Medicare Coverage Tips For RVers

Above, the air ambulance helicopter that flew me to Twin
Falls, Idaho from Wells, Nevada. Photo by Mitch Geriminsky.

When I had my heart/artery episode back in 2018 at Wells, Nevada, I was covered by MediCal at the time. So all of my medical costs were covered by it. This also included the air ambulance helicopter flight to Twin Falls, Idaho.

Currently, I am on Medicare and, so far (thankfully), I have not had any medical emergencies either at home or on the road.

RV Travel has posted an article with Medicate coverage tips for RVers in case a medical emergency occurs while traveling in the RV.

It starts with:

As an RVer who is retired, one of the most critical decisions you’ll face is choosing the right healthcare coverage—specifically Medicare Part C (also known as Medicare Advantage). If you plan to travel out of your home state in the coming year, it’s essential to carefully review and consider your many options. Here are some Medicare Part C tips for RVers like you and me. 

To read more, go here. 

10 Worst U.S. States To Retire In 2022

Above, the mesas across the valley from Jamestown, New Mexico. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Money Inc. has posted a list of ten states they consider the "worst" U.S. states to retire to this year. One of which is my state of New Mexico.

They begin with:

The desire to retire and do all of the things you enjoy is something that almost everyone has. Who wouldn’t want the opportunity to retire to a place where they can truly enjoy life without the need to worry about getting up and schlepping off to work everyday. The truth of the matter is that it can be so easy to get caught up in dreaming about retiring that it’s easy to forget about the stark reality sometimes associated with it. These days, it’s harder than ever to make ends meet and it doesn’t get any easier when you retire. Choosing the right location to retire to is one of the most important decisions you could ever make. In fact, it makes a dramatic difference in the amount of money you’re likely to be spending during those years.

Below are 10 of the worst states you can possibly retire to. There are plenty of reasons why these aren’t exactly safe havens for retirees. If you’re curious, scan through the list below and figure out if the place you plan to retire has ended up on the list. If it has, it might be time to rethink things.

This is what they posted about New Mexico:

3. New Mexico

New Mexico has a lot of things up against it right now. It’s not always the best place to retire because it has a lot of hot, dry days and it’s desert-like climate simply doesn’t work all that well for every retiree. If you love that type of weather, good for you. If it’s something you’ve always dreaded, you’re not going to enjoy it there because it’s like that for most of the year.

In addition, New Mexico doesn’t manage their state budget particularly well. In fact, they’re usually in the red. That means that there are less services for you to take advantage of, should you need them. A lot of people point out that New Mexico has a lower cost of living than a lot of states, but it won’t do you any good if you’re stuck somewhere trying to get health care and you can’t access it because the state can’t afford to provide it in the first place.

Yes, the state does have its problems. It has been under control of the Democrat Party for years with their mismanagement and corruption. So they are correct about the state budget. And, it does have a lower cost of living.

I am one who likes the climate. It is actually cooler in August in New Mexico than it is in Los Angeles. During monsoon season, it is not all that dry. This year's monsoon has been a wet one. The winter snows aren't that bad either. The food here is great.

I do have to disagree on health care services. Since I am on Medicare, I have been able to get decent health care since I live near Gallup. I have no complaints. Friends here with health issue have good access to health care services. On occasion, they have to drive to Albuquerque for it, but they don't seem to mind the drive (which is actually a nice drive).

I live in a community with a lot of retirees. All enjoy the lifestyle in New Mexico. So it isn't as bad as Money Inc. makes it out to be. It would be a lot better if the Democrats are voted out this coming November.

To read more, go here.

Biden Administration Hikes Medicare Premiums

Above, the Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital in Gallup, New Mexico. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Biden Administration is going to sock it to seniors by raising Medicare premiums and deductibles. These hikes will virtually eat up the raise in Social Security benefits that's scheduled for next year.

The Epoch Times reported:

President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday announced it is raising Medicare premiums, a move it blamed in part on the cost of drugs.

The Medicare Part B standard monthly premium will rise by nearly $22 to $170.10 next year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said.

