like me, who is licensed and certified in the states of Texas for one, but 21 other states as well, to help those people out. So whenever it comes to COBRA plans, it's definitely worth looking into other options.
Colton Cockerell:And then it just just to make sure we're on the same page, these COBRA plans, the increase your you're getting the same coverage, correct?
Ricky Garza:Correct.
Colton Cockerell:Okay, man, that's still insane how much that increases. So, you know, you brought up Obamacare, you know, I know, again, we're not gonna get political here. But, you know, there's been this new type of coverage that's been bumping around everywhere, called Biden care, can you can you kind of touch on that at all?
Ricky Garza:Yeah, so to be completely honest with you, I've only gotten a few emails recently about that. I know that it's kind of in the in the works. And it's signed off and official that February 15 of this month, until, you know, TBA to be announced. As far as that goes, they're reopening open enrollment. Now, whenever it comes to Biden care, and things like that. We're not too sure. Because there's so many other things that are rolling out every day on what they're signing, and what they're changing whenever it comes to health coverage. So I mean, those options are available. But whenever it comes to what Biden care is, I can't answer that 100%, to be honest with you.
Trisha Stetzel:So Ricky can sorry, Colton. Where do you want a great job today, aren't me, we never talk over each other. And we've talked to each other twice today. Well, you know what this is that, Ricky, that is a compliment to you, it just means that we both have lots of questions for you. So I would like to talk about pre existing conditions. So if someone, if they're insured, they get laid off, they have to go to COBRA or they don't have insurance at all, and they're looking for insurance. What happens if I have a pre existing condition.
Ricky Garza:So whenever it comes to pre existing conditions, right, whether it's diabetes, heart attack, stroke, cancer, whatever the case may be, everybody's situation is different, which means everyone's plan and eligibility is different in what plans that they can qualify for. And that's exactly what I specialize in. Like I know Colton said before, you know, the importance of talking to someone like us for free getting a free consultation on what's important. And then what I do as an advisor is I look at all available plans for you. So if you know Trisha, if you did have a pre existing of, you know, just as an example of type two diabetes, we want to make sure that you're on a plan that's going to cover that. So whenever you we can roll you off that COBRA plan as soon as possible whenever it comes to that. But pre existing, every situation is different. Everybody's case is different. And everyone's qualifications are going to be different depending on what it is. So and that's where I come in and run free quotes.
Colton Cockerell:So then what it sounds like is that you know, you're going to look at so when you get on COBRA, you need to immediately talk to a Health Advisory because you need to figure out okay, is there a better plan where that might be a little bit cheaper? Maybe not all the coverage that necessarily needed this COBRA plan covers, but you're you're analyzing all of that is what it sounds like. Absolutely.
Ricky Garza:Absolutely. All right. So
Colton Cockerell:you need to talk to a health advisor if you're going through that situation. We have oil and gas big big layoffs right now and it really is sad. No Trish, actually, Ricky and I did a we did a video back a while back regarding that talking about finances and health insurance when it comes to being laid off especially in oil and gas. But ya know, fantastic.
Trisha Stetzel:Are you going to be silent now? Is it my turn? Is it my turn? Okay,
Ricky Garza:I can talk a little bit more about the pre existing if you'd like because whenever it comes to the Cobra plans if you do have a serious pre existing like say if Trisha and Colton and me if we are happy family, you know, whatever the case may be, and Colton works for Exxon Mobil and he's been able to provide these awesome benefits for us. But Trisha you have a pre existing so what we can do is me and Colton roll off of that COBRA plan but we can keep you on the COBRA plan since you're already on it. We know it covers your pre existing things. And that's just one of the many many probabilities and many examples that are out there but just throwing one out there that if we need, if you want it to make sure you're covered we can do that.
Trisha Stetzel:And exactly the reason why you need an advisor right and really need to talk to somebody because we don't know the ins and outs and as Colton At the beginning of the show, you went through certifications and education to learn all of this stuff. And we don't have to go and figure it out, because we can just call you instead.
Ricky Garza:Absolutely, that's exactly what I'm here for.
Trisha Stetzel:All right, Colton.
