Nationwide Senior Benefits

There's a free government tool that helps you compare every Medicare plan in your area — and most people have never used it. Here's how to find it. 👇

It's called the Medicare Plan Finder. It lives at Medicare.gov — the official Medicare website. And it's one of the most useful tools available heading into AEP.

Here's how it works:

1️⃣ Go to Medicare.gov → click 'Find Plans'
2️⃣ Enter your zip code
3️⃣ Enter every medication, dosage, and frequency (this is the key step)
4️⃣ The tool shows every plan available in your area, ranked by your estimated total annual cost — not just the premium, but premiums + drug costs combined

That total cost number is almost always very different from the premium alone. I've seen people pick a lower-premium plan and pay $800 more over the year because of how their medications were tiered on that plan's formulary.

The Plan Finder also shows:
✔ Each plan's Star Rating
✔ Whether your doctors are in network
✔ Whether your preferred pharmacy is covered

Note: 2027 plan data won't be fully loaded until mid-October. But you can use it now to understand your current plan — and I'll walk through the new data with you in our one-on-one conversation.

Having the tool is one thing. Having someone who knows how to interpret it — and who is legally and ethically obligated to act in your best interest — is something else entirely.

AEP opens October 15. Let's get you ready. 💙

👉 Book a No-cost Medicare review call— link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio.

She opened the Annual Notice of Change letter every year. All 30 pages of it. And every year, she called me and said the same thing: 'Jan, I don't know what I'm looking at.' 👇

Helen does everything right. She opens the letter the day it arrives. She reads it carefully. But 30 pages of insurance fine print is designed for compliance, not clarity.

Here's what I told her: you don't need to read every page. You need to know exactly where to look.

The 4 things that matter most in your Annual Notice of Change:

1️⃣ Your monthly premium — did it change?
2️⃣ Your drug formulary — are your medications still covered at the same tier?
3️⃣ Your provider network — are your doctors and hospital still in network?
4️⃣ Your supplemental benefits — dental, vision, OTC card still included?

When Helen and I went through her letter together, we found her premium had gone up $28 a month — and one of her medications had jumped from tier 2 to tier 4, nearly tripling her copay.

We switched her plan during AEP. She saved $340 over the following year.

Your Annual Notice of Change arrives by September 30. When it comes, open it — and look for those four things. If anything has changed, call me before December 7.

October 15 – December 7 is your window. Don't let it close without taking a look.

👉 Book a no-cost Medicare review call — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio.

HMO or PPO? It's one of the most common Medicare questions I get heading into AEP — and the answer isn't one-size-fits-all. Here's the plain-English breakdown. 👇

HMO (Health Maintenance Organization):
✔ Lower premiums and out-of-pocket costs
✔ Requires a primary care doctor to coordinate your care
✔ Referrals needed to see specialists
✗ Out-of-network care generally not covered (except emergencies)

PPO (Preferred Provider Organization):
✔ More flexibility — see any Medicare-accepting provider without a referral
✔ Can go out of network (at a higher cost)
✔ Better for frequent travelers or complex health needs
✗ Higher premiums and cost-sharing

There are basically three scenarios that determine which is right for you:

1️⃣ Your doctors are all in-network and you want lower costs → HMO may be the right fit
2️⃣ You have specialists outside most networks, or you travel frequently → PPO gives you the flexibility you need
3️⃣ You're managing complex conditions with multiple specialists → check networks carefully; PPO may give you more peace of mind

Neither is universally better. The right answer depends on your doctors, your health, and your life.

AEP opens October 15 — just 7 weeks away. Let's figure out the right fit for you before the enrollment window opens.

There just needs to be a plan. 💙

👉 Book a no-cost Medicare review call — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio

Good news for anyone who has had — or is planning — a hip, knee, or ankle replacement. Medicare just got better at taking care of you. 👇

At the end of July, CMS announced it's expanding a program that improves care coordination for joint replacement surgery nationwide. Beginning January 2028, most hospitals will be required to participate.

Here's what this means for Medicare beneficiaries:

✔ Hospitals are accountable for your care from pre-surgery through the first 90 days of recovery
✔ Better coordination between your surgeon, rehab facility, and follow-up providers
✔ Fewer gaps, fewer complications, smoother recoveries
✔ You still choose your own doctor — nothing about access changes

The previous version of this program saved Medicare more than $100 million while maintaining — and in many cases improving — quality of care for patients. This expansion builds on what works.

Hip, knee, and ankle replacements are among the most common surgeries for Medicare beneficiaries. This is a meaningful improvement for a lot of people — and it's worth knowing about.

This is Medicare working the way it should. 💙

👉 Questions about your surgical coverage? Book a free one-on-one — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio

He picked the cheapest Medicare Advantage plan. For three years, he assumed it was fine. Then we looked at the Star Ratings together. 👇

Thomas is a retired engineer. Organized, thorough, did his research. When he signed up for Medicare Advantage, he compared plans and chose the lowest premium.

