Marisa Mitchell, Licensed Sales Agent

10/12/2026

Hi neighbors! Open Enrollment Period is almost here and I am taking appointments for Annual Reviews beginning October 15! Schedule your no cost review and know you are in the right plan going into 2027.
Annual Enrollment runs October 15-December 7th.

10/11/2026

Hi neighbors! This is a real thing happening this and definitely something to be aware of. Fear not, you’re not alone, as experienced independent advisor I’m setting up annual reviews from October 15-December 7th to make sure you are confident heading into 2027. Give me a call to schedule!

10/10/2026

This is the major conversation I have with each and every member I see! Know all the facts and avoid costly mistakes!!

10/01/2026

Great information here!

A private room in a nursing home now runs a median $355 a day, about $129,600 a year, according to CareScout's 2025 Cost of Care Survey. Admission packets sometimes try to make a son, daughter or spouse the backup payer for that bill.

For any nursing home that takes Medicare or Medicaid, federal rules forbid it. Under 42 CFR 483.15, the home cannot require, or even request, that a relative personally back the payment in order to admit someone, speed up admission or let them stay.

The wording is often less direct. Watch for "guarantor," "co-signer," "jointly responsible," "personally liable," or a "responsible party" who promises to pay. Guidance that federal inspectors began using in 2025 says any language that seeks to hold a third party personally responsible for the bill breaks the rule, even when the word guarantor never appears. That includes clauses making a relative liable for a late Medicaid application or for missing financial paperwork.

The rule covers every resident of a certified home, including people paying privately.

What the home can ask for is narrower. Someone with legal access to the resident's money, such as an agent under a power of attorney, a trustee or a representative payee, can be asked to sign a promise to pay from the resident's own income and assets, with no personal liability. Signing with the title, "agent for" the resident, keeps that line clear.

The same regulation bars a few other asks: waivers of the resident's rights, promises not to apply for Medicaid, and gifts or deposits as the price of entry for someone eligible for Medicaid. A separate rule says an arbitration agreement can never be a condition of admission, and it must allow 30 days to cancel after signing. A resident also cannot be discharged for nonpayment while a Medicaid application is pending.

The protection has edges. Assisted living, including memory care inside assisted living, runs under state law, where a co-signer clause in the contract can be enforceable. Around 30 states also have filial support laws that can make adult children help pay for a parent's care, and a Pennsylvania court used one in 2012 to hold a son liable for about $93,000 of his mother's nursing home bill. An agent who spends the resident's money on anything else can face claims too.

When the packet arrives, ask for it ahead of move-in day, cross out any line that puts your own money on the hook, initial the change and keep a copy. Every state has a long-term care ombudsman whose help is free and confidential, reachable through the Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116.

Helping a parent into care does not require putting your own savings behind the bill.

Source: 42 CFR 483.15(a) and 483.70(m), eCFR current as of Sept. 24, 2026; CMS nursing home surveyor guidance QSO-25-12-NH (2025); CFPB and CMS joint letter on nursing home debt collection (Sept. 2022); CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey; Administration for Community Living.

Educational information only, not financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. Contract rules vary by state and facility type, so have an elder law attorney review any admission agreement you are unsure about.

09/25/2026

I love serving all communities and bring a member of makes me honored to share in this celebration! 🎉 🎉

There’s something special about hearing a family story from the person who lived it.

This Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re celebrating the many cultures and personal histories that help shape our communities. Each family has its own story, and every generation adds something new.

To the older adults in our Hispanic community: we celebrate you. Your stories, your perspective, and the ways you continue to make this community your own deserve to be heard and appreciated.

Maybe there’s someone you’ve been meaning to sit down with. Ask about the person in an old photograph, or how their week is going. Give the conversation a little room.

At Health Plan Markets, we’re grateful to celebrate alongside you, September 15 through October 15 and beyond.

Here’s to time together, familiar stories told once more, and new memories still ahead.

09/23/2026

Another great informational of one way to protect your wealth in retirement!

$1,736 for a hospital stay. $283 before Part B pays anything. Then 20% of most doctor bills, with no annual cap.

That is what Original Medicare can leave you responsible for in 2026, and it is the reason Medigap exists.

You turn 65, you sign up for Medicare, and you assume your medical bills are covered now.

Not entirely.

Medigap is private insurance that works alongside Original Medicare to help pay some of the deductibles, coinsurance and copays Medicare leaves to you.

That one sentence is the whole concept. Everything else is how it works.

Medicare pays its share of a covered bill first. Then your Medigap policy pays according to its benefits. Medigap does not replace Medicare; it sits next to it.

The confusion most people run into is Medigap versus Medicare Advantage. Medigap supplements Original Medicare. Medicare Advantage replaces Original Medicare as the way you receive your Part A and Part B benefits, usually through a private plan with its own network and rules. You choose one path or the other. You cannot have both.

Then there are the letters. In most states, Medigap plans are standardized: A, B, C, D, F, G, K, L, M and N. A Plan G from one insurer has the same standardized benefits as a Plan G from another. What changes is the premium, so comparing prices for the same letter is the smart move. Massachusetts, Minnesota and Wisconsin standardize differently.

The two letters you will hear about most are G and N. Plan G covers most of the major gaps but not the $283 Part B deductible. Plan N costs less and asks for more cost sharing, including copays of up to $20 for some office visits and up to $50 for some ER visits, and it does not cover Part B excess charges. Neither is right for everyone.

What Medigap does not cover: prescription drugs, routine dental, routine vision, hearing aids, long-term care. Part D is usually a separate purchase.

And the rule that matters most: your one-time Medigap Open Enrollment Period lasts six months, starting the first month you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B. During that window, an insurer cannot turn you down or charge you more because of your health. It is not the Medicare Open Enrollment that happens every fall, and it generally does not come back. After it closes, an insurer may be allowed to ask health questions, charge more, or decline you, unless you qualify for a guaranteed-issue right or your state provides extra protections.

You do not need to memorize every Medicare rule before 65. You need to understand this one choice: Original Medicare alone, Original Medicare plus Medigap and usually Part D, or Medicare Advantage.

If you are already past 65, which path did you take, and would you choose it again?

P.S. Once a week I email the best money article I read anywhere, with my take on it, plus the week's post worth catching. It's free, and it's on the Ways to Wealth homepage.



The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.

09/23/2026

These are the deep conversations I have every week with people turning 65 and making the critical choice of keeping original and adding a OR choosing a plan from either a local or national carrier. As a local independent broker I simplify the process from start to finish so you know you made the right decision!

09/11/2026

On this day we remember the heroes and those we lost on the of . My son’s grandfather was right down the street of the twin towers and it was terrifying to imagine losing him at the time. I’m taking time today to speak to my kids so that we this moment in history.