Colorado Medicare insurance broker Archives

Do we have you in the right coverage?

May this blog post/newsletter find you in good health with your Medicare Insurance working properly. Today’s question: “Do we have you in the right coverage?“

In working with clients all over the country this week, it’s been a great opportunity to sharpen the saw and drill into the differences between plan types: Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement.

From a distance, it’s not always easy to understand the differences between the two types of plans and I often get the question: which type of plan is better?

The simple answer is… it truly depends on how each consumer uses healthcare.

Medicare Supplements charge a monthly premium and allow consumers to go to any doctor who takes Medicare (and is willing to see them) and folks don’t have to deal with prior authorization for Medicare approved services. They also don’t receive extra benefits and the premiums typically go up every year.

Medicare Advantage Plans typically have no premiums, offer additional bells and whistles but require you to jump through additional hoops for certain services.

As your independent Medicare Insurance Broker, I try to spend most of my time understanding your healthcare preferences and how you prefer to receive healthcare services.

After that, it’s all about education and understanding the pros and the cons of each type of plan and letting YOU make your own choice.

That’s the reason for this newsletter, so that we can stay connected to make sure your coverage is working the way it should.

Of course, nothing works perfectly. Sometimes there are billing errors, other times it’s hard to reach customer service. Life is imperfect at best, but the important thing is you have an additional resource: The Big 65!

If you are having issues, always call the carrier first.

However, if you speak with the carrier and you are stilling having problems, please reach out to us by email or just book a time on my calendar.

That why I’m here. Medicare call centers (and all those enticing commercials you see on TV) only want you to switch plans. If it’s necessary, we can do that, but usually there’s an easier fix.

It sure has been fun to finally have an extended vacation with our Air Force son Nicholas.

We worked on his bucket list one night and I didn’t even try to keep up with him. I guess we were all young once, right?

I keep hearing from clients like Claire in South Carolina that spring is on the way so don’t give up hope!

That’s it for this week. Keep squeezing the juice out of life.

And, if you are having Medicare questions or problems, email Gray, Gray@thebig65.com, or just book a time on my calendar.

We are here if you need us.

Let me know what’s going on your life, please send pictures for the newsletter, and remember…

Referrals are the lifeblood of my business!

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211
Book a time on my calendar here

As a novice to navigating the Medicare system, I cannot recommend the services of Karl enough. His knowledge has saved my wife and I a lot of money, both on the Medicare supplement insurance and the drug coverage. Costs you nothing to listen and has saved up thousands of dollars over time.
–Robert B

Happy with my Service? Click Here to Leave a Review.

Karl Bruns-Kyler is a Medicare insurance broker and independent Medicare agent licensed to help Medicare recipients in twenty-two states around the country, including:

Alabama
Arizona
Colorado
Florida
Georgia
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Louisiana
Maryland
Missouri
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
Wisconsin

We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all your options.

Are your doctors really taking care of you?

Are your doctors really taking care of you? Is your Medicare insurance working properly?

I wish the above cartoon was a one-off joke that we could all laugh at and ignore, but that just isn’t the case. Getting lost in the medical labyrinth is much more common than we would like to believe.

Today, I want to share a tip on how to get in to see medical providers faster when they can’t see you in a timely manner.

I spoke with a client in Michigan this week who was under a double whammy: a power outage because of the snow and a specialist who couldn’t seem him for three months.

While I couldn’t do anything about the outage, this is the solution that did help him get in quicker:

James started calling the receptionist EVERY DAY the moment they opened and right after lunch to KEEP asking about cancellations. The polite/squeaky wheel often gets the oil!

We spoke on Monday and by Thursday, James had gotten on his Urologist’s calendar. This will not always work, but it often does.

Of course, you could consider finding a different physician, but most of don’t like to switch doctors. There is normally great value in long term continuity.

However, if you are consistently underwhelmed by the response you receive from your provider, you may want to look up their ratings on third party websites like Heathgrades.com, Vitals or some of the others listed in this link.

If you discover that a provider is consistently receiving negative reviews, you may want to look for a new provider.

Please know the lion’s share of medical providers are doing their best to provide great care, but like everything else in life, the eighty-twenty rule applies.

Well, I am pleased to report that the Bruns-Kyler family has reunited in Kuala Lumpur. Quantz returned from travels in Burma and…

Our Air Force son, Nicholas, after three cancelled vacations because of the Ukraine situation, was finally able to meet up with us for some for very well-deserved leave.

Time with grown up children is a blessing, isn’t it?

Malaysia is a very modern country with a very old world feel, a very multicultural country of Malays, Indians and Chinese.

