Every fall, the conversation around health insurance gets louder.
Premiums. Networks. Prescription coverage. Deductibles. Benefits. Plan changes.
For people with Medicare, Open Enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7. It’s an important opportunity to review coverage for the coming year because health and drug plans can change from one year to the next — including costs, coverage, provider networks and pharmacy networks.
But there is another conversation families should be having during Open Enrollment.
If something happened tomorrow, would the right person know how to step in and help?
That question goes far beyond choosing an insurance plan.
Open Enrollment Is Also an Opportunity to Get Organized
Most people understandably approach Open Enrollment by asking questions like:
- Is my doctor still in network?
- Are my prescriptions covered?
- What will my premium be?
- Has my deductible changed?
- Does another plan better fit my needs?
Those are insurance questions, and they’re important ones.
But after you’ve made those decisions with the appropriate insurance professional, there is another step that’s easy to overlook:
Make sure the information surrounding those decisions is organized and accessible.
Think about what can change from one year to another:
- A new insurance card arrives.
- A prescription changes.
- A pharmacy changes.
- A provider is no longer in network.
- A premium changes.
- A different plan is selected for the coming year.
Now imagine the person who normally handles all of this suddenly becomes ill, is hospitalized or needs someone else to step in.
- Would anyone know what changed?
- Would they know which plan is current?
- Would they know where to find the insurance information?
- Would they know who the doctors are, what medications are being taken or which pharmacy is being used?
And perhaps most importantly:
Would the person who may someday need to help even know where to begin?
Having a Power of Attorney Doesn’t Automatically Mean You’re Prepared
This is one of the gaps POA Caregiver™ exists to address.
A family may have completed important legal documents. Someone may have been named as an agent under a Power of Attorney. Healthcare planning documents may be in place.
That’s important.
But having the documents and being prepared to use them are two very different things.
The person stepping in may still need to understand:
- What authority have I actually been given?
- When does that authority begin?
- Where is the original document?
- What insurance coverage is currently in place?
- Where are the current insurance cards?
- Who are the doctors and specialists?
- What medications are being taken?
- Which pharmacy is being used?
- Where are important financial and healthcare records kept?
- Who else needs to be contacted?
- What changed during this year’s Open Enrollment?
- Are there additional authorizations or forms required by a particular organization?
That last question is especially important.
A Power of Attorney does not mean every bank, healthcare provider, insurer or government program will operate exactly the same way. Different organizations and programs may have their own procedures, authorization requirements and forms.
That’s why preparedness is about more than having a document sitting in a drawer.
Before You Finish Open Enrollment, Do a Preparedness Review
Open Enrollment gives families a natural opportunity to do an annual check-in.
Once you’ve reviewed the insurance itself, take another few minutes and look at everything surrounding it.
- Did coverage change? Make sure current plan information is saved and outdated information isn’t creating confusion.
- Did doctors, specialists or pharmacies change? Update the information you keep with important records.
- Did medications change? Make sure the medication list is current too.
- Does the appropriate person know where important information is located? Having everything organized doesn’t help very much if no one knows where to find it.
- Are your planning documents still current? Think about the people you’ve chosen. Do those choices still make sense? Do they know they’ve been chosen?
- Does the person you’ve named understand the role? Being named as someone’s Power of Attorney and understanding what that responsibility actually involves are not the same thing.
- Would someone know what to do if they had to step in tomorrow? That’s the question we often don’t ask until we’re already in the middle of something.
Keep Sensitive Information Protected
Being prepared doesn’t mean handing passwords, account numbers, Medicare numbers or private medical information to everyone in the family.
It means thinking intentionally about how important information is protected, where it is kept and how the appropriate person could access what they legitimately need if the time comes.
The goal isn’t for everyone to have everything.
The goal is for the right information to be available to the right person when it is actually needed.
And This Conversation Isn’t Just for Older Adults
Planning isn’t just for older adults. It’s for adults.
