VIP Medicare Choices

09/07/2026

Labor Day was originally created to celebrate workers. Fair enough. But when you’ve built something of your own, the day feels a little different.

There’s no completely clocking out when you own a business. And adulting certainly doesn’t take the holiday off. There are still responsibilities, food to prepare, and all the usual labor that goes into having a little fun. 📱🍔

But Labor Day is also a wonderful chance to appreciate good food, great friends, and the last stretch of Michigan’s warm weather. ☀️🌭❤️

It still feels strange now that many Michigan schools start before Labor Day instead of right after it. I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to that! 🍎📚

Building something of your own means the work never completely stops, but it also means it’s truly yours. And honestly, I wouldn’t trade that.

If you’ve ever built something from scratch—a business, a family, a garden, or anything else—you know how rewarding that can be.

What’s something you’ve built that you’re genuinely proud of? It certainly doesn’t have to be a business. 👇

09/06/2026

I’d make only a few small changes: tighten the opening, add “covered” before prescriptions for precision, remove “so to speak,” and clean up the final punctuation.

Fair rides have a trick to them. You buy the wristband once, and no matter how many rides you go on, you’re covered. 🎟️🎡

That’s the whole appeal—one price, and you stop doing math in your head every time you get in line.

Medicare Part D has something similar, and it just went up again.

There’s a yearly out-of-pocket cap on what you pay for covered prescriptions before your plan covers the rest. For 2027, that cap is rising to $2,400, up from $2,100.

So the “wristband price” just got a little more expensive. 💊

It’s still a real protection. Once you hit that number, you’re covered for the rest of the year. But it’s worth knowing the new number instead of assuming it’s the same as last year—especially if you rely on that cap to plan your budget.

Speaking of fairs, what’s the one ride you never skip? 🎢

09/06/2026

09/05/2026

There’s one question I get asked more than any other around this time of year, and it’s not even really about Medicare.

It’s usually some version of:

“So, is this your busy season?”

Yes—but right now, it’s a different kind of busy.

I’m trying to finish the last of my gardening and squeeze in as much time as I can with friends, nature and tennis before the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period begins. 🎾🌻

Behind the scenes, though, the real work is preparation.

Medicare rules, plans and details can change—even while we’re preparing for the year ahead. That means a lot of reading, training and double-checking to make sure I understand what’s coming and what it could mean for my clients.

Then there’s the technology. It’s always changing, we’re always upgrading something, and it may be the bane of my existence. 😏💻

It’s a good kind of busy, though. The kind where you’re tired because you’re doing work that matters—and making sure you’re ready when people need you.

What question do you get asked most around this time of year—work-related or not?

09/05/2026

You know how the first pumpkin spice sign at the coffee shop shows up before fall gets here? 🎃☕ It’s not the whole season yet. It’s just enough of a preview to tell you what’s coming.

That’s basically what just happened with Medicare drug plans for next year.

CMS confirmed one number for 2027—the base premium for standalone Part D plans—and it landed at $41.33 a month. That’s not what everyone will pay. Plans vary a lot, but it’s the number the rest of next year’s pricing gets built around.

Kind of like that first pumpkin spice sign. It’s not the full picture. It’s the first real clue. 🍂

The numbers that apply to your specific plan come out later this fall. When they do, it’s worth looking at them instead of assuming this year will look just like last year.

I’ll keep you posted as more of it rolls out.

In the meantime, tell me where you stand:

PUMPKIN SPICE LOVER 🎃 or TEAM IT’S-A-LITTLE-OVERRATED? 🤷🏻‍♀️

09/05/2026

Here’s a number that’s going to catch a lot of people off guard this year.

About 3 out of 4 people on a standalone Part D drug plan are expected to see their premium go up for 2027. Not because they added a medication. Not because they used their plan more. Just because of how pricing is shifting behind the scenes.

Most folks assume if their health didn’t change, their bill shouldn’t either. Makes sense. That’s just not how it’s playing out this time. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Here’s the part that matters. You won’t know how this affects your specific plan until your renewal notice shows up. 📬 So when it does, don’t just glance at it and set it aside like it’s junk mail. Open it. Read the numbers.

If something on it doesn’t make sense, that’s a completely normal thing to ask about.

THAT’S WHAT I’M HERE FOR! 🙋🏻‍♀️

09/05/2026

There’s a government program you’ve probably never heard of. It’s been quietly protecting your drug plan premium for the last two years. And it’s about to disappear.