That means the food is incredibly diverse and delicious. Though we didn’t try everything.

One of the things we did finally try is durian, have you heard of it?

This fruit is banned in Singapore because of its smell, but it has a fanatical following, nonetheless.

Of course, following my axiom of trying new things, we had to give it a try.

I’ve gotta tell you, I am NOT a fan. It has a taste of rotten onions and the texture of meat.

As you can imagine, Q was not a fan. But hey, it’s off our bucket list. You win some, you lose some, right?

That’s it for this week. Keep squeezing the juice out of life.

And, if you are having Medicare questions or problems, email Gray, Gray@thebig65.com, or just book a time on my calendar.

We are here if you need us.

Let me know what’s going on your life, please send pictures for the newsletter, and remember…

Referrals are the lifeblood of my business!

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211
Book a time on my calendar here

Happy with my Service? Click Here to Leave a Review.

Karl Bruns-Kyler is a Medicare insurance broker and independent Medicare agent licensed to help Medicare recipients in twenty-two states around the country, including:

“We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all your options.”

The Annual Election Period ended December 7th but …

May this blog post/newsletter find you in good health with your Medicare coverage working properly.

The Annual Election Period ended December 7th and Plato is ready to dance!

It was a pleasure to catch up with so many of you all over the country and I am excited to have a little down time.

Even though most of my teams are out of the World Cup, I’m having fun seeing some of the games now.

The Annual Election Period ended December 7th but … just remember, if you meant to book a time but didn’t, we can still review your coverage and put an action plan together for next year.

Don’t be like Georgia and hold it in (Georgia dug up and swallowed a mole). If you are having issues, please reach out.

The end of the year is always a perfect time to look back and consider opportunities to make small changes that can improve our lives and the lives of everyone we touch.

This article captures some of the bigger ways to live well but this quote below says it all:

We get smarter as we age, but if we are not careful, we get crankier. Our logical minds focus on everything that isn’t working well instead of the things that are working well.

I could get angry and blame the Air Force for cancelling our son’s vacation or…

I could give thanks that one of our former exchange students surprised us with a visit from Mexico. Santiago just finished his fall semester at the University of Puebla studying business.

Having him around has been great fun: playing ping pong (now he beats me), hiking and maybe skiing next week. I’m doing my best to keep up and Q is making sure Santi eats like a king (which means the house is filled with good stuff she would only get to spoil our kids.)

The static wall sit is the only thing I’ve beat him at so far!

The purpose of this newsletter is to helps us stay in touch and to inspire each of you to live your own best life. You don’t need to read it every week, just know it’s here so you can get a hold of me when you need me.

I’m constantly inspired by my brother Robert. He severed his spinal cord four years ago, but instead of defining him, this event has been a catalyst for growth. I will not minimize how challenging it has been, but Robert still practices medicine and is more connected to his patients and life as a result of this experience. He continues to push himself mentally, physically and spiritually.

He is my role model. This is him on the beach of Lake Erie over Thanksgiving.

As we continue into the holidays, look for joy and adventure in every encounter. It’s not what happens to us but… how we choose to respond.

Have a great week, be safe, and call me if you need me.

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211
Book a time on my calendar here

Karl Bruns-Kyler is a Medicare insurance broker and independent Medicare agent licensed to help Medicare recipients in twenty-two states around the country, including:

How To Use Your Crystallized Intelligence

I hope you’ve been avoiding the Medicare trolls and incessant telemarketers. Beware of anyone who promises too much! Meanwhile, Plato says Happy SNowvember!

Here are a few stories that may inspire you to use your crystallized intelligence.

Last Saturday, when we were walking, we ran into a buddy who saved his newly born grandchild’s life. The baby was born prematurely and was not putting on weight. After one ounce of milk, the baby stopped nursing and the newly minted doctor ordered a feeding tube but the feeding tube was not fixing the problem. The baby was still losing weight.

My buddy had been actively involved in the feeding and the care of all sixteen of his other grandchildren and he took the doctor to task.

He asked for the chance to remedy the situation by being allowed to take over the feeding. In one night, using the learning of a lifetime, Bill turned the situation around.

When morning came around, his grandbaby had consumed 2 and 1/2 bottles of formula and was on the road to living. No feeding tube was needed after Bill worked his magic.

We often think of aging as a diminishing process. However, don’t underestimate the power of crystallized intelligence … the wisdom we have gained over a lifetime.

In our younger years, it’s our fluid intelligence that helps us succeed. As we age, crystallized intelligence makes us specialists in certain areas and the onus is upon us to use that wisdom for good.

