July 29, 2026 • 37 mins
Hosted by Safe Money Advisor Christopher Krolak, Estate Planning Attorney Kevin Clark and Medicare Advisor Jeffrey Kuhn, The Roc Your Life Show guys offer expert insight for your life with an entertaining twist."
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The following is paid programming by the Rock Your Life
Radio Show. The content of this show is that of
the Rock Your Life Radio Show and does not reflect
the views or policies of this station or iHeartMedia.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
News Radio Wham 1180 welcomes you to the Rock Your
Life Show, discussing safe money, estate planning, and Medicare with
an entertaining twist. Now from the News Radio Wham 1180
studios in downtown Rochester, here are your hosts, the Rock
Your Life guys, Christopher Krolak, Kevin Clark, and Jeffrey Kuhn.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Welcome to the very first episode of Rock Your Life Radio,
where your best years aren't behind you, they're just getting started.
I'm Christopher Krolak, Safe Money Advisor and owner of the J.
Christopher Group, and I'm excited to welcome you to a
show dedicated to helping you make informed decisions, avoid costly mistakes,
and take control of what comes next in life. I'm
joined by two outstanding co-hosts and trusted professionals in their fields.
(01:02):
Attorney Kevin Clark of Clark Peshkin brings decades of experience
helping individuals, and families protect what matters most through thoughtful
legal planning and guidance around estate planning and family law matter.
And Jeff Kuhn, owner of The Medicare Shop, is one
of the region's leading Medicare experts, helping people navigate the
often confusing world of health care and retirement benefits with
(01:25):
clarity and confidence. And together, we're here to have real
conversations about topics that impact your family the most, your money,
your health, and your legal protection for both you and
your family. Every week, we're going to cut through the noise.
We're going to break down complex issues into practical terms
and help you understand what you need to know before
(01:46):
small problems become big ones. No confusing jargons, no scare tactics,
and no sales pitches, just straightforward information and honest insight
from professionals who work with these issues every day. We're
also going to bring you conversation with special guests, industry experts,
community leaders, and everyday people with stories and experiences that
can educate, inspire, and occasionally entertain. And speaking of entertainment,
(02:11):
we also have our local country superstar, Claudia Heuser, and
Ryan Hurley joining us in the studio later on to
give us some insight on what's going on in their
lives and perhaps a live performance, so stay tuned for that.
So whether you're planning for retirement, enjoying retirement, caring for
aging parents, or simply looking to make smarter decisions for
your future, Rock Your Life Radio is a place for
(02:34):
practical strategies unbiased guidance, and the confidence to move forward
with purpose. So sit back, relax, and join us as
we help you rock your life. So welcome gentlemen.
Speaker 4 (02:45):
Thanks, Chris. By the way, happy 4th of July. It's
great to be part of the show. Good to have
you here.
Speaker 5 (02:50):
Hey, good morning guys. Great to be here. Happy to
see you. I look forward to all of this.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
So I've been looking forward to this. So let's jump
right in. So I got a big question, you guys.
Are people actually ready to retire?
Speaker 5 (03:01):
I'll say this.
Speaker 6 (03:02):
I see people all the time who think they're ready
to retire. I also see people, a lot of people actually,
who are already retired or in the retirement process. And
the biggest thing that I notice in all the people
that I see is people think that they're more ready
than they actually are. And it's not until something goes
wrong where there's no plan or they have outdated documents
(03:23):
or even worse, nothing in place where they really struggle
to really plan for the fourth quarter of their life.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
So when people come in to see you, Kevin, do
you find that it's in crisis mode sometimes or are
they in the pre-planning mode?
Speaker 6 (03:37):
Well, really, you know, on the estate planning side, they're
coming because they know that, you know, death and taxes
happens to all of us and they need to have
something in place. Or luckily, you know, someone like either
one of your professions have told them they need to
meet with someone like me. So when I see them,
either they've really got a an understanding of what their
(03:58):
plan is, or they don't know anything at all with
respect to retirement. But they're kind of looking at, well,
what is going to happen to all my stuff if
a meteor hit us tomorrow?
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Right.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
And do you think that when people come in, they're
a little overwhelmed with the process? They think that, gosh,
you know, I'm working on a trust. It's got to
be so complicated. I don't even want to begin to
think about it. So do you make that process, how
do you make that process easier for them?
Speaker 6 (04:22):
Well, I think a lot of it has to do
with You know, talking to them, I do workshops where
I meet most of my people first and give them
an hour or so of information. They get to process it,
and then I meet with them. And to your point,
it's interesting. I've had a number of people come in
because I ask them to fill out a simple worksheet.
And in that process, they look at me with kind
of a glare of shock in their eye of, I
(04:44):
didn't know I had all of this, or I didn't
know I didn't.
Speaker 5 (04:47):
Have this much.
Speaker 6 (04:48):
So it really is, you know, to your point, people...
often don't know exactly where they're at with their finances
or with their plans, again, I say, for the fourth
quarter of their life.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
Yeah, so adding that clarity. And Jeff, what do you
see when you see people come in to your office?
What are they thinking about their health care?
Speaker 4 (05:06):
They don't know, Chris. To be honest, I think most
people are just overwhelmed. Medicare is probably the most convoluted
and confusing medical system, I think, probably in the world.
And people ask the question, do I need it? What's
it going to cost me? How much do I need
to budget monthly, annually? I have no idea, especially when planning.
And for people that are turning 65 that are working,
(05:26):
do I take it? Do I have to take it?
And really, I don't understand the terminology. There's a lot
of misleading information out there that really isn't great for
guiding people and making what's in their best interest as
a choice.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Do you find that sometimes that they're shocked at what
it doesn't cover?
Speaker 4 (05:43):
Yeah, I think for a lot of times when I
go over the different coverages with Medicare, they are. I
think people, especially coming off of essential plans under New
York State of Health, are surprised at what things are
going to cost, especially when it comes down to the prescriptions.
And if they're in the wrong plan, this could be devastating.
Speaker 6 (06:00):
You know, I can only speak to that, at least
the understanding or lack of understanding of what Medicare is.
You know, I talk to people a lot about Medicaid
planning with respect to nursing home care. It is interesting
to see how interchangeable the word Medicare and Medicaid is
(06:21):
with people when they come in. They just don't know
the difference or understand where one kicks in and the
other kicks out.
Speaker 4 (06:29):
It's a tough area. They do, Kevin. They get those
two words mixed up all the time. There's a huge
difference between the two of them. They think things that
are covered under Medicaid are covered under Medicare and they
don't qualify. It's really that education that's so important.
Speaker 5 (06:42):
It is.
Speaker 6 (06:42):
And sometimes if I've got a good rapport with them,
they'll talk about, well, I want to do Medicare protection.
Speaker 5 (06:48):
I'm like, Medicaid?
Speaker 2 (06:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
They're like, oh, yeah.
Speaker 5 (06:51):
So it really is deep.
Speaker 4 (06:52):
I think they do that on purpose.
Speaker 5 (06:53):
That's true.
Speaker 4 (06:54):
To confuse everybody. And the less you understand, the less
questions you're going to have.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
So how does not planning properly for Medicare or Medicaid
or having a trust, how can that kind of derail
an entire retirement plan?
Speaker 4 (07:09):
I think, Chris, there's some people that have a certain event,
medically speaking, and they are surprised by what they might
owe if they're in the wrong type of coverage, where
it's covered if it's under Part A versus Part B,
and just the ongoing cost of prescriptions. We've had people
who've got prescriptions that are $ 14, 000 to $ 15, 000 for one month,
and if that prescription is not in formulary and it's
(07:30):
a life-saving prescription, it could devastate somebody financially because they
don't plan for retirement to incorporate the cost of Medicare. Correct.
Speaker 6 (07:38):
And as you go further down their life, as they're
looking at their estate and passing it on to their
loved ones, if one of the spouses or if you're
single and have to go into a nursing home at
over $ 20, 000 a month for nursing home care, your options
are to, if you don't have long-term care insurance, it's
coming out of your pocket or your retirement. And at
(08:02):
$ 20, 000 plus a month, it can really devastate a million-dollar estate.
Speaker 5 (08:07):
That has been saved for retirement.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
And it can happen so fast, you know, any condition, stroke,
heart attack, all of a sudden everything is derailed, you know,
in a moment. So that's something you definitely need to
think about.
Speaker 6 (08:20):
Well, so to go further on that, the Medicaid aspect,
I mentioned either you have long-term care to pay for
nursing home care or maybe VA benefits. Otherwise, you're paying
out of pocket. And just so people out there that
might not know about nursing home care and their interaction
with Medicaid, Once you've exhausted all of those resources or
plans that you have and you're down to basically being
(08:45):
poor with no assets, that's when.
Speaker 5 (08:47):
Medicaid kicks in.
