ArcaMax

Reader Alert: You may remember reading about this scam in the Toni Says column several months ago. Below is an email the Toni Says team received from a reader in Arizona just last week.

Toni,

I am concerned about a phone call I received from Medicare with my personal information which the agent was verifying. He told me that I would receive...Read more

Toni,

My Medicare began June 1, and I received my first bill about a week ago. This bill is for 4 months from June 1 to Sept. 30 and is over $700. I thought Medicare was monthly. If I pay this amount, due on July 25, then I cannot pay my rent for August.

I was wondering if Medicare allows payments for Medicare Part B premiums to be monthly....Read more

Hello Toni:

My question is: If I change to a Medicare Advantage plan in the fall and find out it's not working for me, what are my chances of returning to Medicare and a supplement? I have a Medicare Supplement Plan F that is over $300 monthly and am looking for something more reasonable. I am a 78-year-old female, in fairly good health.

I ...Read more

Hi Toni:

Recently, I had a bad car wreck and ended up with a minor concussion from hitting the windshield. My wife was not hurt. I am 55 years old and have not thought about long-term care planning due to a life-changing event. I work for a large company and the company’s financial advisor has never discussed this with me. What do I need ...Read more

Hello Toni:

I’m turning 65 and not planning to retire until I’m 70. I am a federal employee working full-time as an agent for the IRS.

I’m receiving conflicting information that is confusing me. Friends who read your Toni Says Medicare articles are advising me to enroll in Medicare Parts A and B when I retire to keep from receiving ...Read more

Dear Toni,

I am 67 and have group health insurance through my current employer, with a high deductible. My question is, should I have also enrolled in Medicare, even though I am still working? If so, who pays my claims first? I have talked with friends, my company’s HR department, their insurance agent and get answers from “I don’t know�...Read more

Hello Toni,

I am retiring on January 1 and am beginning to search for the right Medicare option for me and my wife, who is having treatment at a local cancer center. Her cancer treatment drugs are expensive, and I am concerned about the Medicare Part D out-of-pocket. I am a diabetic and use a flex pen and take high blood pressure medications. ...Read more

Note: This is Toni King’s annual reminder about preparing for a natural disaster or other emergency. It is a rerun, adapted from her June 1, 2023, column.

Dear Toni,

In August 2017, Hurricane Harvey absolutely devastated my wife. Now, her 88-year-old mother is living in an assisted living facility, and we live over 10 miles away from her....Read more

I turn 65 in September, am covered under my wife’s employer’s health insurance and fighting liver cancer. I am participating in a clinical trial for a cancer medication which costs over $12,000 per month and pay $0 for a medication which is curing my cancer.

I am concerned about what to do when I enroll in Medicare and if I will be in ...Read more

I met with you in 2023 for a Toni Says personalized Medicare consultation. I have a quick question regarding travel outside the United States because I’m planning a trip to Italy in September. Which Medicare plans cover emergency medical costs while traveling overseas?

I received Medicare advice from my travel agent that has me very ...Read more

Toni:

I need to make the right Medicare decision because I turn 65 in August and have not had a health plan for 2 years. I do not know where to start or what to do. My friends are advising me that if I do not sign up for Medicare when I turn 65, I will be making a major Medicare mistake.

Can you please simplify the Medicare enrollment ...Read more

Dear Toni,

I need your help regarding my parents who are in their late 80s. My mother has been disabled with Parkinson’s for the past 3 years and my father has been her caretaker, but due to his recent heart attack, he can no longer assist her.

They do not have a long-term care plan, and discussing having live-in help or living in an ...Read more

Hello Toni:

My husband, Steven, has been laid off from a company he worked with for over 20 years. His employer is downsizing due to changes in the economy and May 31 will be his last day.

Steve is 68, enrolled in Medicare Part A but never enrolled in Medicare B because he had employer benefits. He is stressed, wondering how to apply for ...Read more

Dear Toni:

I am turning 65 in June, self-employed, and my income together with my wife’s is over $300,000. Recently I received a letter from Social Security telling me that my monthly Medicare Part B premium of $174.70 would double to $349.40 per month due to 2022 reported income. That was no surprise, but Social Security also said that ...Read more

Hi Toni:

I’m turning 65 in July and not receiving my Social Security check. Last week I tried to open a “My Social Security” account to enroll in Medicare online and discovered that my Social Security account is blocked. Two years ago, someone falsely filed for a tax refund with my Social Security number. Now anything that involves me ...Read more

Toni:

Why did a hospital medical claims division employee ask my husband James to sign a form stating that he is aware that he is now in his “lifetime reserve days” while he was waiting for his lung/heart transplant?

He went into the hospital in December of last year for congestive heart failure only to discover that his heart and ...Read more

Hello, Toni:

My husband, Jay, retired 6 years ago when he turned 65. He enrolled in Medicare Part A only and decided to delay Part B since I put him on my employer’s group health plan. Recently, I read an article about failure to enroll in Medicare Part B when turning 65 and the additional cost for each year that one delays enrollment.

...Read more