Since I’ve already made every mistake in the book, I try to use what I have learned to mentor the lives of younger people (and of course to help all of you with Medicare).

Aging well should also include growth, learning and trying new things, but do look for ways to share what you have learned over life with your tribe. How are you going to help others?

Here’s how Martin has helped ...

Martin is a buddy of mine in France. He bought this barren farm in 1992 when he had a still had a head full of hair. Over the next thirty years, he worked as a teacher and spent his free time transforming the land into a forest. Martin jokes that though he lost hair, he regrew it on the land. That, to me, is a legacy.

Famed psychologist Raymond Cattell describes crystallized intelligence as what we acquire from past experiences, through knowledge, and culture.

There are more ways we can learn to use our crystallized intelligence for enriching the lives of our fellow humans.

Tom’s Halloween Masterpiece …

Neighbor Tom takes pleasure every year in building a Halloween spectacle. Though his kids have been out of the house for quite a while, Tom has created a masterpiece that brings joy to everyone who sees it. Each year, his monster madness is more amazing than the year before.

Ed and Perri are neighbors. We usually run into each other out on the trails with our dogs. Though I don’t know them well, I always enjoy our casual conversations. Everything I read says these connections are essential to living well, to staying connected. So, keep looking for ways to stay connected, that is the secret sauce.

You all know that I love Colorado, but if you are looking for “Almost Heaven…”

You have to go where I grew up, the Shenandoah Valley, the edge of West Virginia.

My little brother Haas lives deep in the Valley and he’s loving his new puppy, Georgia, even when she causes trouble. He takes her everywhere he goes.

Georgia says watch out for “Medicare bull” and don’t underestimate the power of your own crystallized intelligence. And let me know what’s going on in your world and how I can help.

Please forward this newsletter to all your friends and family! Remember, referrals are the lifeblood of my business. And thank you.

Have a great week, be safe, and call me if you need me.

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211
Book a time on my calendar here

Karl Bruns-Kyler is a Medicare insurance broker licensed to help Medicare recipients in twenty-two states around the country. States served by Karl include:

Can You Lower Your Blood Pressure Without Drugs?

Hello friends … I hope this finds you in good health with your Medicare Coverage working properly.

Plato wants you to know he is excited for the cooler weather, Halloween, and all the candy he can scrounge.

Meanwhile, the rest of us are worried sick about Hurricane Ian and all our friends and family down south. Amazingly, my in-law’s place in the Low Country of South Carolina, despite this picture, is still above the floodwaters.

Can you lower your blood pressure without drugs?

According to a recent article, daily deep diaphragmatic breathing exercises, 30 breaths per day over six weeks, could significantly reduce systolic blood pressure levels, possibly to the same extent as a blood pressure medication.

Now don’t stop taking your medications, but do read this article and definitely talk to your doctor. When my car stopped working today, I practiced what I preached.

The Annual Election Period begins today, October 1st. You can’t make any changes until October 15th, but if you are concerned about your coverage…

Do book a time on my calendar.

If you are happy with your current coverage, and your Annual Notice of Changes looks good, you don’t need to call me. Just be sure to ignore all the noise from Captain Kirk and the rest.

Well Quantz left me, again… this time for London, to see our Air Force son Nicholas.

He was supposed to be coming home in October but the Air Force has other plans for him.

They say he’s about to be deployed from Britain to somewhere in Asia. Please keep him in your prayers (along with all our soldiers and those devastated by the Hurricane.)

Meanwhile …

After 8,387 miles, please welcome home Steve and Jo from their amazing adventure to Alaska.

While crossing back into the US at the border and stopping for an agricultural inspection, our brave couple had an issue with the lock on the motorhome.

Steve, being the engineer that he is, had Jo step on the tire…

Then a little support…

And then a final push ! This is proof that true love endures.

I’m so impressed with these two adventurers.

A box of chocolates to anyone out there with a better story (and a picture).

Susan, in Florida (she’s okay), sent this picture of her Buckeye loving baby named Marley.

Marley asks everyone to keep their paws crossed that the Buckeye’s prevail over Rutgers today.

That’s it for this week.

Please forward this newsletter to all your friends and family who might need help with Medicare !

Have a great week, be safe and call me if you need me.

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211

“We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all your options.”

www.TheBig65.com

Bee Careful About Medicare Marketers

Medicare Advertising Under Scrutiny: Bee Careful

An article in the Wall Street Journal recently caught my attention with this headline:

Celebrity Medicare Sales Pitches Are Toned Down After Scrutiny

Although Medicare advertising is under scrutiny, we are finally beginning to see a clamp down on some of the hyper-annoying and misleading advertising. BUT – Medicare beneficiaries will continue to receive unsolicited and relentless phone calls, especially as we approach the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP for short).

