The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and Medicare with Kathe Kline
Check out Jeremy’s latest podcast on retirement planning by listening on “Apple Podcasts” or “Google Podcasts” or read below for Medicare.
Summary:
111 – Do you have insurance through Medicare? Medicare is estimated to cover around 14% of the population of the USA and is one of the largest payers for health care.
In this episode, Jeremy Keil brings on Kathe Kline, a former financial advisor, certified medicare agent, and host of the Rock Your Retirement podcast, to talk about Medicare. Kathe shares how her podcast and experience as a Medicare agent have led her to create the Certified Medicare Agents website, which connects Americans to available certified Medicare Agents across the country. She also explains how the Inflation Reduction Act affects Medicare insurance and what to check Medicare insurance plans for annually.
Kathe discusses:
- How her Rock Your Retirement podcast differs from a typical retirement podcast by taking listeners along the journey of a retiree
- How the Rock Your Retirement podcast led her to create Certified Medicare Agents to connect people to the agents that are out there
- How the Inflation Reduction Act affects Medicare insurance
- What to check for annually in your Medicare insurance plan
- And more
Medicare
Connecting People
Kathe Kline created Rock Your Retirement, a podcast centered around following a retiree’s journey toward retirement and talking about lifestyle rather than taxes and financial planning.
Kathe started working in Medicare in 2014, and soon after, she retired as a financial advisor in 2015 to focus on her career as a certified Medicare agent. In 2020, she started to build a place for people throughout the country to connect with Certified Medicare Agents.
Medicare can be confusing. Leaving many without an understanding of what to do. That’s why Kathe created Certified Medicare Agents, so Americans can find Medicare agents who are certified to work in their state, to help them.
Kathe is still a Medicare insurance agent but focuses on helping other insurance agents spread their knowledge by connecting Americans to certified Medicare agents by state. She tries to connect people across the country to certified Medicare agents through her podcast and her Medicare practice.
Inflation Reduction Act
One of Kathe’s recent recordings for Rock Your Retirement touched on the Inflation Reduction Act, with Medicare landing among the things affected.
It affects Medicare in several ways, including drug price negotiations.
Before the act, it was not lawful for Medicare to negotiate the prices of drugs with drug companies, and now for the very first time, this law requires the federal government to negotiate prices for some of the top-selling drugs covered under Medicare.
This act will also require drug companies to pay rebates if prices rise faster than inflation for drugs Medicare beneficiaries use.
Arguably, the most critical impact the Inflation Reduction Act has on Medicare is ridding Medicare plans of the donut hole. The donut hole is where Medicare tracks how much you and the insurance company are paying and increases the amount you cover for drugs once you reach their determined threshold.
So with the Inflation Reduction Act, Americans using Medicare won’t suddenly have inflated drug prices and will instead have a more consistent and reliable insurance plan.
Enrolling In Medicare Insurance
During Medicare’s enrollment period, there are a few things you should consider every year with your Medicare coverage.
It depends on what type of plan you have. There are two major types of Medicare insurance on top of the original Medicare.
If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, it replaces the original Medicare with a privatized Medicare plan and will generally give you additional benefits that the original Medicare plan does not offer. The Advantage plan changes annually, so you’ll definitely want to review it each year around the first of October when the new information comes out.
Similarly, Medicare drug plans need to be reviewed annually too for generic drugs versus prescription. Prescription drugs come in different tiers, and their tiers can change each year, so it’s a good idea to check the drug plans to ensure the prescriptions and generic drugs you know you need are covered.
Even if your health and drug needs haven’t changed from last year, the insurance companies change their plans every year, so checking when it’s time to enroll in your Medicare plan is strongly advised.
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To learn more about Medicare, check out the resources below!
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us or our guest, Kathe Kline, using the contact information provided below!
Resources:
- MedicareQuick
- Rock Your Retirement
- Certified Medicare Agents
- Free Retirement Planning Video Course: 5stepretirementplan.com
- 3 Things You Should Know Before Choosing A Financial Advisor
- 7 Questions That Could Make or Break Your Retirement
- Subscribe to Retirement Revealed on Google Podcasts
- Subscribe to Retirement Revealed on Apple Podcasts
Connect With Kathe Kline:
- podcast@rockyourretirement.com
- info@certifiedmedicareagents.com
- Rock Your Retirement
- Certified Medicare Agents
- LinkedIn: Kathe Kline
Connect With Jeremy Keil:
- Jeremy@keilfp.com
- (262)333-8353
- Keil Financial Partners
- LinkedIn: Jeremy Keil
- Facebook: Jeremy Keil
- LinkedIn: Keil Financial Partners
- Book a call with Jeremy
About Our Guest:
After spending 25 years as a financial advisor, Kathe Kline saw the growing need for someone who could help with Medicare, so she started helping people through the complicated maze of Medicare insurance.
Her background in financial planning was the perfect fit to be able to break complicated subjects into easily understood snippets of information.
Because she wants to be helpful to Medicare recipients all over the nation, she has founded CertfiedMedicareAgents.com, a directory site where you can find a certified and licensed agent in your state to help you navigate Medicare.
Disclosures:
Content
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Keil Financial Partners does not provide any tax advice. No information or results from the links should be interpreted as tax advice. Please seek guidance from a qualified tax professional for any and all tax-related matters.
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The content and information provided through the links should not be interpreted as being investment advice or a recommendation of suitability for any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy, or related decision. Please seek assistance from a qualified investment professional for any and all investment matters.
Investment Risk
Investments may increase or decrease significantly. All investments are subject to risk of loss.
General Disclosure
Advisory Persons of Thrivent provide advisory services under a “doing business as” name or may have their own legal business entities. However, advisory services are engaged exclusively through Thrivent Advisor Network, LLC, a registered investment adviser. Keil Financial Partners and Thrivent Advisor Network, LLC are not affiliated companies. Information in this message is for the intended recipient[s] only. Please visit our website www.keilfp.com for important disclosures.
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