In our October post, Medicare Acronyms & Changes for 2019, we mentioned Medicare’s “Open Enrollment” period which allows you a one-time change in your MA plan. In this post, we’ll go into a little more detail to help you unravel the Medicare OEP mystery.

If you’re familiar with Medicare at all, you’re aware that the AEP (annual enrollment period) runs from Oct. 15th – Dec 7th each year and allows you to make change to your Medicare insurance however you wish.

​In years past, the Medicare Advantage Disenrollment period (Jan 1st – Feb 14th) allowed you to disenroll from your Medicare Advantage policy and return to Original Medicare with or without drug coverage. However, you were not allowed to switch from one MA plan to another.

Beginning in 2019 the ‘disenrollment period’ has been changed to Open Enrollment, runs from Jan 1st – March 31st and applies to Medicare recipients whose MA coverage went into effect Jan 1, 2019.

What does this mean for you?

According to MedicareResources.org and other sources, the Open Enrollment period allows the Medicare recipient to make a one-time switch from one MA plan to another or to switch from a MA plan back to Original Medicare with or without a prescription drug plan.

The Open Enrollment period does not allow changes from Medicare Prescription Drug plans only!

We hope this brief explanation of Medicare’s OEP (open enrollment period) helps you understand a little more the ins and outs of Medicare.

If you have other questions, feel free to visit our Medicare and/or Medicare FAQ pages, or check out our blog posts on the History of Medicare, Understanding Medicare and Medicare Acronyms & Changes for 2019.

If you have questions as to which Medicare Enrollment Period you may qualify for, contact a licensed agent today.

Until next time remember there is no question that cannot be answered.

 Tommy Curtis and Staff

​Disclaimers:

• Medicare has neither endorsed nor reviewed this information.
• Not connected or affiliated with any United States Government or State agency.
• Calling this number will direct you to a licensed Agent/Broker.

 
Life and Medicare Products marketed through Curtis & Associates Financial Services, Inc.
​{A Life and Health Agency}

Our office will be closed Monday, Dec 24th & Tuesday, Dec. 25th as well as Monday, Dec. 31st and Tuesday, Jan. 1st in observance of the Christmas and New Year holidays.

We will resume normal business hours (9am - 5 pm) on Wednesday, Dec. 26th and Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019.

As we move through the holidays and into a new year, we hope you'll take some time to browse the many blog posts we've shared over the past year or so and that you'll find a wealth of information beneficial to your life, home, auto and/or Medicare insurance concerns.

When faced with life, home or work changes, we certainly hope you'll give us a call and let us service your insurance needs. It's especially important to insure those new toys you got for Christmas! (ie; boats, jet skis, ATV's, jewelry, artwork, etc.)

Meanwhile - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We look forward to serving you in 2019 and beyond....

Tommy Curtis and Staff

Our office will be closed Thursday (11/22) and Friday (11/23) in observance of the Thanksgiving holidays. We will reopen on Monday (11/26) at normal business hours of 9am - 5pm.

Medicare Annual Enrollment is coming to a close. Only 2 weeks left! (ends 12/7). If you're aging into Medicare or in the market for a new Medicare plan, please give one of our licensed agents a call at: 337-439-7730

Meanwhile, as the days get shorter and colder, please refresh yourself on Fire Safety, Holiday Safety and tips on Travelling Smart.

We hope you enjoy our blog and find the posts beneficial and informative and we wish you a Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving!

Tommy Curtis and Staff

Here we are again approaching Medicare’s AEP (Annual Election Period Oct. 15th – Dec. 7th) where beneficiaries are allowed, encouraged even, to compare their current Medicare plan with the other options out there. Since we’ve covered the History of Medicare, offer Medicare information and FAQ’s on our site, and have given you a brief Understanding of Medicare, I thought this would be a good time to address the acronyms used by CMS and different Medicare plans as well as changes for the upcoming year (2019).

Over the last year or so we’ve done posts on insuring your home, mobile home and even a vacant home. We’ve discussed binding restrictions and scheduled personal property as well as policy deductibles, endorsements and possible discounts.

One thing we haven’t discussed is a Builder’s Risk and/or Builder’s Risk Renovations policy.

If you’ve been talking to a bank or mortgage company about financing the construction of your home, you may have been told you’ll need a Builder’s Risk policy and wondered what in the world that is.

We’re here to help!
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Purchasing a new home can be fun and exciting, it can also be fraught with fears, insecurities and too many things on your ‘to do’ list. Many people get all caught up in the excitement and forget one of the most important aspects of buying a new home–Insuring it!–then, in a panic, accept the first quote they receive, not understanding the basics of a home insurance policy.
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Don’t be one of them.
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On the heels of Memorial Day in May and Flag Day in June, July is the month of patriotism since the 4th is the day we celebrate the birth of our country as a nation, independent from English rule.

Even though our break from the British Empire came in 1776, Insurance was sold in the Colonies as early as 1735 in South Carolina. In 1772 Benjamin Franklin along with more than 70 business owners formed a mutual company called “The Philadelphia Contributorship for the Insuring of Houses from Loss by Fire.”

We know from a previous post that Medicare was enacted in 1965, but did you know Life Insurance was established in the 1760’s? The Presbyterian Synods (an assembly of the clergy and sometimes also the laity in a diocese or other division of a particular church) created the “Corporation for Relief of Poor and Distressed Widows and Children of Presbyterian Ministers” in 1759 in New York and Philadelphia which was duplicated by Episcopalian priests in 1769. Auto insurance came about in 1897, health insurance in the 1920’s and home policies in the 1950’s.
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So, how does Insurance and Patriotism go together?

Hurricane Season is upon us and many people are brushing up on their home/mobile home insurance policies and getting their evacuation plan in order. They’ve pulled out the declarations page and in reviewing, find there are 2 or maybe 3 different deductibles listed: AOP, Named Storm and/or Wind/Hail.

We’ll attempt to clarify these for you here….
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