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Showing posts with the label Health Exchange

Medicare & Healthcare update during Covid

Here at t he Wenatchee Enrollment Center, we have been enrolling people like crazy With December 7th, the end of the annual enrollment period for Medicare, we are seeing a flood of people needing Medicare help. For our local customers is has been good to call a 509 number or walk into our office on Mission Street and get service.  Normally, I would say set an appointment using our Calendar. Appointment Calendar . During the time of Covid, we were prepared to help everyone remotely with phone calls and virtual meetings. We have been operating for years to help our people out in Okanogan, Stevens, and Ferry Counties this way. In some cases, the insurance companies were needing to catch up with us. A good example was being able to provide virtual seminars for Medicare Advantage plans. We also have people that need in person and we do those appointments as well. We have been masked up and providing hand sanitizer to clients since March when the first protocols for safer offices w...

Healthplanfinder and Income update FEMA payment

Here we go with some COVID relief for the unemployed.  If you need a mask then stop in! Beginning September 21st, Employment Security will begin processing payments of an additional $300 per week to the state base weekly  unemployment benefit approved under the Lost Wages Assistance FEMA Payment.  There is only five weeks approved for weeks August 1st - Sept 5th.  The Lost Wages Assistance FEMA payments is not countable for Washington Apple Health (Medicaid) eligibility but is countable for tax credit and cost-sharing reductions. We have been advised to not include the $300 Lost Wages Assistance FEMA payment in your weekly unemployment income amount reported to the Washington Healthplanfinder application.  You should choose to adjust their Qualified Health Plan tax credits by adjusting the amount of tax credits applied to their premium in Washington Healthplanfinder . If you under estimate your income and use more tax credits than you are qualified for then yo...

Covid, Healthcare, Employment and the 2020 Recession

We are on the front lines at Suzie Health Solutions . When someone loses their job and needs healthcare then they come to us. We have been helping people with little or no money sign up for healthcare since 2013. We literally have our finger on the pulse of the economy and healthcare. We started seeing businesses adjust their income last fall. We knew that it was going to be rough because hard news is not the easiest to look at. Check out our podcast for more info. Well how did we get here? We were in trouble before Covid got a strong hold in the United States. 1. Our country's pandemic response was disassembled from the very beginning of the current administration. On Jan 13,2017, the Joint Obama-Trump transition team goes through a series of pandemic-scenarios. Most of the individuals are no longer with the administration. Funding and personnel are cut to key areas. 2. It has been politicized by the administration . Trump's tweets were bad and his rally'...

Going back to school with COVID?

https://wenatcheetown.podbean.com The further that we get into August and the higher the COVID 19 infected, the more that sending our kids back to school will be an issue. As parent's of a 14 year old, it maters to us will our kid be safe. What level of illness floating around is a reasonable risk? How can he get that needed social contact with out contracting something that can injure or even kill him? Everyone needs to follow what actions are occurring to help them find what is safe for their family. Let's start with the politicians. 1. There is a great conversation between Representatives Kim Schrier and Katherine Clark . If you have not heard of Rep Schrier then you should know that she is a Doctor and parent of an 11 year old so she is a good person to listen to, 2. It recently became an issue with Florida Lawmakers when it Senator Rick Scott reveled that his Grandkids were going with distance learning instead of traditional school. 3. Baron Trump will be dis...

How does the Stimulus payments impact my Healthplanfinder account?

We are deep into our second month of assisting people with enrolling in healthcare. Our main page always has good basic information including how to find us. This fall will be our eight open enrollment that we have assisted people with health-plans with out adding a fee. On to the questions. Did you receive a $1200 check to help you get by during Covid-19 stay at home/ quarantine? How about the extra $600 in unemployment. The help for the plans on the Washington Healthplanfinder are driven by income. If your income is not reported accurately then you could be overpaying for your healthcare or you could be required to pay back money when you file your taxes the following year. Let's take care of the top questions . special enrollment rules 1. Do I need to change the income in the Healthplanfinder for the $1200 check? The answer is a resounding no. The $1200 per person ($500 for children) does not count as income and does not need to be reported. 2. I am drawing an extra...