Three years later, when we reviewed his plan together, here's what we found:

❌ His plan had a 2-star rating out of 5
❌ Referrals were harder to get than they should have been
❌ Care coordination had been a recurring hassle
❌ Member satisfaction scores were well below average

He hadn't connected the dots. He just thought 'that's how Medicare works.'

It doesn't have to be.

We found Thomas a 4-star plan — same doctors, better experience, $12 more per month. He said, 'Jan, I didn't know there was a rating system. Why doesn't anyone tell you this?'

That's exactly why I'm telling you now. Before October 15.

AEP is 8 weeks away. Let's look at your plan together — the full picture, not just the premium.

👉 Book a free one-on-one Medicare review — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio.

Good morning! Medicare 101 is LIVE today at 11am ☕

Whether you're brand new to Medicare or just want to make sure you fully understand what you have — this webinar was made for you.

✔ Parts A, B, C, and D — in plain English
✔ What Medicare covers and where the gaps are
✔ How to choose the right plan for your situation
✔ How to avoid costly mistakes and penalties

No jargon. No pressure. Just the truth.

🔗 Register at the link in bio — see you at 11!

This one is for people on Medicare — and the adult children helping them navigate it. 👇

Medicare now covers caregiver training — your doctor can be paid to teach you how to help manage a loved one's chronic condition. And the new GUIDE program offers dementia families a dedicated navigator and 24/7 support.

Can Medicare pay you to care for a parent? Generally no. But it covers the medical support around caregiving.

Bring the whole family to our conversation. Book a no-cost call — link in bio. 💙

The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 – December 7. During those 53 days, you can switch plans, change your drug coverage, or move between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage. Changes take effect January 1, 2027.

The people who navigate AEP best prepare before October 15. Here's what to gather now:

✔ 1. Your current plan documents — know exactly what you're on and what it costs
✔ 2. A complete medication list — every drug, dosage, and frequency
✔ 3. Your doctors — primary care, specialists, anyone you see regularly
✔ 4. Your preferred pharmacy — network matters for drug costs
✔ 5. Your Annual Notice of Change when it arrives in September — open it, read it, don't file it

Your medication list is the single most important factor in choosing the right Medicare plan. A drug that's covered on one plan may be on a higher tier — or not covered at all — on another. That difference can add up to hundreds of dollars a year.

When you have this list ready, bring it to a conversation with me. We'll go through your options clearly and honestly — before the enrollment window opens and the noise begins.

There just needs to be a plan. 💙

👉 Book a free one-on-one Medicare review — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio.

Good news to end the week — Medicare telehealth is covered through December 2027. 🎉

Earlier this year, Congress extended Medicare's telehealth flexibilities through December 31, 2027. That means you can continue seeing your doctor from home — no driving, no waiting rooms, no arranging transportation.

What's covered under Medicare telehealth through 2027:

✔ Primary care visits via video or phone
✔ Specialist appointments
✔ Mental health and behavioral health services
✔ Chronic disease management visits
✔ Follow-up appointments
✔ Available from home, regardless of whether you live in a rural or urban area

Before 2020, most Medicare beneficiaries couldn't access telehealth from home at all. Now it's a normal, covered part of healthcare — and it's here through at least the end of 2027.

This matters especially for anyone managing a chronic condition, anyone with mobility challenges, or anyone who simply values the convenience of seeing their doctor from their own home.

One note: telehealth coverage can vary slightly between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans. If you want to make sure your specific plan covers your virtual visits the way you expect — that's exactly what we sort out in a one-on-one conversation.

💙 Good news deserves to be shared — pass this along to someone who uses telehealth.

👉 Questions about your Medicare coverage? Book a free one-on-one — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio.

Every fall she got the same thick envelope from her insurance company. Every year she filed it away without reading it. Last October, she finally opened it — and called me. 👇

Carol had been on the same Medicare Advantage plan for three years. The Annual Notice of Change envelope arrived like clockwork every September. It looked dense and complicated. So she set it aside.

When we finally went through it together, here's what had changed in her plan — without anyone telling her directly:

❌ Her primary care doctor had moved to a higher cost tier
❌ Two of her regular medications had been dropped from the formulary
❌ Her monthly premium was going up $34

In one conversation, we found her a plan that kept her doctors, covered her medications, and cost her less per month.

She said, 'I almost just let it roll over.'

Please don't let it roll over.

Your Annual Notice of Change — the letter that tells you everything changing in your plan for next year — arrives by September 30th every year. When it comes:

✔ Open it
✔ Look for changes to your premiums, drugs, and doctors
✔ If anything has changed — call me before December 7th

October 15 – December 7 is your window to make changes. Don't wait until it closes.

👉 Book a free one-on-one Medicare review — link in bio.
👉 New to Medicare? Join me Tuesday at 11am for Medicare 101 — link in bio.