Speaker 6 (08:49):
And Medicaid is the government welfare program to cover nursing
home care once you've exhausted all of your resources. So
that's where we get into planning for that. And there
are ways to save your resources and still qualify for
Medicaid if you or your spouse go.
Speaker 5 (09:05):
Into the nursing home.
Speaker 4 (09:06):
We're just getting started. Thanks, Kevin. When we come back,
we're going to tackle some of the biggest misconceptions about retirement,
health care, and protecting your financial future. Stay with us.
You're listening to Rock Your Life Radio, where your next
chapter starts today. We'll be right back after the news.
We're back on Rock Your Life Radio. I'm attorney Kevin Clark,
(09:27):
alongside Medicare specialist Jeff Kuhn and safe money advisor Christopher Krolak.
We've got a lot more to cover, so let's get
right into it and continue helping you make informed decisions
for a more confident future. Now, Chris, what are the
largest gaps you see in retirement planning?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
You know, Kevin, it's probably not having an automatic income
replacement plan when one spouse passes away or even.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
After a divorce.
Speaker 3 (09:53):
People don't realize how fast that income goes away. Social
security ends when somebody passes away. And now all of
a sudden you find that your income that you were
relying on from two sources or maybe even from a
pension has ended. So you literally got cut in half
that day. And it doesn't take long for those monthly
(10:13):
bills to pop back up. End-of-life care, having to pay
for those things. I know some people that are paying
for a spouse's end-of-life care. Two years later, they're still
getting bills from the hospital. They're getting bills from in-home
health care. And those just don't stop. And you have
to plan that your income, when it was cut in half,
(10:36):
you have to figure that out. And it's probably at
the most difficult time of your life. You have a
spouse that passes away. You're going through all of those emotions.
People are trying to help, give you advice, bringing casseroles over.
When all that ends, But those monthly bills still need
monthly income. And having an automatic income plan is so,
so important so that if one spouse passes away, those
(10:58):
monthly checks, they don't stop. They just keep coming and
coming and coming. So the next topic is when a
spouse becomes disabled and a caretaker needs guidance. That's where
I can kind of see where there's a gap. So
maybe the spouse didn't pass away, but now they took
care of all the financial aspects of the household. And
(11:20):
now they're in the nursing home and they're incapacitated and
they need help with that. So there's a lot of
legal ramifications, which I know you're going to help our
listeners with. And there's also a lot of medical benefits, Jeff,
that I know you're going to be able to help
people with. You've helped some of my clients already and
you've done such an amazing.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
Job at that.
Speaker 3 (11:39):
So let's start with Kevin. What are some of the
legal ramifications when somebody goes into a nursing home and
they're not able to make their own decisions on their
behalf and they're in charge of all the financial aspects
of their lives?
Speaker 5 (11:54):
Oh, that's a great question.
Speaker 6 (11:55):
It's one that we try and educate for people to
plan around. And whether you're married or single, for the
single folks, their kids have to step up and do
exactly what you're saying as well. The most important legal
aspect to what you just described is having a valid
power of attorney, a durable power of attorney where either
(12:18):
the spouse, and there's some areas where the spouse already can,
but just having that document allows the spouse or allows
the kids, if they're the agents, to make those decisions
and to keep things flowing in the family for cash
flow or for taking care of needs that have to,
you know, the lawn still needs to be mowed. Insurance
(12:39):
still needs to be paid for. Who has the authority
to do that? If you don't have a valid power
of attorney, then you are unfortunately going to have to
go to surrogates or I'm sorry, Supreme Court or surrogates
court and get a guardianship proceeding going. You can totally
avoid that with the power of attorney, which gives the
legal authority to do the things you're talking about.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
Now I hear power of attorney and maybe you can
dispel some myths here. I hear power of attorney, people
get really nervous about it. Like, oh, my kid can
take and do whatever he wants. They can sell my home.
They can get rid of everything, and they can put
me in the worst place possible. Is there a myth
behind that, or is that truth?
Speaker 6 (13:16):
I mean, it's one of those things where anything could happen.
So technically, a durable power of attorney, which is what
I advise my clients to get, does give the agent
the authority once the documents are signed. Is there a
fear or could they do all the things you said?
I guess technically they could. But what I counsel people
(13:37):
on is the fact that there are strict laws against
the agents doing that. Again, if my son is my agent,
therefore has the power under the power of attorney and
does everything that you're afraid of, well, he's also a fiduciary.
And as a fiduciary, the laws are very strict in
(13:58):
prohibiting people from doing anything. that of which you're afraid of,
which doesn't make it a myth because technically somebody could.
I could walk into a convenience store, grab a armful
of everything and walk out. Will I be prosecuted?
Speaker 5 (14:11):
Yes. Will I pay for it? Yes. Same thing kind
of goes with that.
Speaker 6 (14:16):
I don't think, at least in the thousands of people
that I talk with every year, it ever really comes
up as a real concern. If it is a real concern,
the simple solution is find somebody better to be your agent.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
Great.
Speaker 3 (14:29):
So, Jeff, On the medical side, when somebody goes into
a nursing home or into the hospital and they have
a Medicare plan or even a group plan of some kind,
how does one person care for the other and make
those kind of decisions?
Speaker 4 (14:47):
I think, Chris, when people go into a nursing home,
I get asked this question all the time, especially dealing
with either assisted living, a nursing home, home health care,
is it even covered? That's where the problems typically start
for people. They think that Medicare covers some of those
things and they don't. Hospitalization is very, very unique because
with Medicare, it could be under Part A, it could
be under Part B. It depends if it's inpatient, if
(15:08):
we're dealing with hospice, outpatient procedures. So the bills can
vary depending on what that is categorized under. So it's
really important to understand what are you looking at and
where is it actually covered.
Speaker 3 (15:21):
So how does one person make a decision for another?
That's incapacitated in those cases, and maybe that's a question
for both of you.
Speaker 4 (15:28):
Probably more for Kevin, I think. You're dealing with health
care proxies and a whole other side of who's got
advanced medical directives and what are their wishes and understanding
of those things, and Kevin's probably the best one to
address that.
Speaker 6 (15:38):
Well, that's exactly right. It's the financial and health care directives,
health care proxy, living will, power of attorney. All of
those documents need to be reviewed, and if you don't
have them, you really need to get them because no
one knows when these events are going to happen.
Speaker 7 (15:53):
Right.
Speaker 3 (15:54):
Those aren't included with a marriage license. Those don't automatically apply.
Speaker 5 (15:58):
They do not.
Speaker 6 (15:59):
And you mentioned myths earlier. The biggest myth about powers
of attorney is that it keeps going.
Speaker 5 (16:08):
It doesn't.
Speaker 6 (16:08):
The power under a power of attorney dies with the principal.
So if I set up a power of attorney with
my son as the agent, I'm the principal. He's the agent.
He has the power to take care of all the
powers myself. Should I be incapacitated? But the moment I die,
he no longer has any power under the power of attorney.
(16:29):
And a lot of people just don't know that. When
I do my workshops, I see faces drop.
Speaker 4 (16:33):
You know, I get calls all the time and I'll
have a spouse, right, that has some event and they're
not able to make medical decisions and they potentially need
to change the plan. And I guess the first question
I ask is, you know, or they've called an insurance
company and they ask, do you have permission? They need
permission from the person or do you have power of attorney?
You know, 90% of the time, guess what the answer is? No,
(16:54):
they really legally can't do anything to change it.
Speaker 6 (16:56):
And I'll throw in one more aspect. It's not just
the power of attorney, but it's the durable power of
attorney with gifting rights. Gifting rights are important because should
you become incapacitated and be in the nursing home, I
mentioned earlier, we can protect assets before you make that
Medicaid application, but only if the power of attorney also
(17:19):
gives the agent the right to gift your assets to.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
Something like a trust. Kevin, you brought up something that
triggered a conversation I had. I had a phone call.
Somebody came in my office with Medicare and a bill,
and I took a look at it and found out
that actually Medicaid was coming back on the estate of
the mother where they had paid, and they thought that
they owed 20-some thousand dollars. How does that happen?
Speaker 5 (17:43):
Was it involved with the sale of a house?
Speaker 4 (17:45):
Sale of a house.
Speaker 5 (17:46):
Okay.
Speaker 6 (17:47):
So a lot of people are afraid Medicaid's going to
take everything. And that's a whole different conversation. The one
thing that you need to know that Medicaid can do
is they've got a great big claw called the Medicaid Clawback.
And they won't kick people out of their homes. But
what they will do with respect to the house is
they'll put a lien on it. And when the house
(18:09):
gets sold or transferred through a sale eventually, they will
come and send a bill for every dollar that they
spent on the person that.
Speaker 5 (18:20):
Went into the nursing home.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
That's exactly what happens.
Speaker 5 (18:22):
It's the Medicaid lien. And there are ways to avoid that.
