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Navigating the world of Medicare can sometimes feel overwhelming, especially when the costs change each year. Understanding these adjustments is essential for budgeting and The official 2026 numbers have been released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). We are here to walk you through these new costs, explain what they mean for you, and show you how to manage them effectively.

The Medicare enrollment period is a designated time each year when beneficiaries can make changes to their Medicare coverage. This period typically runs from October 15 to December 7 annually. During this time, you can: Switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan. Change from one Medicare Advantage plan to another. Enroll in a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. Drop your Medicare prescription drug coverage.

Understanding the wonderful, wacky world of Medicare can often feel overwhelming, especially when the costs change each year. Understanding these adjustments is essential for budgeting and ensuring appropriate coverage for your healthcare needs. WHAT WILL MEDICARE COST IN 2026 WHAT COSTS ARE COVERED BY MEDICARE When we talk about “Medicare costs,” we are generally referring to a few different types of payments you might make: Such as: Premiums, Deductibles, Co-Pays & Co-I

The Medicare AEP (Annual Enrollment Period) runs from October 15th through December 7th every year. During AEP, about 48 million Medicare Beneficiaries will make at least one change to their Healthcare portfolio for the 2026 Plan Year. The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) occurs each fall. During the AEP, Medicare beneficiaries can change their current Medicare Advantage Plan or their Stand-Alone Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plan.

Once you start receiving Social Security benefits or Railroad Retirement benefits, Medicare premiums will be automatically deducted from those payments. But until then, you may be better off paying Medicare online by using Medicare’s automatically deducted monthly payment system called Easy Pay If you did not work enough quarters to qualify for Premium Free Medicare Part A, or if you are a High Wage Earner who has been assessed with an IRMAA surcharge, you will be billed for

Thankfully, there are not nearly as many new concerns as last fall, but I think it's still good to share the information.  The most significant nationwide trend is that healthcare costs continue to rise rather than level off. We have seen that MOOP amounts continue to increase, along with Medicare Advantage, Part B Premiums, Part B Deductibles, Medicare Supplement Premiums, and Medicare Part D Deductibles.

When your Medicare card arrives, the first thing to do is verify your Part A and Part B effective dates. These dates are essential because they determine when your coverage begins. Mistakes, although rare, can still occur, so be sure to double-check your Medicare Card for accuracy.

Vaccines play a crucial role in preventing several serious infectious diseases. Luckily, Medicare covers the cost of most vaccines. However, Medicare itself is comprised of four different parts, so it's helpful to know which parts cover which vaccines.

With congressional approval of the Biden Administration's Inflation Reduction Act, significant changes are coming to Medicare. Most of these changes are fantastic and long overdue for many Medicare Beneficiaries. However, these rapid changes have a cause-and-effect relationship that needs to be explained.

Last Month, Amazon announced the expansion of eligibility for its RxPass prescription medication program. This new program is the Amazon RxPass Prescription Plan. This program allows Medicare beneficiaries to receive unlimited popular, generic (Tier 1 & Tier 2) prescription medications for just a $5.00 Subscription Fee Per Month.

Some of you may remember the Article we wrote last year after it was announced that Medicare would start negotiating Prescription Drug Prices in 2024. Medicare will deal directly with drug manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies. Initially, they would select the 10 most-prescribed (Non-Generic) Medications for 2024. Then they would continue to negotiate 10 per year. Although the new pricing will not go into effect until January 1, 2026, I wanted to  show you their progress

What makes matters confusing to the public is that it is different from any Healthcare we have ever had, and it uses words, concepts, and acronyms we have never seen or heard of before. However, once you have a chance to work with someone who not only understands Medicare but also has the requisite skills and attributes to teach and explain it to others, it becomes much less daunting. In this article, I have tried to encapsulate Medicare in a basic but friendly format that

The Fall Opera Enrollment Period runs from October 15th to December 7th. Here is what you can do during this critical time: If you are a Medicare Advantage Member, you can choose to stay with your current Medicare Advantage Plan, as long as your plan is still available. If that is what you decide to do, then you do not need to do anything else. Your plan will automatically renew on January 1st.

A Medicare Insurance Broker, also known as a Medicare Broker or Medicare Agent, undergoes extensive training on Medicare law and Medicaid services and is officially certified by insurance companies by CMS guidelines. They are required to adhere to stringent regulations, particularly about marketing and enrollment, ensuring full compliance with Medicare, state insurance regulations, and private insurance companies.

Did you know that the two most significant factors in a successful retirement plan are retirement income and healthcare costs? Everyone should spend some time with a Medicare Broker to get a feel for what Medicare will cost in retirement.  I know you cannot be 100% accurate in projecting premiums too far in advance, but retirees need to understand the financial implications of Healthcare once they retire.   You need to plan for and understand Medicare effectively.  

You may never need to file a Medicare Claim, but if you do, we want to provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to file a Medicare Claim in the event you ever need it.

I know most Medicare Beneficiaries understand what they can do and what they need to do during AEP, which runs from October 15th through December 6th each year. Hopefully, this article is a quick read and full of timely information, serving as both a reminder and a call to action where applicable. Enjoy....................................

The purpose of this article is not to be a statement for or against vaccines in any way, shape, or form. To deliver information, I respectfully do not care if you are pro-vaccine or anti-vaccine. Neither viewpoint is the reason why I decided to write the article. This article offers tips, tricks, and reminders to keep seniors and Medicare beneficiaries aware of the proper way to receive vaccines without incurring any costs. It's as simple as that.

Here at Braden Medicare Insurance, it is almost an oxymoron to say the words Medicare and Reader's Digest Form in the same sentence. That is simply because Medicare is so broad and complex that it is challenging to encapsulate the concepts in a book, let alone a chapter, and have them make sense. In this article, we have done our best to present the condensed Reader's Digest version of Medicare. We hope you find the article helpful and worthwhile.

Medicare is like riding a 10-speed Schwinn Bicycle for the first time; it took a little bit of getting used to, but you quickly figured it out