Colton Cockerell:Yes. Okay. So I'm trying so hard not to talk over you. So I'm like, biting my tongue just by okay. So Ricky, let me ask you this. So as an advisor, can you give me, you know, two to three things that you would recommend to individuals who are either seeking health insurance or who are going to need health insurance in the near future? And they're not Medicare age yet?
Ricky Garza:Absolutely. So first of all, you want to call me at 760-449-8492. I don't know if I'm allowed to say that or not if there is even a stay in the recording. But that's definitely the first thing you want to do. And, you know, of course, that's my, that's my personal cell phone number. That's not my work number, I do have an office number. But I never give that because I would much rather have that, you know, getting to know you personally. And that's my personal cell phone number. So anytime day or not, day or night, 24. Seven is 1099. I'm not your work, or your regular working nine to five, whatever the case may be, I've taken calls at 1030 at night, 11 o'clock at night. You know, I'm here to help. I'm here to serve. Number two, is what what's important to you, whenever it comes to your health insurance? Is it something about pre existing Is it something that you already know that there's something possibly going on that you're going to be getting, you're going to need to get checked out by a specialist. So we want to make sure that those things are going to be covered for you. And number three, whenever it comes to max out of pocket, we want to make sure that you're not going to be hung up with a huge bill because a lot of times people look at it max out of pocket. And let's say it says at 100 bucks for the family and you go well, that's pretty nice at $100 for the whole family, that's our deductible, that's our max out of pocket. That's not always the case. There's something that's hidden in there. Like I said, in the fine print, known as balanced billing, that's balanced billing, you know, it kind of messed that up for a second. But so balanced billing is whatever it comes to max out of pocket, let's say for example, if I needed an MRI, that's what the insurance whether it's EPO, HMO, or PPO qualifies as medically necessary. So let's say I get this MRI done, and it's $10,000. Well, the health insurance, you know, billing department says, Well, you know, it wasn't necessary that he needed that MRI. So guess what, I'm out of pocket that $10,000. And it is legal. So it's crazy what they can do to you in the fine print. And that's why it's important to look at those contracts and look at those things. And like I said, the first thing is called me so we can look at that together.
Colton Cockerell:And so before we get to the random question, because Ricky, there's going to be a random question that you are not expected. Oh, Trisha, is actually to give you that random question. But before we get there, just real quick, can you please tell everyone the difference between you know copay, deductible, those, those words that we hear that we just assume are all the same?
Ricky Garza:Absolutely. So a copay is what you're going to be expecting to pay whenever you go to a doctor or a specialist. And whenever you're looking at your plan, it's going to say $25 copay. That means every time you go to the doctor, you're going to have to pay that $25, to see that doctor, specialists are typically 50 to 75, whatever the case, may be, each plan is a little bit different. Now deductible is what people understand that that copay, you're gonna have to keep paying that whether it's your prescriptions, your doctor visits, your specialist, in ER, an emergency room, visit, whatever the case may be. And once you reach your deductible, you're covered 100%. After that, that's what a lot of people believe. Now, whenever it comes to that balance billing I was talking about, that's something completely different. So your deductible could be $8100. But your max out of pocket could be$25,000. And that's what you want to look at. And like I said, that was so I'm sorry.
Colton Cockerell:I was gonna say, so walk us through that. Because that that's, that is a big misconception. So can you kind of learn a little bit more?
Ricky Garza:Absolutely. So that's just one quick way for the rich to get richer whenever it comes to the the medical world and things like that. And that's the scary thing about it. To be completely honest with you, it terrifies me that people have a deductible. That's so low, it's down here, but their max out of pocket is way up here. Well, really, your max out of pocket is your starting point. Because that means once you reach your deductible, which is at $8100, you still have this$25,000 max out of pocket you have to reach before you're really covered. 100%. So even though you've met your deductible at $8100, every time I go to the doctor, and I did get that MRI done, I needed a CAT scan done, I needed to see a certain specialist if they don't deem that medically necessary. That's whenever I started going towards that $25,000. And then once I hit 25,000, guess what, I'm still not even covered 100%. So a lot of people don't understand that. And that's something that scares me. And that's why I love doing what I do to advise people and warn them out those kind of things.