Speaker 8 (18:25):
Well, this is Claudia Hoyser chiming in. And it's been
so fun to sit here. I mean, how important are
these conversations? I feel like Ryan and I are getting
some premarital counseling about our future. And I'm just really
excited that people are getting a chance to hear this information.
And I'm glad to be here while I'm sitting here.
waiting to play some music for you in a bit.
(18:47):
So you are listening to Rock Your Life Radio, and
we'll be right back.
Speaker 4 (18:51):
Welcome back to Rock Your Life Radio. Before the news,
we talked about some of the biggest retirement pitfalls people face.
We're going to focus now on some solutions and just
share a few practical tips and help you avoid costly
mistakes and really build a more confident retirement.
Speaker 3 (19:06):
You know, Kevin, we covered some concerning topics. My head's
swimming kind of right now, actually. When you first meet
with someone, it's probably a little overwhelming for them. How
do you make this process less intimidating?
Speaker 6 (19:20):
That's a great question and probably one of the most
important things that I feel is part of my job.
And the biggest thing that I do to make them
feel a little less overwhelmed is help them change a
perspective of how they look at it. You know, I've
heard Bob Lonsberry talk about, you know, thinking about this
(19:40):
is the fourth quarter of your life. I mentioned that earlier,
and that really sticks with me. You prepare for the
first three quarters of your life, graduating school, getting married,
buying a house, starting a retirement plan, all of that,
but then you get to the.
Speaker 5 (19:53):
Fourth quarter, and it's a little overwhelming. I mean, you've
worked hard.
Speaker 6 (19:56):
Now how do you protect it? And the biggest thing
that I can say to people is think of a
different perspective. When you come in for estate planning, we're
not necessarily talking about your death. We're talking about what's
the plan for the people that you love when the
inevitable is going to happen to you. And let's get
off the fear of the death. And, you know, I've
(20:16):
had clients in the signings of their trusts and estate
documents look at each other and say, you know, what
we're doing right now is we're talking and making this, we're.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
Going to be dead.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
And that really strikes me because it's such a big
word and it's a powerful word. But at the same time,
you know, if we don't do financial planning in our
30s and 40s, we're going to be broke, right? So
the fourth quarter of your life is about what do
we do? And I ask the biggest question of every
single person that I meet with. How important is it
to you that when you're gone, the people you love,
(20:50):
your spouse, your kids, your cousins, your friends, how important
for whoever has to pick up after you is it
that they can do it easily, efficiently, and low cost?
Speaker 5 (21:03):
Low cost to.
Speaker 6 (21:03):
Them in time, money, and spirit. Because as we mentioned earlier,
There's a lot going on when we lose a family member,
the grieving period, all the things that go along with
stopping things and starting things, Social Security ends, those kind
of things. But we really want to make it a
good plan. And the people that make good plans, their
(21:25):
kids or their spouse or their kids are so excited.
of how easy it can be to take care of
these very difficult and overwhelming things that.
Speaker 5 (21:33):
We're talking about.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
You know, one thing I give my clients is a book.
It's called What Matters Most. And in that book is
all of the instructions. Where is that trust document? Where
do the pets go? Who do I call? What are
the addresses to my brothers and sisters that live in
California and Florida and Tennessee? All of those things are
(21:54):
in a nice, neat little book. You know, you can
buy them on Amazon for 10 bucks. And, boy, it
brings to thought all of the things that you have
to do and kind of prepare for. And I guess
it's just that peace of mind that you really need
at the end. And part of that is making sure
that these documents are all tight, ready. And you can
update these documents, too, as time goes on. Once it's done,
(22:17):
it's done forever, right?
Speaker 5 (22:18):
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Speaker 6 (22:21):
Almost all the documents that we've talked about can be changed,
and I encourage people to look at their plan at
least once a year. Not that you have to go
spend money on somebody to go over it with you.
If a plan is set up right, you should have
the instructions, the education, to look at what you have
and just run down the list and make sure that
the plan that you've made is relevant for the people
(22:41):
in your life at that time.
Speaker 5 (22:42):
And that should be done yearly.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
Yeah, a lot of those changes. We have kids. Sometimes
kids get divorced. And now all of a sudden they
were named in the trust prior and how that all
pans out after divorce has got to be a big
topic for some people.
Speaker 6 (22:57):
It absolutely is. I mean, you get into that area.
I mean, people need to understand if you're divorced, if
you read your divorce documents, all the estate planning that
you did with your spouse is legally terminated in a
correctly drafted divorce decree and separation agreement. So we encourage people,
(23:18):
right after a divorce, you want to update those documents
and understand what's going to happen. Even if you're going
through a divorce or your kids are going through a divorce,
back to the power of attorney. You want to make
sure that you've changed that as you're going through the
divorce because if something happens to you, and I'm not
saying this has happened more than one time, divorces can
take a while. And you might be traveling with new
(23:40):
friends or a new friend and have a medical issue
and you know, with respect to your medical directives, who
you have listed on your documents is who's going to
get notified. And you may not necessarily want the spouse
that you're going through a divorce with to be that person.
So Jeff, this brings up a question that I have.
We were talking earlier about the difference between Medicare and Medicaid.
(24:02):
I mean, in my practice, I'll be honest with you,
I don't really cover anything of Medicare except for fixing
the confusion.
Speaker 5 (24:10):
Of what Medicare and Medicaid are.
Speaker 6 (24:13):
Take me through your process with respect to Medicare and
what someone new to Medicare or even current enrollees might
experience when they visit the Medicare shop.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
Yeah, sure, Kevin. Usually the phone call starts with, I
need help. It's a system that nobody understands it. And
I usually tell everybody, don't worry. We're going to schedule
an hour and you're going to walk out of here
feeling this huge burden lifted off of you and really
understanding what it is. And I send a worksheet ahead
of time. I want to know who their trusted medical
(24:43):
professionals are, their frequency of visits. I want to know
their prescriptions and details. So before somebody even walks in,
I know the tiers. I have an idea of what
it's going to cost them for everything. So the first
15 minutes I sit down with somebody who's really explaining
the terminology, understanding what Medicare covers, what you're required to get,
the differences with Advantage, Supplemental, Part Ds. And there's some
(25:03):
unique things we can really do here in New York
you can't do in a lot of other states. And
I'm licensed in a lot of different places. So the
first 15 minutes is understanding it. And once you've got it,
then you can say, okay, it fits in with my situation.
And we start defining what are the best options with
their individual situation. So we'll start looking at what are
the plans that work best. Also, do you need to
(25:26):
be on Medicare, right? So we answer all those questions
within an hour. And there's no cost for this.
Speaker 6 (25:31):
So just an off-the-wall analogy, it sounds like if Medicare
were Disneyland... somebody coming to Disneyland for the first time
doesn't know where to go or what they want to do.
They see a big Ferris wheel and roller coasters, but
they don't know anything about the inside.
Speaker 5 (25:49):
They need a map. And it sounds like when people.
Speaker 6 (25:52):
Come and want to learn about Medicare, they're coming to
this Medicare Disneyland and have no idea.
Speaker 5 (25:58):
And you would kind of guide them through the park?
Speaker 4 (26:00):
Correct, correct. Because everybody's got parks out there and they
want you to come to their park, but they're not
giving you objective advice. What's the right ride to get on?
Speaker 5 (26:07):
Love that, love that.
Speaker 6 (26:08):
I know that's a huge thing for for our listeners
out there. It can't be understated how important to know
the difference of Medicare and Medicaid and some of the
interesting places where they overlap.
Speaker 4 (26:23):
That's true.
Speaker 3 (26:25):
When I talk to people that are on Medicare, a
lot of them will just pick the cheapest plan.
Speaker 4 (26:28):
I don't want to pay for anything.
Speaker 1 (26:31):
This is it.
Speaker 3 (26:32):
What are the biggest pitfalls of doing something like that
as opposed to spending a little bit of money for
a larger benefit down the road.
Speaker 4 (26:40):
And it doesn't always make sense to pay a larger
benefit because some of those have some underlying surprises in there.
We're going to pay 20% co-insurance for outpatient surgery or
observation stays. So it's really, we vet out all the
plans every year. We get all the carrier's information. And
before October 1st rolls around, we've already vetted everything out.
What are the good carriers? What are the good plans?
We're the ones that have things that you're going to
(27:00):
get hit with a big financial surprise. And it's working
with our clients all year that we understand what to
look out for.
Speaker 6 (27:08):
So for the most basic person out there like me,
how old will I need to be when.
Speaker 5 (27:13):
I start thinking about Medicare?
Speaker 4 (27:14):
Well, there's two ways to get on it. Unfortunately, after
you've been on Social Security Disability for two years, you qualify.
We're 65.
Speaker 3 (27:22):
Thanks, Jeff and Kevin. So stay with us because coming
up next on Rock Your Life Radio, we'll welcome a
very special guest, local country music star Claudia Heuser. and
Ryan Hurley. Claudia will share what's happening in her life
and career, what she's working on now, and some exciting
things on the horizon. Plus, she'll be treating you to
(27:43):
a live performance you won't want to miss.