Enrollment Centers working with the Washington Healthplanfinder

Enrollment Centers in Washington State are unique as people are able to get help with out extra charges. We provide Statewide help for the Washington Health Benefits Exchange. Consumers get no cost help in selecting and enrolling in health and dental plans through the Washington Healthplanfinder. There is wi-fi available.  As a bonus, the broker partners may provide additional assistance with additional insurance products such as Medicare, Supplemental and Life Insurance products so ask. At Wenatchee , we upload documents, notarize and do our best to assist our clients in effectively using healthcare. Hands Free Hand Sanatizer Broker Affiliated Enrollment Centers Wenatchee Suzie Health Insurance 1630 N. Wenatchee Avenue, Ste. 18, Wenatchee, WA 98801 1-509-293-9051 Schedule an appointment info@wahbroker.org Bellingham Rice Insurance 1400 Broadway Street, Bellingham, WA 98225 1-360-734-1161 keith@riceinsurance.com Kennewick The Advisor Benefits Group 5...
Hey from Suzie Health Solutions. We have been doing some updates. Have you seen what has been going on at our Website ?  So we started a blog this week. We wanted people to get information in 1/2 hour light chunks. We have two episodes up so far. You can find us on Spotify , Google and Apple so far. You can also find us on PODBEAN .

1095 Forms, Do I need to file my taxes?

Hey, this is the 3rd year that we have been the Full Services Enrollment Center for the Washington Healthplanfinder . We don't charge a bunch of fees and you get access to extra services. Since it is tax season then you should know we help with 1095 Forms! Yes, we will print one out for you at our office if we are connected to your account. Tax season is officially from January 27th to April 15, 2020. If you receive tax credits or Washington Apple Health then you need to file your taxes with the IRS. If it is not filed or filed incorrectly then the Healthcare Authority can revoke the tax credits. Yes, I have heard from more than one person that thought that they were saving money by not filing which created massive problems. The worst problems that I heard was they went the next year without healthcare! If you are a tax professional then let me know and I will add you to this list. A person can be a paid tax return preparer as long as they have an IRS Preparer Tax I...

ACA Sign Up Project

Expect a lot of junk plans from other sources. A couple of years ago, a group of individuals started the ACA Signup Project. I have helped out at Suzie Health Solutions and have been teaching and enrolling people in healthcare since 2013. There was a great concern that the incoming President would slash funds for the outreach and attempt to sabotage the Affordable Care Act which he campaigned against. Yes, he promised to "Repeal Obamacare from Day 1". Well it is still here and we are always looking forward to more friends joining the outreach effort. Here are some tools that will help. We have made huge improvements In Washington State we have made some huge gains and we are working on making more. We are up to one in four people receiving their healthcare from the Washington Healthplanfinder. It is open year round for enrollment of people that are at 138% of poverty or affiliated with a Native American Tribe. Some of the rural counties of Eastern Washington, we ...

Tips for 2020 Open Enrollment Washington State

After six years of helping thousands of people get healthcare, we have seen a few things. I am currently running the full service enrollment center in Wenatchee . It's where we answer questions and enroll people in healthcare at no cost to them. Look if you have an account on the Washington Healthplan Finder then please keep it current. Reading your mail and paying your taxes solves the basic difficulties with the program. Here are the big tips: Put the mobile app on your phone so you can check easily check your account and get messages. The user name and passwords are the same as the desktop version.   Select a no charge broker to get your questions answered. This is maximum service for minim dollars. Some of us throw out tips on facebook and if you don't get help directly, your neighbor does.  Right off the bat if you have Apple Health Dental then use the heck out of it. You get cleanings every year, basic restorative fillings, some root canals and denture...

Travel Medical Insurance

We are exchange happy around here. They give the broadest selection for our clients without having to visit multiple agents/sites. Yes, we work with the Washington Healthplan Finder answering questions, helping people select plans (Just select a broker under Suzie Health Solutions ). We also have a life insurance exchange . We just added Travel Health Insurance . If you are not in our office then read up on the policies before you select them. There are some things to look for when selecting a policy.   Are you going on vacation and doing something adventurous? There is literally a section to read up on for Adventure and Sports Travel insurance. Some policies have exclusions for climbing, jumping, Thai Boxing , diving, etc. Look to make sure that what you are planning to do is not excluded. If you have seen it on a James Bond movie then probably some insurance company has excluded that behavior somewhere. Are you going with a group of 10 or more ?   For lar...