An unexpected accident, hospitalization or medical event doesn’t check your age first.
If you’re an adult, there are questions worth answering:
- Who could help me?
- Who have I legally authorized to act if necessary?
- Do they know I’ve chosen them?
- Do they understand what I’ve asked them to do?
- Where would they find the information they need?
- What would happen if they had to step in tomorrow?
Open Enrollment simply gives us a natural annual reminder to have a bigger conversation.
Review the coverage. Then review the plan around the person.
Medicare Questions? Talk With Michael.
Choosing Medicare coverage and understanding plan options belongs with an insurance professional.
If you have questions about Medicare, plan options, coverage changes or insurance, contact:
- Michael Boho, HERO Insurance and Planning
- 207 Parkway Avenue North, Lanesboro, MN 55949
- Call: (507) 268-4370
- Email: boho@hero-ip.com
Michael can help you navigate the Medicare and insurance side of the conversation.
Power of Attorney Questions? Talk With POA Caregiver.
Once the insurance conversation ends, another conversation may need to begin.
If you’re planning ahead, have recently been named as someone’s Power of Attorney, are already serving in the role, or simply don’t know whether your family is as prepared as you thought it was, that’s where POA Caregiver comes in.
POA Caregiver was created to help people better understand the Power of Attorney role and the practical realities that can come with it.
You don’t need to wait until there’s a crisis to start asking questions.
If you’d like dedicated time to talk through where you are, what you’ve already put in place, what you’re trying to prepare for and what questions you should be asking next, you can schedule a 1:1 POA Education Session with POA Caregiver.
- POA Caregiver
- Call: 612-750-6103
- Email: info@poacaregiver.com
Schedule a 1:1 POA Education Session →
For Professionals: Bring This Conversation to the People You Serve
If you’re an insurance professional, financial professional, attorney, senior-living organization, employer, community organization or another professional serving individuals and families, you may already see these gaps every day.
Someone comes in to discuss insurance. Or finances. Or estate planning. Or senior living.
And somewhere in that conversation you discover:
“My daughter is my Power of Attorney.”
“I’m Power of Attorney for my mom.”
“We did those documents years ago.”
And then comes the question that doesn’t get asked nearly enough:
Does the person who was named actually understand what that means?
That’s where education can make a meaningful difference.
POA Caregiver speaking and educational sessions help individuals and families understand what Power of Attorney is, what the role can involve, what questions they should be asking and why preparation before a crisis matters.
It isn’t about replacing the professionals already serving the family.
Quite the opposite.
When people better understand their role, they can be better prepared to know when they need their attorney, insurance professional, financial professional, healthcare provider or another qualified professional.
If this is a conversation your clients, employees, members or community need to hear, POA Caregiver would welcome the opportunity to bring it to them.
Bring POA Caregiver to Your Organization →
- POA Caregiver
- Call: 612-750-6103
- Email: info@poacaregiver.com
One Season. A Bigger Conversation.
Open Enrollment may start with insurance.
But it can lead to a much bigger conversation about preparedness.
Review the coverage. Then ask:
- Who would step in?
- Do they know they’ve been chosen?
- Do they understand their role?
- Do they know where important information is?
- Would they know where to begin?
The goal isn’t to prepare for every possible thing that could happen.
It’s to make sure the people you trust aren’t starting from zero when something does.
For Medicare & Insurance: Michael Boho | HERO Insurance and Planning · (507) 268-4370 · boho@hero-ip.com
For Power of Attorney Education & Preparedness: POA Caregiver · 612-750-6103 · info@poacaregiver.com
Learn. Prepare. Navigate.
POA Caregiver provides Power of Attorney education and organizational resources and does not provide legal, medical, insurance, tax or financial advice. Medicare and insurance questions should be directed to an appropriately licensed insurance professional. Legal, medical, tax and financial questions should be directed to the appropriate licensed professional.