Tyler Foster
Latest Articles by Tyler Foster
Employer or union drug coverage counts as creditable, letting you delay Medicare Part D with no penalty
Turning 65 does not force a working retiree to sign up for a Medicare drug plan right away, and enrolling too soon can even mean...
A high-deductible Medigap Plan G cuts the premium for healthy retirees
Two retirees can hold the same Plan G coverage and pay wildly different premiums, and the reason is a version of the policy that most...
Medicare covers cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation after a heart attack or serious lung disease
After a heart attack or a diagnosis of severe lung disease, Medicare will help pay for a structured recovery program of monitored exercise, education and...
Medicare’s Part D late-enrollment penalty is permanent, adding to your premium for as long as you have drug coverage
Sign up for Medicare drug coverage even a few months late without a good reason, and the penalty does not go away when you finally...
Medicare fully covers skilled home health care for homebound enrollees
Skilled nursing visits and therapy delivered inside a beneficiary’s own living room can carry a price of zero under Medicare, a benefit that stands out...
Medicare’s Diabetes Prevention Program is free for enrollees at risk of type 2 diabetes
A once-in-a-lifetime health program buried inside Medicare Part B costs qualifying beneficiaries nothing, no coinsurance and no deductible, yet most people who could use it...
Medicare covers 80% of wheelchairs, walkers and home oxygen as durable medical equipment
When a doctor prescribes a wheelchair, a walker or a home oxygen setup, Medicare Part B picks up 80 percent of the approved cost and...
A Medicare Advantage prior-authorization denial can be forced into a 72-hour expedited appeal when care is urgent
When a Medicare Advantage plan refuses to authorize care a doctor says a patient needs, the standard appeal can crawl along for weeks, an unbearable...
You can appeal a Medicare denial through five levels, and a large share of appeals succeed
A denial letter from Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan reads like a final word, but it rarely is. Medicare gives beneficiaries a formal, five-level...
Medicare’s hospice benefit covers end-of-life care, plus respite stays for caregivers
When a serious illness reaches the point where curative treatment stops helping, Medicare’s hospice benefit shifts the goal to comfort, and it does so at...
A Medicare Special Needs Plan can fold Medicare and Medicaid into one plan for people who qualify for both
Millions of older Americans hold two health cards at once, one for Medicare and one for their state’s Medicaid program, and juggling them can mean...
Doctors who don’t accept Medicare assignment can bill you up to 15% above the approved amount
A doctor’s willingness to “accept assignment” is one of the quietest cost switches in all of Medicare, and most enrollees never think to ask about...
A divorced spouse can claim on an ex’s Social Security two years after divorce, even if the ex hasn’t filed
A divorce ends a marriage, but it does not always end a claim on a former spouse’s Social Security. A person whose marriage lasted at...
A spouse caring for the worker’s child under 16 can draw Social Security at any age
Almost everything about Social Security spousal benefits is tied to age. A spouse usually cannot collect before 62, and claiming that early permanently trims the...
Social Security benefits are shielded from most creditors, though the government can still take some for its own debts
A judgment from a credit card company or a hospital can feel like the end of the road for a retiree living on a fixed...
Claim Social Security early and regret it, and suspending at full retirement age can rebuild the benefit
Roughly a third of new Social Security recipients start their benefit at 62, the earliest age allowed, and lock in a permanently reduced check in...