Speaker 4 (27:46):
That's coming up.
Speaker 3 (27:47):
Next right here on Rock Your Life Radio.
Speaker 6 (27:50):
Welcome back to Rock Your Life Radio. One of the
things we love to do on this show is highlight
talented people from our community who are making an impact
and pursuing their passions. Today we're excited to welcome local
country music artist Claudia Heuser.
Speaker 5 (28:03):
Claudia has built a.
Speaker 6 (28:04):
Loyal following with her powerful vocals, engaging performances, and authentic storytelling.
She's been making waves on the country music scene, performing
throughout the region and connecting with audiences wherever she goes.
Today we'll talk with Claudia about her journey, what's happening
in her life and career, and what exciting projects she
has coming up. And if that wasn't enough, she'll also
(28:26):
be sharing a special live performance with us Claudia, welcome
to Rock Your Life Radio. We're so glad to have
you with us today.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Well, hello.
Speaker 8 (28:34):
Thank you so much. Happy 4th.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
Happy 4th of July.
Speaker 8 (28:37):
Great to be here.
Speaker 5 (28:39):
The big 250.
Speaker 4 (28:40):
Yes, it is.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
So, Claudia, give us an update. What's going on in
your life? What are you and Ryan up to?
Speaker 8 (28:46):
Oh, my goodness. A little bit of absolutely everything. You know,
we're playing shows left and right. Any finger lick you
can think of, I'm on it. I think people are
starting to accidentally run into me. They used to plan
to come to the show. Now they just head out
of their house and they end up seeing me somewhere
on a stage. And it's just been an amazing summer
(29:06):
so far. But we've got new music out. So we're
out promoting that right now at our shows. And trying
to get to as many new spots as we can
for new audiences.
Speaker 4 (29:15):
What new music?
Speaker 8 (29:16):
New music. We have a new song called Big Sky.
And this is a song that is so special to us.
Ryan and I wrote this one together. And for those
of you listening that don't know, Ryan is my co-collaborator
and fiance, which now I'm excited to be able to say.
Speaker 4 (29:32):
Congratulations.
Speaker 3 (29:33):
Thank you.
Speaker 5 (29:34):
Congratulations.
Speaker 8 (29:35):
Yeah. So we wrote this song. We were engaged last June.
in Big Sky, Montana, and it's just become a place
that we love so much. Any excuse we can make
to plan a concert out there or just get out
there for a little trip or some skiing, we try
to get there as much as we can. And so
we got engaged in June and we went back in
(29:56):
January and we thought, how cool would it be if
we could write a song about this place in this place?
And we did just that. We started it there and
we had pretty much the chorus down. We knew kind
of the vibe of it, but not all the words.
And then a few weeks later, once we had it
back to New York, we We patched it all together
(30:18):
and got in the studio, recorded it up, and I'm
just so excited to have this one in the world now.
Speaker 3 (30:23):
So where do you guys do these recordings?
Speaker 8 (30:25):
It's been a little bit of a mix. I grew up,
I learned everything I know at GFI Studios right in Webster, Ontario.
And we did my whole first album there. And it
was just incredible to sit side by side and learn
with the producer and the owner there everything I possibly
(30:46):
could about making music. And then I took what I
knew down to Nashville and I worked with a great
friend of mine. Her name's Zarnie. And we put together
a very stripped down album. acoustic-y style, very atmospheric, spacey,
dreamy EP. Actually, it's a full record, I should say.
(31:07):
It's a full record. It's seven songs. It started as
an EP, and that was called Before the Dawn. So
that was done down in Nashville. We released that in January.
And then this new batch of songs that we're just
slowly starting to release now, we did at a brand
new studio called Port Gibson Recording, and that's out in Macedon? Palmyra? Palmyra.
(31:29):
And it's a friend of mine that I used to
work with at GFI Studios, another artist who has a
studio now. And we got to team up for this one.
So it's been really fun just feeling it out. As
my music changes, so has the studio's.
Speaker 4 (31:44):
How many songs have you actually written? I heard the number.
I couldn't believe it.
Speaker 8 (31:48):
Oh, my goodness. I think my bio a couple of
years ago said over 200. So now we have to
be it. 350 at least. It's been, songwriting is just
such an outlet for me. And sometimes those songs never
even get finished. It's just, it's some idea that I
get to put down in my phone or my voice
memos and hope to come back to someday to finish
(32:10):
up and I love writing.
Speaker 4 (32:12):
I think it was last weekend you were playing over
in Pittsburgh, and we had a chance to chat between
your sets, and you were mentioning some of the other
things that you were doing, which one of them I
was particularly interested in because I kind of make bourbon
as a hobby.
Speaker 1 (32:22):
Yes.
Speaker 4 (32:23):
And you said you had your own whiskey line or something.
Can you tell me about that?
Speaker 8 (32:26):
Sure do. I love it. Whenever I go in for radio,
we always end up– I go in for music, and
we end up talking about whiskey. So this is something
that came about. It was very fan-driven.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
Yes.
Speaker 8 (32:38):
I'm a huge coffee lover, crazy coffee snob. My grandma
used to sneak it in my sippy cup, and I
think she started my addiction very young.
Speaker 4 (32:47):
That's when the addiction started, yeah.
Speaker 8 (32:48):
It was mostly milk. I'll give her that. Grandma wasn't
trying to rev me up. So I just have become
a huge coffee person and never do anything without it.
And I started making these videos during COVID where every week,
every Monday, I went live and would sing a classic
(33:08):
country song and put my little spin on it. And
in all those videos, we hid a little coffee pot
in the background. And people started picking up on it.
Speaker 4 (33:17):
Those are the Easter eggs, right?
Speaker 8 (33:18):
Those are the Easter eggs. And I'm not even going
to lie. It totally wasn't fully my idea in the
first place to be an Easter egg. It was just
a decoration. I loved it. Let's put the coffee pot in.
And people were like, wait, where's the coffee pot? I
don't see it. So I'm like, oh, I better put
that thing back in there. So we started incorporating it
in all the videos and just showing it for a
(33:39):
quick second. People would tune in, let me know when
they saw the coffee pot. Long story short, I was
playing a show at a bar in Irondequoit and the
owner of the bar came up to me and said,
what's the deal with the coffee? And I told him,
I don't do anything without it. And we got to
come up with our very own coffee blend because he
had been in the coffee business his whole life. And
(34:00):
we thought it'd be a merch table piece. We'd sell
a hundred bags at the merch table. And now three
years later, we have an entire line of whole bean,
Jamaican me country flavor, ground, and a whiskey distillery reached
out about turning it into a coffee whiskey. So now
we have drunken bean, on the shelves in all the
(34:22):
local liquor stores and in four states.
Speaker 4 (34:25):
That's amazing. So the whiskey company found it from the coffee.
Speaker 3 (34:28):
Claudia, real quick, how do people find your songs?
Speaker 8 (34:32):
My music can be found all over Spotify, Apple Music.
It's also on YouTube. But I really point people in
the direction of Spotify. I hope they add me to
their playlist.
Speaker 3 (34:41):
All right, just type your name in and there you are.
Speaker 8 (34:43):
Claudia Heuser.
Speaker 4 (34:44):
Fantastic.
Speaker 3 (34:45):
Claudia, thank you so much for joining us today.
Speaker 8 (34:48):
Thank you so much for having us on. This has
been a blast.
Speaker 4 (34:51):
You know, that's all the time we have for today, unfortunately, Claudia.
We'd like to thank our special guest, Claudia Hozier, for
joining us and sharing your story, your music, and your talent.
Speaker 8 (35:00):
Thank you.
Speaker 4 (35:01):
Before we go, you're going to help us celebrate, and
you're going to perform your rendition of America the Beautiful.
Speaker 8 (35:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (35:08):
Great. We can't wait to hear it.
Speaker 8 (35:10):
First time, I think, since first grade at Jefferson Avenue
Elementary School I've sang this one. So let's see how
it goes.
Speaker 1 (35:16):
Ready?
Speaker 9 (35:25):
Oh, beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain,
for purple mountains' majesties above the fruited plains.
Speaker 7 (35:50):
America America, God shed His grace on thee And crowned
thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea guitar
(36:15):
solo America, America God shed his grace on thee And
(36:51):
crowned thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea
From sea to shining sea Unbelievable.
Speaker 5 (37:16):
Thank you so much. Truly amazing.
Speaker 4 (37:19):
Well, on behalf of Attorney Kevin Clark, Chris, and myself,
Jeff Kuhn, I'd like to thank you for spending part
of this Fourth of July with us as we celebrate
our nation's 250th anniversary. It's a great reminder to appreciate
our freedom, our communities, and the opportunities that we have
to plan for a stronger future. Be sure to join
us again next week for more practical advice, great guests,
(37:43):
and real conversation designed to help you rock your life.