The antidote? SKIP the calls and MUTE the commercials.

I’ve created a new celebrity and his name is Big Head Ted (from Q’s garden). This is what Big Head Ted says about some of the celebrity Medicare advertising going on now:

“The Medicare ads from my fellow celebrities are designed to scare you into believing that you are missing out (FOMO) on all kinds of benefits. But here’s the rub: most of the huge benefits that are advertised are only available to people in the absolute lowest income levels. Where I come from, they call it the old BAIT and SWITCH.”

Now we see why Medicare marketing is under scrutiny.

Of course, it’s important to review your coverage! And starting in October, AFTER you receive your Annual Notice of Changes from your carrier, we will dig in and make sure you have what you need. “And that’s a promise” says Big Head Ted.

Life Can Be Beautiful, Wherever You Are

Q took this picture while visiting her parents in South Carolina. Yes, Colorado is beautiful, but the sunrises and marshes of the Low Country are beautiful.

Colorado may lack water, but let’s not forget Red Rocks, one of America’s greatest outdoor amphitheaters, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression. The Red Rocks amphitheater has incredible acoustics surrounded by jaw dropping beauty.

I never saw Led Zeppelin as a youth, but while Q was away, I did go see Robert Plant and Alison Krauss perform under the stars at Red Rocks. It was one of the best concerts of my life.

Hey, that’s what Quantz gets for abandoning me, right ….?

Yes, Medicare advertising is under scrutiny. But there is much beauty in the world, too.

Well, that’s all for this week.

Please remember to send your friends and family my way if they need help with Medicare. Referrals and happy clients are the lifeblood of our business!

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211
Book a time on my calendar here

The Big 65 and Karl Bruns-Kyler are based in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Karl provides Medicare insurance services to the Front Range region of Colorado, including Denver, Highlands Ranch, Littleton, Boulder, Centennial, Colorado Springs, Lone Tree, Greenwood Village and throughout Colorado.

Karl is also licensed in seventeen additional states to help with Medicare insurance. Those additional states include Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin.

Karl Bruns-Kyler is a Private Insurance Broker, a Certified Senior Advisor, CSA, with no affiliation to Medicare, CMS or any governmental organization.

www.TheBig65.com

Don’t Let Pride Get In Your Way, Get Your Hearing Tested!

Let’s get down to it: untreated hearing loss and untreated vision loss will cause a person to be less engaged, less connected, less alive, less content. One of our frequent themes here at the Big 65:

If you are not growing, you are dying!

A few years ago, after much nagging from my family, I finally agreed to have my hearing tested. The result? Shock of shocks, I had hearing loss, I couldn’t hear the high-pitched tones, including my wife.

My response: I got hearing aids, the second-best decision I have ever made (marrying my wife being the best).

The benefits were instantaneous: I could hear birds sing, my family stopped having to repeat themselves constantly, I was immediately sharper and more productive, I could hear at parties. Everyone was happier, especially me!

According to my Audiologist, Dr. Brock Sturlaugson at Hearing Rehab Solutions, most people wait years and years to have their hearing tested, long after they’ve been experiencing
problems. Why do people wait?

Well for me it was pride. No one wants to admit they are getting older. The good news is the devices are smaller, less noticeable and more powerful than ever. Some days, when I wear practically invisible hearing aids and put in my contact lenses, I feel like the six-million-dollar man!

This article in the New York Times discusses the link between cognitive decline, hearing and vision loss. While the link is not perfectly linear, one thing is certain: the more connected we remain to family, community and life, the more content we are.

Even better news, some of the Medicare related health plans I work with are beginning to offer hearing benefits. If you think you or a loved one is asking those around to repeat themselves too often, or if feel you are disengaging, it may be time to check your eyes and your ears.

So, go it do now! Think of it as a gift for the people you love.

It’ll cost you money and you may have to swallow your pride.

But, when you hear the birds singing in the back yard while you sip your coffee and marvel at the brilliant light in a morning sunrise, you’ll be damn glad you did, and so will those who love you!

And to all the audiologists in the world…thanks!

Karl Bruns-Kyler
(877) 850-0211
Book a time on my calendar here

Karl Bruns-Kyler is a Certified Senior Advisor and licensed independent insurance agent focused on helping consumers shop for Medicare coverage.

The Big 65 Medicare Insurance Services does not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all your options.