“The increase in the Part B premium for 2022 is continued evidence that rising drug costs threaten the affordability and sustainability of the Medicare program,” Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, administrator of the agency, said in a statement.

In addition to the monthly premium, the annual deductible will rise from $203 to $233. Also, Medicare Part A inpatient deductibles will jump $72 to $1,556 next year, and Medicare part A daily coinsurance and skilled nursing facility coinsurance will both increase at least $9.

Officials pointed out that many Americans covered by Medicare will see a net increase in Social Security benefits. The Social Security Administration announced last month that recipients will get a 5.9 percent increase in benefits.

However, the 14.5 percent jump in Medicare premiums—the highest since 2016—will eat up the entire adjustment for Social Security recipients with the lowest benefits, according to Senior Citizens League, a nonpartisan seniors group.

“Social Security recipients with higher benefits should be able to cover the $21.60 per month increase, but they may not wind up with as much left over as they were counting on,” Mary Johnson, a policy analyst for the group, said in a statement.

Remember, elections have consequences, especially stolen ones.

#LetsGoBrandon

To read the full story, go here.

Tackling The Medicare Issue Head-on

As the Democrats demagogue the issue of Medicare, there's a couple of things to keep in mind:

Source: The Heritage Foundation

Quick quiz: Who said this about Medicare? "With an aging population and rising health care costs, we are spending too fast to sustain the program. And if we don't gradually reform the system while protecting current beneficiaries, it won't be there when future retirees need it. We have to reform Medicare to strengthen it." 

It wasn't Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI), Mitt Romney's new running mate, who has been vocal about the need for Medicare reform. It was President Barack Obama, just last year. 

As the debate reignites over the government's health care plan for seniors, which has a long-term unfunded liability of nearly $37 trillion, two things are important to remember: 

1. Obamacare has already "ended Medicare as we know it." 

2. There is bipartisan consensus for moving Medicare toward a premium support model, meaning that the government would make a fixed contribution toward each enrollee's plan, but the enrollee would have the freedom to choose which health care plan he or she wants.

To read more, go here.

Newt Stepped On It

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich seems to be self-destructing just after he officially threw his hat into the presidential ring.

Gingrich was leaving an event at a Dubuque, Iowa Holiday Inn when an Iowa Republican approched him and said:

"Get out now before you make a bigger fool of yourself.”

Gingrich is under fire from Republicans for his statements on Paul Ryan's proposal on Medicare. On yesterday's Meet The Press, Gingrich said, "I don't think right-wing social engineering is any more desirable than left-wing social engineering. I don't think imposing radical change from the right or the left is a very good way for a free society to operate."

In this exchange with host David Gregory, Gingrich didn't help his cause:

GINGRICH: We ought to have some requirement that you either have health insurance or you post a bond...

GREGORY: But that is the individual mandate is it not?

GINGRICH: It's a variation of it.

What Gingrich did was, in effect, (I have to clean this up a bit) stepping on his [male member].

Obama Appoints Marxist As Administrator For Medicare/Medicaid

President Barack Obama is appointing Donald Berwick to be the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) administrator while congress goes into recess.

This recess appointment is causing a furor as Berwick is clearly a radical socialist/Marxist. Berwick made remarks in London at the National Health Service conference on July 1, 2008.

At that conference, Berwick said:

Sick people tend to be poorer and that poor people tend to be sicker and that any health care funding plan that is just equitable, civilized, and humane must, must redistribute wealth from the richer among us to the poorer and the less fortunate. Excellent health care is by definition redistributional. Britain, you chose well.

Remember Obama's "redistribution of wealth" comments to Joe the Plumber back in the 2008 campaign?

He is also an "expert" on rationed healthcare. As Jake Tapper of ABC News pointed out:

In an interview last year with Biotechnology Healthcare, Berwick said society makes decisions about rationing all the time, and that the "decision is not whether or not we will ration care -- the decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open. And right now, we are doing it blindly."

How's that hope and change working out for you?