Until then, have a safe and happy 4th of July.
And remember, your best years aren't behind you. They're just
getting started.
The following is paid programming by the Rock Your Life
Radio Show. The content of this show is that of
the Rock Your Life Radio Show and does not reflect
the views or policies of this station or iHeartMedia.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
News Radio Wham 1180 welcomes you to the Rock Your
Life Show, discussing safe money, estate planning, and Medicare with
an entertaining twist. Now from the News Radio Wham 1180
studios in downtown Rochester, here are your hosts, the Rock
Your Life guys, Christopher Krolak, Kevin Clark, and Jeffrey Kuhn.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Welcome to the very first episode of Rock Your Life Radio,
where your best years aren't behind you, they're just getting started.
I'm Christopher Krolak, Safe Money Advisor and owner of the J.
Christopher Group, and I'm excited to welcome you to a
show dedicated to helping you make informed decisions, avoid costly mistakes,
and take control of what comes next in life. I'm
joined by two outstanding co-hosts and trusted professionals in their fields.
(01:02):
Attorney Kevin Clark of Clark Peshkin brings decades of experience
helping individuals, and families protect what matters most through thoughtful
legal planning and guidance around estate planning and family law matter.
And Jeff Kuhn, owner of The Medicare Shop, is one
of the region's leading Medicare experts, helping people navigate the
often confusing world of health care and retirement benefits with
(01:25):
clarity and confidence. And together, we're here to have real
conversations about topics that impact your family the most, your money,
your health, and your legal protection for both you and
your family. Every week, we're going to cut through the noise.
We're going to break down complex issues into practical terms
and help you understand what you need to know before
(01:46):
small problems become big ones. No confusing jargons, no scare tactics,
and no sales pitches, just straightforward information and honest insight
from professionals who work with these issues every day. We're
also going to bring you conversation with special guests, industry experts,
community leaders, and everyday people with stories and experiences that
can educate, inspire, and occasionally entertain. And speaking of entertainment,
(02:11):
we also have our local country superstar, Claudia Heuser, and
Ryan Hurley joining us in the studio later on to
give us some insight on what's going on in their
lives and perhaps a live performance, so stay tuned for that.
So whether you're planning for retirement, enjoying retirement, caring for
aging parents, or simply looking to make smarter decisions for
your future, Rock Your Life Radio is a place for
(02:34):
practical strategies unbiased guidance, and the confidence to move forward
with purpose. So sit back, relax, and join us as
we help you rock your life. So welcome gentlemen.
Speaker 4 (02:45):
Thanks, Chris. By the way, happy 4th of July. It's
great to be part of the show. Good to have
you here.
Speaker 5 (02:50):
Hey, good morning guys. Great to be here. Happy to
see you. I look forward to all of this.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
So I've been looking forward to this. So let's jump
right in. So I got a big question, you guys.
Are people actually ready to retire?
Speaker 5 (03:01):
I'll say this.
Speaker 6 (03:02):
I see people all the time who think they're ready
to retire. I also see people, a lot of people actually,
who are already retired or in the retirement process. And
the biggest thing that I notice in all the people
that I see is people think that they're more ready
than they actually are. And it's not until something goes
wrong where there's no plan or they have outdated documents
(03:23):
or even worse, nothing in place where they really struggle
to really plan for the fourth quarter of their life.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
So when people come in to see you, Kevin, do
you find that it's in crisis mode sometimes or are
they in the pre-planning mode?
Speaker 6 (03:37):
Well, really, you know, on the estate planning side, they're
coming because they know that, you know, death and taxes
happens to all of us and they need to have
something in place. Or luckily, you know, someone like either
one of your professions have told them they need to
meet with someone like me. So when I see them,
either they've really got a an understanding of what their
(03:58):
plan is, or they don't know anything at all with
respect to retirement. But they're kind of looking at, well,
what is going to happen to all my stuff if
a meteor hit us tomorrow?
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Right.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
And do you think that when people come in, they're
a little overwhelmed with the process? They think that, gosh,
you know, I'm working on a trust. It's got to
be so complicated. I don't even want to begin to
think about it. So do you make that process, how
do you make that process easier for them?
Speaker 6 (04:22):
Well, I think a lot of it has to do
with You know, talking to them, I do workshops where
I meet most of my people first and give them
an hour or so of information. They get to process it,
and then I meet with them. And to your point,
it's interesting. I've had a number of people come in
because I ask them to fill out a simple worksheet.
And in that process, they look at me with kind
of a glare of shock in their eye of, I
(04:44):
didn't know I had all of this, or I didn't
know I didn't.
Speaker 5 (04:47):
Have this much.
Speaker 6 (04:48):
So it really is, you know, to your point, people...
often don't know exactly where they're at with their finances
or with their plans, again, I say, for the fourth
quarter of their life.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
Yeah, so adding that clarity. And Jeff, what do you
see when you see people come in to your office?
What are they thinking about their health care?
Speaker 4 (05:06):
They don't know, Chris. To be honest, I think most
people are just overwhelmed. Medicare is probably the most convoluted
and confusing medical system, I think, probably in the world.
And people ask the question, do I need it? What's
it going to cost me? How much do I need
to budget monthly, annually? I have no idea, especially when planning.
And for people that are turning 65 that are working,
(05:26):
do I take it? Do I have to take it?
And really, I don't understand the terminology. There's a lot
of misleading information out there that really isn't great for
guiding people and making what's in their best interest as
a choice.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Do you find that sometimes that they're shocked at what
it doesn't cover?
Speaker 4 (05:43):
Yeah, I think for a lot of times when I
go over the different coverages with Medicare, they are. I
think people, especially coming off of essential plans under New
York State of Health, are surprised at what things are
going to cost, especially when it comes down to the prescriptions.
And if they're in the wrong plan, this could be devastating.
Speaker 6 (06:00):
You know, I can only speak to that, at least
the understanding or lack of understanding of what Medicare is.
You know, I talk to people a lot about Medicaid
planning with respect to nursing home care. It is interesting
to see how interchangeable the word Medicare and Medicaid is
(06:21):
with people when they come in. They just don't know
the difference or understand where one kicks in and the
other kicks out.
Speaker 4 (06:29):
It's a tough area. They do, Kevin. They get those
two words mixed up all the time. There's a huge
difference between the two of them. They think things that
are covered under Medicaid are covered under Medicare and they
don't qualify. It's really that education that's so important.
Speaker 5 (06:42):
It is.
Speaker 6 (06:42):
And sometimes if I've got a good rapport with them,
they'll talk about, well, I want to do Medicare protection.
Speaker 5 (06:48):
I'm like, Medicaid?
Speaker 2 (06:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
They're like, oh, yeah.
Speaker 5 (06:51):
So it really is deep.
Speaker 4 (06:52):
I think they do that on purpose.
Speaker 5 (06:53):
That's true.
Speaker 4 (06:54):
To confuse everybody. And the less you understand, the less
questions you're going to have.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
So how does not planning properly for Medicare or Medicaid
or having a trust, how can that kind of derail
an entire retirement plan?
Speaker 4 (07:09):
I think, Chris, there's some people that have a certain event,
medically speaking, and they are surprised by what they might
owe if they're in the wrong type of coverage, where
it's covered if it's under Part A versus Part B,
and just the ongoing cost of prescriptions. We've had people
who've got prescriptions that are $ 14, 000 to $ 15, 000 for one month,
and if that prescription is not in formulary and it's
(07:30):
a life-saving prescription, it could devastate somebody financially because they
don't plan for retirement to incorporate the cost of Medicare. Correct.
Speaker 6 (07:38):
And as you go further down their life, as they're
looking at their estate and passing it on to their
loved ones, if one of the spouses or if you're
single and have to go into a nursing home at
over $ 20, 000 a month for nursing home care, your options
are to, if you don't have long-term care insurance, it's
coming out of your pocket or your retirement. And at
(08:02):
$ 20, 000 plus a month, it can really devastate a million-dollar estate.
Speaker 5 (08:07):
That has been saved for retirement.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
And it can happen so fast, you know, any condition, stroke,
heart attack, all of a sudden everything is derailed, you know,
in a moment. So that's something you definitely need to
think about.
Speaker 6 (08:20):
Well, so to go further on that, the Medicaid aspect,
I mentioned either you have long-term care to pay for
nursing home care or maybe VA benefits. Otherwise, you're paying
out of pocket. And just so people out there that
might not know about nursing home care and their interaction
with Medicaid, Once you've exhausted all of those resources or
plans that you have and you're down to basically being
(08:45):
poor with no assets, that's when.
Speaker 5 (08:47):
Medicaid kicks in.
Speaker 6 (08:49):
And Medicaid is the government welfare program to cover nursing
home care once you've exhausted all of your resources. So
that's where we get into planning for that. And there
are ways to save your resources and still qualify for
Medicaid if you or your spouse go.