Trisha Stetzel:This has been a really, really great discussion. Ricky, thank you for joining us today. All right, so I get to do the off the wall question since we went out of order today. Ricky, if you could spend 14 days anywhere in the world, where would you go in life?
Ricky Garza:Oh, I would go back to St. Lucia. That's where me and my wife had our honeymoon and I loved it. I can't even without hesitation. I loved St. Lucia. I had We highly, highly recommend it for anyone that hasn't been there. Everyone was incredible. The food was amazing. I know Colton, whenever it comes to certain things, he would have had a blast eating there. Because I know he's not the pickiest of eaters. So he would have loved it. So
Trisha Stetzel:that's awesome. Well, and for those of you who can't see us, we can see each other Ricky lit up when I asked him that question. So it was just perfect.
Colton Cockerell:So if you're, if you're planning on going to St. Lucia, just say Ricky Garza and you'll get a 25% discount. So, okay, so let me ask, let me ask you this. So what is it and I'm excited for you to answer this. What generation do you belong to?
Ricky Garza:What generation do I belong to? The human generation?
Colton Cockerell:millennial, the millennial generation,
Ricky Garza:okay, the millennial generation. I
Colton Cockerell:didn't I know, there's
Ricky Garza:Gen Z, Gen X, all sorts of things out there. I was born in 1990. So whatever that is,
Colton Cockerell:so he is a millennial. That's why I thought and would you What would you say? Out of all the generations, which is sounds like you're not even familiar? Which one would you say you most identify with the baby boomers, the
Ricky Garza:Gen Xers, the millennials, the younger crowd? I could probably tell you the 60s and 70s, whatever generation that is,
Colton Cockerell:so Gen Xers, okay? Yep. Yeah,
Ricky Garza:I'm a Gen X. I'm in Generation X, for sure. Their music that makes everything like dancing.
Colton Cockerell:Yeah, that makes that makes sense. Well, so let's do this. We're gonna close this out. So quickly, Ricky, give us give us your contact information, tell our listeners how they can get ahold of you. I know you already gave your number out. But again, give us your phone number, spell your name. And then also give us your email address. And again, spell that out just because this is audio only. Okay? Absolutely.
Ricky Garza:So I know we're on audio only. And now whenever it comes to compliance and things like that, at the very, very careful whenever it comes to be in 1099. And what I do, which i why I can't say like what agenc I work for, if I did work for a agency, anything like that. S like I said, my personal cel phone number is 760-449-8492. know it's a California number But that's my personal cel phone number. And the best emai to reach me out as my persona email anytime day or night which is NRIQUESLEVE en@yahoo.com. So that's my personal cell phone number and my personal email. It's not even my work email, so you can reach me personally, anytime day or night for any health insurance advice.
Colton Cockerell:I love it. I love it. Trisha any last thoughts? No.
Trisha Stetzel:I just want everyone to know that Colton and I are not married and Ricky is not our child.
Ricky Garza:No, that was just example.
Colton Cockerell:Plus, he was born in 90. So he's a little bit older than me. That would make zero sense. So I'm glad we got that out of the way that disclaimer, the hypothetical. But hey, this was another exciting episode of Bridge the Gap we're connecting. We're connecting. Oh, gosh,
Trisha Stetzel:Colton. Okay, I'll do it for you. And that concludes this week's podcast Tune in next week for another exciting episode of Bridge the Gap: Connecting Busines Perspectives
Colton Cockerell:Thank you again for tuning in to this week's episode of Bridge the Gap: Connecting Business Perspectives. If there's a certain professional or profession that you want to hear from leave a comment in this week's Facebook posts. Please subscribe and share this podcast. Colton Cockerell with Sharer McKinley Group, LLC is located at 820 South Friendswood Drive Suite 207 Friendswood, Texas 77546 phone number to 281-992-5698. Securities and investment advisory services offered through NEXT Financial Group, Inc. member FINRA/SIPC Sharer McKinley Group is not an affiliate of NEXT Financial Group, Inc.