A lot of people reach out to me to talk about issues with their aging parents. It’s usually when there’s already a crisis going on. We know it’s better to plan ahead in these situations. What are some things you can do to plan ahead and be prepared for when a health crisis happens? 1. Advance directives - these include designating a health care power of attorney, filling out a living will, completing a DNR (do not resuscitate) order. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you know I talk about these things often! Key point: don’t just list someone as your healthcare POA, ask them if they a ..read more

Sometimes people will tell me that they feel inadequate when dealing with the health care system. I always say that no one should feel that way; rather, our health care system is designed to be confusing. When you’re not feeling well, it’s difficult to make sense of it all and remember everything you’re supposed to do. This blog is about how that can even happen to a wonderful patient advocate when she has a medical emergency! Spoiler alert: I’m okay! In December, I fainted and hit my head on the floor, was briefly unconscious, couldn’t speak at first, and my head was bleeding. Fortunately ..read more

Holidays are often a time when we see family we may not have seen in a while. You may notice physical or cognitive declines in older family members. Be sure to take note of these changes and thoughtfully raise issues of health, safety, and living situation if it’s warranted. ​ While we like to think of the holidays as a time to relax and catch up, they also offer an opportunity to take care of important health and financial planning. Here are some things that are important to have put in order before there is a health crisis: Make sure advance directives are in place and up to date It’s no ..read more

Choosing the right health insurance plan can be overwhelming. It may be tempting to just keep the plan you currently have rather than look at spreadsheets and dense, hard-to-decipher descriptions of coverage options. ​That’s a mistake. Whether you’re over 65 and inundated with advertising about Medicare open enrollment options or getting your insurance through the Marketplace or working for a company whose annual open enrollment is   taking place this fall, it’s imperative that we review our current plan and see what our options are for 2024. Here are some things to keep in ..read more

This Sunday, April 16th, is National Healthcare Decisions Day. It’s a day that’s intended to encourage people to fill out their advance directives - a healthcare power of attorney, living will - as well as to have “the conversation” with their loved ones about their wishes. ​What’s “the conversation?” It’s talking with those you love, those who would make health care decisions for you if you were unable to make them for yourself, about what your end-of-life wishes are. It’s not an easy conversation.“The conversation” forces us to think about an uncomfortable topic - dying. Howev ..read more

Choosing the right health insurance plan can be overwhelming. It may be tempting to just keep the plan you currently have rather than look at spreadsheets and dense, hard-to-decipher descriptions of coverage options. That’s a mistake. Whether you’re over 65 and inundated with advertising about Medicare open enrollment options or getting your insurance through the Marketplace or working for a company whose annual open enrollment is taking place this fall, it’s imperative that we review our current plan and see what our options are for 2023. Here are some things to keep in mind regardless of w ..read more

Did you know that patients forget 40-80% of information as soon as they leave the doctor’s office? And about half of the information they retain is incorrect? My sense from speaking with doctors is that they are often surprised to find out that their patients are retaining so little information. I think they assume that if you don’t ask questions, and smile and nod when they’re speaking, then you are understanding and absorbing what they are telling you. Not so! We know that providers should use plain language when speaking with patients, yet we also know from experience that tha ..read more

A few months ago, my friend’s daughter, a freshman in college, had a health scare. Fortunately, everything turned out okay! But my friend hadn’t had her daughter fill out any of the necessary forms to allow the doctor and hospital to release information to her or even to speak to her about her daughter’s medical concerns. Trying to get a busy (and uninterested) college student to fill out the necessary forms while in another state in the middle of a semester was not quick, easy, or painless. ​ There are privacy laws (HIPAA) that restrict what a health care provider can share about any ad ..read more

​I think we’re all aware that there is a mental health crisis in this country. As a result, it can be REALLY difficult to find a therapist who has availability, much less a therapist with availability who is in your health insurance network. Are you stuck paying out-of-pocket for the entire amount? Maybe not! In the past couple months, I helped a client with her network gap exception request as well as advised a friend how to request one. In both cases, these exception requests were approved.  So, what does this mean and how do you get your request approved? Suppose you have a child w ..read more

I had a great win for a client recently! Award-winning investigative journalist/author Marshall Allen decided to write a "Victory Story" about it. Read about it here. Contact me if I can help you with your insurance/billing issue ..read more