Speaker 5 (09:05):
Into the nursing home.
Speaker 4 (09:06):
We're just getting started. Thanks, Kevin. When we come back,
we're going to tackle some of the biggest misconceptions about retirement,
health care, and protecting your financial future. Stay with us.
You're listening to Rock Your Life Radio, where your next
chapter starts today. We'll be right back after the news.
We're back on Rock Your Life Radio. I'm attorney Kevin Clark,
(09:27):
alongside Medicare specialist Jeff Kuhn and safe money advisor Christopher Krolak.
We've got a lot more to cover, so let's get
right into it and continue helping you make informed decisions
for a more confident future. Now, Chris, what are the
largest gaps you see in retirement planning?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
You know, Kevin, it's probably not having an automatic income
replacement plan when one spouse passes away or even.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
After a divorce.
Speaker 3 (09:53):
People don't realize how fast that income goes away. Social
security ends when somebody passes away. And now all of
a sudden you find that your income that you were
relying on from two sources or maybe even from a
pension has ended. So you literally got cut in half
that day. And it doesn't take long for those monthly
(10:13):
bills to pop back up. End-of-life care, having to pay
for those things. I know some people that are paying
for a spouse's end-of-life care. Two years later, they're still
getting bills from the hospital. They're getting bills from in-home
health care. And those just don't stop. And you have
to plan that your income, when it was cut in half,
(10:36):
you have to figure that out. And it's probably at
the most difficult time of your life. You have a
spouse that passes away. You're going through all of those emotions.
People are trying to help, give you advice, bringing casseroles over.
When all that ends, But those monthly bills still need
monthly income. And having an automatic income plan is so,
so important so that if one spouse passes away, those
(10:58):
monthly checks, they don't stop. They just keep coming and
coming and coming. So the next topic is when a
spouse becomes disabled and a caretaker needs guidance. That's where
I can kind of see where there's a gap. So
maybe the spouse didn't pass away, but now they took
care of all the financial aspects of the household. And
(11:20):
now they're in the nursing home and they're incapacitated and
they need help with that. So there's a lot of
legal ramifications, which I know you're going to help our
listeners with. And there's also a lot of medical benefits, Jeff,
that I know you're going to be able to help
people with. You've helped some of my clients already and
you've done such an amazing.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
Job at that.
Speaker 3 (11:39):
So let's start with Kevin. What are some of the
legal ramifications when somebody goes into a nursing home and
they're not able to make their own decisions on their
behalf and they're in charge of all the financial aspects
of their lives?
Speaker 5 (11:54):
Oh, that's a great question.
Speaker 6 (11:55):
It's one that we try and educate for people to
plan around. And whether you're married or single, for the
single folks, their kids have to step up and do
exactly what you're saying as well. The most important legal
aspect to what you just described is having a valid
power of attorney, a durable power of attorney where either
(12:18):
the spouse, and there's some areas where the spouse already can,
but just having that document allows the spouse or allows
the kids, if they're the agents, to make those decisions
and to keep things flowing in the family for cash
flow or for taking care of needs that have to,
you know, the lawn still needs to be mowed. Insurance
(12:39):
still needs to be paid for. Who has the authority
to do that? If you don't have a valid power
of attorney, then you are unfortunately going to have to
go to surrogates or I'm sorry, Supreme Court or surrogates
court and get a guardianship proceeding going. You can totally
avoid that with the power of attorney, which gives the
legal authority to do the things you're talking about.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
Now I hear power of attorney and maybe you can
dispel some myths here. I hear power of attorney, people
get really nervous about it. Like, oh, my kid can
take and do whatever he wants. They can sell my home.
They can get rid of everything, and they can put
me in the worst place possible. Is there a myth
behind that, or is that truth?
Speaker 6 (13:16):
I mean, it's one of those things where anything could happen.
So technically, a durable power of attorney, which is what
I advise my clients to get, does give the agent
the authority once the documents are signed. Is there a
fear or could they do all the things you said?
I guess technically they could. But what I counsel people
(13:37):
on is the fact that there are strict laws against
the agents doing that. Again, if my son is my agent,
therefore has the power under the power of attorney and
does everything that you're afraid of, well, he's also a fiduciary.
And as a fiduciary, the laws are very strict in
(13:58):
prohibiting people from doing anything. that of which you're afraid of,
which doesn't make it a myth because technically somebody could.
I could walk into a convenience store, grab a armful
of everything and walk out. Will I be prosecuted?
Speaker 5 (14:11):
Yes. Will I pay for it? Yes. Same thing kind
of goes with that.
Speaker 6 (14:16):
I don't think, at least in the thousands of people
that I talk with every year, it ever really comes
up as a real concern. If it is a real concern,
the simple solution is find somebody better to be your agent.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
Great.
Speaker 3 (14:29):
So, Jeff, On the medical side, when somebody goes into
a nursing home or into the hospital and they have
a Medicare plan or even a group plan of some kind,
how does one person care for the other and make
those kind of decisions?
Speaker 4 (14:47):
I think, Chris, when people go into a nursing home,
I get asked this question all the time, especially dealing
with either assisted living, a nursing home, home health care,
is it even covered? That's where the problems typically start
for people. They think that Medicare covers some of those
things and they don't. Hospitalization is very, very unique because
with Medicare, it could be under Part A, it could
be under Part B. It depends if it's inpatient, if
(15:08):
we're dealing with hospice, outpatient procedures. So the bills can
vary depending on what that is categorized under. So it's
really important to understand what are you looking at and
where is it actually covered.
Speaker 3 (15:21):
So how does one person make a decision for another?
That's incapacitated in those cases, and maybe that's a question
for both of you.
Speaker 4 (15:28):
Probably more for Kevin, I think. You're dealing with health
care proxies and a whole other side of who's got
advanced medical directives and what are their wishes and understanding
of those things, and Kevin's probably the best one to
address that.
Speaker 6 (15:38):
Well, that's exactly right. It's the financial and health care directives,
health care proxy, living will, power of attorney. All of
those documents need to be reviewed, and if you don't
have them, you really need to get them because no
one knows when these events are going to happen.
Speaker 7 (15:53):
Right.
Speaker 3 (15:54):
Those aren't included with a marriage license. Those don't automatically apply.
Speaker 5 (15:58):
They do not.
Speaker 6 (15:59):
And you mentioned myths earlier. The biggest myth about powers
of attorney is that it keeps going.
Speaker 5 (16:08):
It doesn't.
Speaker 6 (16:08):
The power under a power of attorney dies with the principal.
So if I set up a power of attorney with
my son as the agent, I'm the principal. He's the agent.
He has the power to take care of all the
powers myself. Should I be incapacitated? But the moment I die,
he no longer has any power under the power of attorney.
(16:29):
And a lot of people just don't know that. When
I do my workshops, I see faces drop.
Speaker 4 (16:33):
You know, I get calls all the time and I'll
have a spouse, right, that has some event and they're
not able to make medical decisions and they potentially need
to change the plan. And I guess the first question
I ask is, you know, or they've called an insurance
company and they ask, do you have permission? They need
permission from the person or do you have power of attorney?
You know, 90% of the time, guess what the answer is? No,
(16:54):
they really legally can't do anything to change it.
Speaker 6 (16:56):
And I'll throw in one more aspect. It's not just
the power of attorney, but it's the durable power of
attorney with gifting rights. Gifting rights are important because should
you become incapacitated and be in the nursing home, I
mentioned earlier, we can protect assets before you make that
Medicaid application, but only if the power of attorney also
(17:19):
gives the agent the right to gift your assets to.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
Something like a trust. Kevin, you brought up something that
triggered a conversation I had. I had a phone call.
Somebody came in my office with Medicare and a bill,
and I took a look at it and found out
that actually Medicaid was coming back on the estate of
the mother where they had paid, and they thought that
they owed 20-some thousand dollars. How does that happen?
Speaker 5 (17:43):
Was it involved with the sale of a house?
Speaker 4 (17:45):
Sale of a house.
Speaker 5 (17:46):
Okay.
Speaker 6 (17:47):
So a lot of people are afraid Medicaid's going to
take everything. And that's a whole different conversation. The one
thing that you need to know that Medicaid can do
is they've got a great big claw called the Medicaid Clawback.
And they won't kick people out of their homes. But
what they will do with respect to the house is
they'll put a lien on it. And when the house
(18:09):
gets sold or transferred through a sale eventually, they will
come and send a bill for every dollar that they
spent on the person that.
Speaker 5 (18:20):
Went into the nursing home.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
That's exactly what happens.
Speaker 5 (18:22):
It's the Medicaid lien. And there are ways to avoid that.
Speaker 8 (18:25):
Well, this is Claudia Hoyser chiming in. And it's been
so fun to sit here. I mean, how important are
these conversations? I feel like Ryan and I are getting
some premarital counseling about our future. And I'm just really
excited that people are getting a chance to hear this information.
