Avoiding the Pain of Healthcare Privacy!

By Marc Manor

Everyone loves the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), right?  I say that with a little more than a tinge of sarcasm because we all know that HIPAA is a necessary evil when it comes to protecting our privacy and, in many cases, our identity.

HIPAA seems like such a necessary requirement that I am dumbfounded it was not enacted until 1996!  I clearly remember the days early in my military career when we routinely plastered our social security number on everything we owned as a means of identification!  What were we thinking?  To think of all the sophisticated computer hacking that is done to steal someone’s information these days, while for many years, all someone had to do was pick through the garbage!  But I digress! 

Courtesy Pexels.com

HIPAA is an essential part of the healthcare industry as well as affecting everyone who uses any healthcare service.  These regulations were enacted for your protection, and they are interpreted with only the slightest variation among healthcare providers and insurance companies.  Almost all err on the side of caution and interpret HIPAA with strict adherence.  Those who fail to comply with HIPAA guidelines are subject to fines of up to $50,000 per violation with a maximum $1.5 million annual ceiling. While this measure ensures compliance, sometimes it can make it difficult to have someone else act on your behalf with doctors, hospitals, or insurance companies. 

Medicare Myth Busters: Medicare Supplement (Medigap) and PPO Plans

By Marc Manor

Welcome to a series we call “Medicare Myth Busters”!  So much of what I hear about Medicare comes from word-of-mouth.  We know from our childhood, the game “telephone” can drastically transform an original message to something completely different.  Because I hear Medicare beneficiaries talk, I would like to help separate some fact from fiction on some of the most common Medicare misconceptions that I hear. We will insert the "Medicare Myth Busters" into the regular blog on occasion as we continue to advocate for our Medicare beneficiaries.  The first myth buster in the series is:

Courtesy Pixabay

“My Medicare Supplement Plan F is a PPO (Preferred Provider Organization) so I can go to any doctor that accepts Medicare and I don’t need referrals.”

Setting the Course for Your Medicare Voyage

By Marc Manor

You’ve already had that milestone birthday and reached the big six-O; you survived mid-life crisis and now you can access your IRA without being penalized!  So, before you ponder that next milestone birthday at age 70; let’s talk about that big 65^th!  Sixty-Five is really something to be excited about because that is when you will likely become eligible for Medicare. 

Photo by Pineapple Supply Co. from Pexels

Now you have reached the age of eligibility and you can look forward to the Medicare benefits you have been working toward all these years with your hard-earned tax dollars!  You are enrolled in Medicare Part A and B, and you have received that nice red, white, and blue card and are all set to go, right?  Not so fast!  Low and behold there is a fork in the proverbial Medicare road!  Do you stay on Original Medicare or Medicare Advantage (otherwise known as Part C)?