It’s called the Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration. I know, not exactly a catchy name. 😏 But here’s what it’s been doing. It’s helped keep standalone Part D premiums lower and more predictable while some big changes rolled out across Medicare.

That program is ending after this year.

Here’s what that means for you. ⤵️

If you’re on a standalone drug plan, your premium could move differently than it has the last couple of years—not because your health changed, but because the support behind the scenes is going away.

You don’t need to panic about this today. You do need to read your renewal notice this year instead of assuming everything stays the same. 📬 It might. But “might” isn’t something I want you finding out about after the fact.

If you want to know exactly what to check before assuming anything about next year’s coverage, comment QUESTIONS and I’ll send you the list.

08/27/2026

Here is the myth I run into more than almost any other. 😬

People think asking for help with Medicare means they are going to get sold something.

They Google instead. 🔎

They ask their neighbor, who heard something from someone who maybe knew an agent once. They piece together information from five different websites that all say something slightly different. Then they make a decision that may follow them for years—hoping they got it right.

And the whole time, there was someone they could have simply called. 📞

Here is what I want you to know about working with me:

💵 It does not cost you anything. Insurance carriers compensate me—not you. There is no bill at the end of our conversation.

🤝 It does not obligate you to anything. Asking questions is just asking questions. I am not going to pressure you into making a decision before you are ready.

🗓️ It does not have to wait until October. The best Medicare conversations happen before everything feels urgent. Like right now. In August. When there is actually time to think.

I wanted to be the person someone could call—whether the question was simple or the situation was anything but.

I know the complicated side firsthand, from long-term care questions to my own mother’s health condition. That experience is truly why I entered this business: to pick up the phone, explain things in plain English, and help people understand their next step. 💙

You do not have to figure this out alone. That is literally what I am here for!

What is one Medicare question you have been sitting on?

📩 Drop it below or send me a DM. 👇 No pitch…Just answers. 👇

08/27/2026

🌉 The name says it all, really.

Medi-gap. As in the gap that Medicare leaves behind.

Original Medicare is incredibly valuable. But it was never designed to cover everything.

For many Part B services, you generally owe 20% after Medicare pays its share. There are deductibles. There are other costs that can add up quickly if something serious happens. And unlike most insurance, Original Medicare has no yearly out-of-pocket maximum to protect you. 💸

That gap is real. Supplemental coverage exists specifically to help fill it.

Here is the simple version of how it works. ⬇️

A Medigap plan, also called a Medicare Supplement plan, is a separate policy that works alongside Original Medicare. It helps cover some or all of the costs that Medicare does not pay.

Depending on the plan you choose, that can mean significantly less coming out of your pocket when you actually need care. 🛡️

Let’s go through it together over some fresh local organic fruit plate. 🍓🍇

If you have Original Medicare and have ever received a bill that surprised you, this is a conversation worth having. Your options and ability to enroll can depend on your timing, health, and circumstances, so it is better to ask before you need the coverage.

Send me a DM or drop a question in the comments. 📩

I love this one! 💙

08/26/2026

Ask almost anyone what they want their situation to look like as they get older.

They will tell you the same thing.

Home. They want to stay home.

Not a facility. Not a shared room down a hallway that smells like industrial cleaner. Home. Their kitchen. Their chair. Their neighborhood. The coffee made exactly the way they like it at exactly the time they always have it.

It is a completely reasonable thing to want. Most people get to have it. Until something happens that makes it complicated.

A fall. A surgery. A diagnosis that changes the daily routine in ways nobody anticipated. Suddenly staying home requires help. Real help. Someone there in the morning to assist with medications. Someone there to make sure the stove gets turned off. Someone there for the four hours in the afternoon that feel manageable until they don't.

Home health aides cost between $25 and $40 an hour depending on the market and the level of care required. For part time help, say four hours a day five days a week, that's $2,000 to $3,200 a month.

Medicare covers home health care under very specific conditions. The care has to be skilled. The patient has to be homebound by Medicare's definition. And it covers it for as long as it's deemed medically necessary which sounds reassuring until you realize Medicare's definition of necessary and your family's definition of necessary are two completely different things.

Custodial care, meaning help with bathing, dressing, meals, medication reminders, is not covered by Medicare at all.

That's most of what people actually need.

Home health care coverage pays a daily benefit that makes staying home financially possible when the alternative is a facility nobody wanted.

The plan was always to stay home. Good coverage makes sure that plan holds.

📌 Save this. Send it to someone whose plan is also to stay home.