And I'm glad to be here while I'm sitting here.
waiting to play some music for you in a bit.
(18:47):
So you are listening to Rock Your Life Radio, and
we'll be right back.
Speaker 4 (18:51):
Welcome back to Rock Your Life Radio. Before the news,
we talked about some of the biggest retirement pitfalls people face.
We're going to focus now on some solutions and just
share a few practical tips and help you avoid costly
mistakes and really build a more confident retirement.
Speaker 3 (19:06):
You know, Kevin, we covered some concerning topics. My head's
swimming kind of right now, actually. When you first meet
with someone, it's probably a little overwhelming for them. How
do you make this process less intimidating?
Speaker 6 (19:20):
That's a great question and probably one of the most
important things that I feel is part of my job.
And the biggest thing that I do to make them
feel a little less overwhelmed is help them change a
perspective of how they look at it. You know, I've
heard Bob Lonsberry talk about, you know, thinking about this
(19:40):
is the fourth quarter of your life. I mentioned that earlier,
and that really sticks with me. You prepare for the
first three quarters of your life, graduating school, getting married,
buying a house, starting a retirement plan, all of that,
but then you get to the.
Speaker 5 (19:53):
Fourth quarter, and it's a little overwhelming. I mean, you've
worked hard.
Speaker 6 (19:56):
Now how do you protect it? And the biggest thing
that I can say to people is think of a
different perspective. When you come in for estate planning, we're
not necessarily talking about your death. We're talking about what's
the plan for the people that you love when the
inevitable is going to happen to you. And let's get
off the fear of the death. And, you know, I've
(20:16):
had clients in the signings of their trusts and estate
documents look at each other and say, you know, what
we're doing right now is we're talking and making this, we're.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
Going to be dead.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
And that really strikes me because it's such a big
word and it's a powerful word. But at the same time,
you know, if we don't do financial planning in our
30s and 40s, we're going to be broke, right? So
the fourth quarter of your life is about what do
we do? And I ask the biggest question of every
single person that I meet with. How important is it
to you that when you're gone, the people you love,
(20:50):
your spouse, your kids, your cousins, your friends, how important
for whoever has to pick up after you is it
that they can do it easily, efficiently, and low cost?
Speaker 5 (21:03):
Low cost to.
Speaker 6 (21:03):
Them in time, money, and spirit. Because as we mentioned earlier,
There's a lot going on when we lose a family member,
the grieving period, all the things that go along with
stopping things and starting things, Social Security ends, those kind
of things. But we really want to make it a
good plan. And the people that make good plans, their
(21:25):
kids or their spouse or their kids are so excited.
of how easy it can be to take care of
these very difficult and overwhelming things that.
Speaker 5 (21:33):
We're talking about.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
You know, one thing I give my clients is a book.
It's called What Matters Most. And in that book is
all of the instructions. Where is that trust document? Where
do the pets go? Who do I call? What are
the addresses to my brothers and sisters that live in
California and Florida and Tennessee? All of those things are
(21:54):
in a nice, neat little book. You know, you can
buy them on Amazon for 10 bucks. And, boy, it
brings to thought all of the things that you have
to do and kind of prepare for. And I guess
it's just that peace of mind that you really need
at the end. And part of that is making sure
that these documents are all tight, ready. And you can
update these documents, too, as time goes on. Once it's done,
(22:17):
it's done forever, right?
Speaker 5 (22:18):
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Speaker 6 (22:21):
Almost all the documents that we've talked about can be changed,
and I encourage people to look at their plan at
least once a year. Not that you have to go
spend money on somebody to go over it with you.
If a plan is set up right, you should have
the instructions, the education, to look at what you have
and just run down the list and make sure that
the plan that you've made is relevant for the people
(22:41):
in your life at that time.
Speaker 5 (22:42):
And that should be done yearly.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
Yeah, a lot of those changes. We have kids. Sometimes
kids get divorced. And now all of a sudden they
were named in the trust prior and how that all
pans out after divorce has got to be a big
topic for some people.
Speaker 6 (22:57):
It absolutely is. I mean, you get into that area.
I mean, people need to understand if you're divorced, if
you read your divorce documents, all the estate planning that
you did with your spouse is legally terminated in a
correctly drafted divorce decree and separation agreement. So we encourage people,
(23:18):
right after a divorce, you want to update those documents
and understand what's going to happen. Even if you're going
through a divorce or your kids are going through a divorce,
back to the power of attorney. You want to make
sure that you've changed that as you're going through the
divorce because if something happens to you, and I'm not
saying this has happened more than one time, divorces can
take a while. And you might be traveling with new
(23:40):
friends or a new friend and have a medical issue
and you know, with respect to your medical directives, who
you have listed on your documents is who's going to
get notified. And you may not necessarily want the spouse
that you're going through a divorce with to be that person.
So Jeff, this brings up a question that I have.
We were talking earlier about the difference between Medicare and Medicaid.
(24:02):
I mean, in my practice, I'll be honest with you,
I don't really cover anything of Medicare except for fixing
the confusion.
Speaker 5 (24:10):
Of what Medicare and Medicaid are.
Speaker 6 (24:13):
Take me through your process with respect to Medicare and
what someone new to Medicare or even current enrollees might
experience when they visit the Medicare shop.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
Yeah, sure, Kevin. Usually the phone call starts with, I
need help. It's a system that nobody understands it. And
I usually tell everybody, don't worry. We're going to schedule
an hour and you're going to walk out of here
feeling this huge burden lifted off of you and really
understanding what it is. And I send a worksheet ahead
of time. I want to know who their trusted medical
(24:43):
professionals are, their frequency of visits. I want to know
their prescriptions and details. So before somebody even walks in,
I know the tiers. I have an idea of what
it's going to cost them for everything. So the first
15 minutes I sit down with somebody who's really explaining
the terminology, understanding what Medicare covers, what you're required to get,
the differences with Advantage, Supplemental, Part Ds. And there's some
(25:03):
unique things we can really do here in New York
you can't do in a lot of other states. And
I'm licensed in a lot of different places. So the
first 15 minutes is understanding it. And once you've got it,
then you can say, okay, it fits in with my situation.
And we start defining what are the best options with
their individual situation. So we'll start looking at what are
the plans that work best. Also, do you need to
(25:26):
be on Medicare, right? So we answer all those questions
within an hour. And there's no cost for this.
Speaker 6 (25:31):
So just an off-the-wall analogy, it sounds like if Medicare
were Disneyland... somebody coming to Disneyland for the first time
doesn't know where to go or what they want to do.
They see a big Ferris wheel and roller coasters, but
they don't know anything about the inside.
Speaker 5 (25:49):
They need a map. And it sounds like when people.
Speaker 6 (25:52):
Come and want to learn about Medicare, they're coming to
this Medicare Disneyland and have no idea.
Speaker 5 (25:58):
And you would kind of guide them through the park?
Speaker 4 (26:00):
Correct, correct. Because everybody's got parks out there and they
want you to come to their park, but they're not
giving you objective advice. What's the right ride to get on?
Speaker 5 (26:07):
Love that, love that.
Speaker 6 (26:08):
I know that's a huge thing for for our listeners
out there. It can't be understated how important to know
the difference of Medicare and Medicaid and some of the
interesting places where they overlap.
Speaker 4 (26:23):
That's true.
Speaker 3 (26:25):
When I talk to people that are on Medicare, a
lot of them will just pick the cheapest plan.
Speaker 4 (26:28):
I don't want to pay for anything.
Speaker 1 (26:31):
This is it.
Speaker 3 (26:32):
What are the biggest pitfalls of doing something like that
as opposed to spending a little bit of money for
a larger benefit down the road.
Speaker 4 (26:40):
And it doesn't always make sense to pay a larger
benefit because some of those have some underlying surprises in there.
We're going to pay 20% co-insurance for outpatient surgery or
observation stays. So it's really, we vet out all the
plans every year. We get all the carrier's information. And
before October 1st rolls around, we've already vetted everything out.
What are the good carriers? What are the good plans?
We're the ones that have things that you're going to
(27:00):
get hit with a big financial surprise. And it's working
with our clients all year that we understand what to
look out for.
Speaker 6 (27:08):
So for the most basic person out there like me,
how old will I need to be when.
Speaker 5 (27:13):
I start thinking about Medicare?
Speaker 4 (27:14):
Well, there's two ways to get on it. Unfortunately, after
you've been on Social Security Disability for two years, you qualify.
We're 65.
Speaker 3 (27:22):
Thanks, Jeff and Kevin. So stay with us because coming
up next on Rock Your Life Radio, we'll welcome a
very special guest, local country music star Claudia Heuser. and
Ryan Hurley. Claudia will share what's happening in her life
and career, what she's working on now, and some exciting
things on the horizon. Plus, she'll be treating you to
(27:43):
a live performance you won't want to miss.
Speaker 4 (27:46):
That's coming up.
Speaker 3 (27:47):
Next right here on Rock Your Life Radio.
Speaker 6 (27:50):
Welcome back to Rock Your Life Radio. One of the
things we love to do on this show is highlight
talented people from our community who are making an impact
and pursuing their passions. Today we're excited to welcome local
country music artist Claudia Heuser.
Speaker 5 (28:03):
Claudia has built a.
Speaker 6 (28:04):
Loyal following with her powerful vocals, engaging performances, and authentic storytelling.
She's been making waves on the country music scene, performing
throughout the region and connecting with audiences wherever she goes.
Today we'll talk with Claudia about her journey, what's happening
in her life and career, and what exciting projects she
has coming up. And if that wasn't enough, she'll also
(28:26):
be sharing a special live performance with us Claudia, welcome
to Rock Your Life Radio. We're so glad to have
you with us today.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Well, hello.
Speaker 8 (28:34):
Thank you so much. Happy 4th.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
Happy 4th of July.
Speaker 8 (28:37):
Great to be here.
Speaker 5 (28:39):
The big 250.
Speaker 4 (28:40):
Yes, it is.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
So, Claudia, give us an update. What's going on in
your life? What are you and Ryan up to?
Speaker 8 (28:46):
Oh, my goodness. A little bit of absolutely everything. You know,
we're playing shows left and right. Any finger lick you
can think of, I'm on it. I think people are
starting to accidentally run into me. They used to plan
to come to the show. Now they just head out
of their house and they end up seeing me somewhere
on a stage. And it's just been an amazing summer
(29:06):
so far. But we've got new music out. So we're
out promoting that right now at our shows. And trying
to get to as many new spots as we can
for new audiences.
Speaker 4 (29:15):
What new music?
Speaker 8 (29:16):
New music. We have a new song called Big Sky.
And this is a song that is so special to us.
Ryan and I wrote this one together. And for those
of you listening that don't know, Ryan is my co-collaborator
and fiance, which now I'm excited to be able to say.
Speaker 4 (29:32):
Congratulations.
Speaker 3 (29:33):
Thank you.
Speaker 5 (29:34):
Congratulations.
Speaker 8 (29:35):
Yeah. So we wrote this song. We were engaged last June.
in Big Sky, Montana, and it's just become a place
that we love so much. Any excuse we can make
to plan a concert out there or just get out
there for a little trip or some skiing, we try
to get there as much as we can. And so
we got engaged in June and we went back in
(29:56):
January and we thought, how cool would it be if
we could write a song about this place in this place?
And we did just that. We started it there and
we had pretty much the chorus down. We knew kind
of the vibe of it, but not all the words.
And then a few weeks later, once we had it
back to New York, we We patched it all together
(30:18):
and got in the studio, recorded it up, and I'm
just so excited to have this one in the world now.
Speaker 3 (30:23):
So where do you guys do these recordings?
Speaker 8 (30:25):
It's been a little bit of a mix. I grew up,
I learned everything I know at GFI Studios right in Webster, Ontario.
And we did my whole first album there. And it
was just incredible to sit side by side and learn
with the producer and the owner there everything I possibly
(30:46):
could about making music. And then I took what I
knew down to Nashville and I worked with a great
friend of mine. Her name's Zarnie. And we put together
a very stripped down album. acoustic-y style, very atmospheric, spacey,
dreamy EP. Actually, it's a full record, I should say.
(31:07):
It's a full record. It's seven songs. It started as
an EP, and that was called Before the Dawn. So
that was done down in Nashville. We released that in January.
And then this new batch of songs that we're just
slowly starting to release now, we did at a brand
new studio called Port Gibson Recording, and that's out in Macedon? Palmyra? Palmyra.
(31:29):
And it's a friend of mine that I used to
work with at GFI Studios, another artist who has a
studio now. And we got to team up for this one.
So it's been really fun just feeling it out. As
my music changes, so has the studio's.
Speaker 4 (31:44):
How many songs have you actually written? I heard the number.
I couldn't believe it.
Speaker 8 (31:48):
Oh, my goodness. I think my bio a couple of
years ago said over 200. So now we have to
be it. 350 at least. It's been, songwriting is just
such an outlet for me. And sometimes those songs never
even get finished. It's just, it's some idea that I
get to put down in my phone or my voice
memos and hope to come back to someday to finish
(32:10):
up and I love writing.
Speaker 4 (32:12):
I think it was last weekend you were playing over
in Pittsburgh, and we had a chance to chat between
your sets, and you were mentioning some of the other
things that you were doing, which one of them I
was particularly interested in because I kind of make bourbon
as a hobby.
Speaker 1 (32:22):
Yes.
Speaker 4 (32:23):
And you said you had your own whiskey line or something.
Can you tell me about that?
Speaker 8 (32:26):
Sure do. I love it. Whenever I go in for radio,
we always end up– I go in for music, and
we end up talking about whiskey. So this is something
that came about. It was very fan-driven.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
Yes.
Speaker 8 (32:38):
I'm a huge coffee lover, crazy coffee snob. My grandma
used to sneak it in my sippy cup, and I
think she started my addiction very young.
Speaker 4 (32:47):
That's when the addiction started, yeah.
Speaker 8 (32:48):
It was mostly milk. I'll give her that. Grandma wasn't
trying to rev me up. So I just have become
a huge coffee person and never do anything without it.
And I started making these videos during COVID where every week,
every Monday, I went live and would sing a classic
(33:08):
country song and put my little spin on it. And
in all those videos, we hid a little coffee pot
in the background. And people started picking up on it.
Speaker 4 (33:17):
Those are the Easter eggs, right?
Speaker 8 (33:18):
Those are the Easter eggs. And I'm not even going
to lie. It totally wasn't fully my idea in the
first place to be an Easter egg. It was just
a decoration. I loved it. Let's put the coffee pot in.
And people were like, wait, where's the coffee pot? I
don't see it. So I'm like, oh, I better put
that thing back in there. So we started incorporating it
in all the videos and just showing it for a
(33:39):
quick second. People would tune in, let me know when
they saw the coffee pot. Long story short, I was
playing a show at a bar in Irondequoit and the
owner of the bar came up to me and said,
what's the deal with the coffee? And I told him,
I don't do anything without it. And we got to
come up with our very own coffee blend because he
had been in the coffee business his whole life. And
(34:00):
we thought it'd be a merch table piece. We'd sell
a hundred bags at the merch table. And now three
years later, we have an entire line of whole bean,
Jamaican me country flavor, ground, and a whiskey distillery reached
out about turning it into a coffee whiskey. So now
we have drunken bean, on the shelves in all the
(34:22):
local liquor stores and in four states.
Speaker 4 (34:25):
That's amazing. So the whiskey company found it from the coffee.
Speaker 3 (34:28):
Claudia, real quick, how do people find your songs?
Speaker 8 (34:32):
My music can be found all over Spotify, Apple Music.
It's also on YouTube. But I really point people in
the direction of Spotify. I hope they add me to
their playlist.
Speaker 3 (34:41):
All right, just type your name in and there you are.
Speaker 8 (34:43):
Claudia Heuser.
Speaker 4 (34:44):
Fantastic.
Speaker 3 (34:45):
Claudia, thank you so much for joining us today.
Speaker 8 (34:48):
Thank you so much for having us on. This has
been a blast.
Speaker 4 (34:51):
You know, that's all the time we have for today, unfortunately, Claudia.
We'd like to thank our special guest, Claudia Hozier, for
joining us and sharing your story, your music, and your talent.
Speaker 8 (35:00):
Thank you.
Speaker 4 (35:01):
Before we go, you're going to help us celebrate, and
you're going to perform your rendition of America the Beautiful.
Speaker 8 (35:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (35:08):
Great. We can't wait to hear it.
Speaker 8 (35:10):
First time, I think, since first grade at Jefferson Avenue
Elementary School I've sang this one. So let's see how
it goes.
Speaker 1 (35:16):
Ready?
Speaker 9 (35:25):
Oh, beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain,
for purple mountains' majesties above the fruited plains.
Speaker 7 (35:50):
America America, God shed His grace on thee And crowned
thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea guitar
(36:15):
solo America, America God shed his grace on thee And
(36:51):
crowned thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea
From sea to shining sea Unbelievable.
Speaker 5 (37:16):
Thank you so much. Truly amazing.
Speaker 4 (37:19):
Well, on behalf of Attorney Kevin Clark, Chris, and myself,
Jeff Kuhn, I'd like to thank you for spending part
of this Fourth of July with us as we celebrate
our nation's 250th anniversary. It's a great reminder to appreciate
our freedom, our communities, and the opportunities that we have
to plan for a stronger future. Be sure to join
us again next week for more practical advice, great guests,
(37:43):
and real conversation designed to help you rock your life.
Until then, have a safe and happy 4th of July.
And remember, your best years aren't behind you. They're just
getting started.
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