April 12, 2023 • 34 mins
Medicare with all its parts and options intimidates a lot of us – with good reason. But Host Josh Bretl, Founder of FSR Wealth, and his prize pupil, Co-Host Dave Schmidt, have got our backs!
In the first of what will be a two-part blockbuster, the Retirement Equals Freedom team is bringing us the ins and outs of a federal health care benefit from which we all stand to, well … benefit.
The trick is figuring out how Medicare works and the right strategy for our individual situations.
You’ll learn on this episode about the difference between Parts A, B, C and D as well as key safeguards to consider when putting together your plan.
So don’t shy away from Medicare. There are people who can help you sort it out and ensure that you own your health care – how much you spend or waste as well as your quality of coverage in retirement.
Taxes, investments, health insurance – it all matters and R=F is here to turn those dreams of freedom into your retirement reality!
Stay tuned for next week when we get more granular in Pt. II of our Medicare debrief. You’ll meet trusted advisor Dave Wylly of Medicare Solutions Network and have more fun learning this stuff than you can possibly imagine!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Josh Bretl (00:02):
Because it is such an integral part of people's
lives and retirement, it'ssomething that we talk about
with every single clientthat walks in the door, and
it's probably one of thebiggest questions people have.
Medicare is something thatpeople should not be afraid of,
it's not something that theyshould run away with fear, but
it's something that they needto look at every single year.
It's something that, ifthey're truly going to
(00:23):
own their retirement,this is part of that.
This is not something youwant to bury your head in
the sand, this is somethingthat you want to be proactive
in that planning process.
Dave Schmidt (00:33):
Medicare, with all its parts and options,
intimidates a lot of us.
And for good reason.
But your host of the show,Josh Bretl, along with his
prize pupil, yours truly,well, we got your back!
In the first of what will bea two part blockbuster, we're
bringing you the ins and theouts of a federal healthcare
(00:54):
benefit from which we allstand to, well, benefit.
The trick is figuring outhow Medicare works, and
the right strategy foryour individual situation.
You'll learn on this episodethe difference between parts
A, B, C, and D, as well as keysafeguards to consider when
putting together your plan.
(01:15):
So, yeah, don't shyaway from Medicare.
There are people who can helpyou sort this out and ensure
that you own your healthcare,how much you spend or waste,
as well as your qualityof coverage in retirement.
So taxes, investments, healthinsurance, it all matters.
And the Retirement EqualsFreedom Podcast is here to
(01:36):
turn those dreams of freedominto your retirement reality.
This is The RetirementEquals Freedom Podcast.
Your host, Josh Bretl, is theowner of FSR Wealth Strategies.
And for the last 20 plusyears, Josh has helped fine
folks like you gain theconfidence to make retirement
(01:56):
the best part of your life.
And me?
Well, hello hello!
I'm Dave, Josh's longtimefriend, co-host and fan of
those delicious, crunchy andsuper unhealthy snack rolls
at Thornton's gas stations.
All right all right.
Enough of me talking.
Let me let you let meend my introduction so we
can get on with Medicare.
(02:18):
FSR Wealth Management is aregistered investment advisor
located in Elmhurst, Illinois.
Information and opinionscontained in this audio
have been arrived atby FSR Wealth advisors.
All information herein isfor informational purposes
and should not be construedas investment advice.
It does not constitute an offer,a solicitation or recommendation
to purchase any security.
FSR is not providing legal,tax, accounting, or financial
planning advice in this audio.
These views are as of thedate of this publication
and are subject to change.
(02:58):
Oh, man.
Josh, happy Tuesday, man.
Josh Bretl (03:01):
It's been a minute since we've recorded a podcast.
Dave Schmidt (03:03):
Yeah.
I'm a little sad today.
Josh Bretl (03:06):
A little Debbie down today, why is that?
Dave Schmidt (03:08):
Yeah.
I'm a little Debbie down today,because I saw what we're talking
about, I saw the show notes.
Josh Bretl (03:13):
This is not your favorite topic.
Dave Schmidt (03:15):
No, it's not.
So hopefully, you'll be able toget me back into a better mood.
And, by the end, we'll bedoing a song and dance.
Josh Bretl (03:27):
I will actually say this is a topic that scares a
lot of people, because it hasa major impact on their lives.
But before we get into thattopic, can I talk about
something else that scares me?
Dave Schmidt: Yeah, a little bit. (03:39):
undefined
Sure, go ahead.
Josh Bretl (03:40):
So I did something that I was afraid
of this last weekend.
Dave Schmidt (03:44):
Bathing?
Josh Bretl (03:45):
No, I'm good with bathing, I'm good with bathing.
I have been for acouple years now.
But I went to a circuswith the children.
I'm not really a circus person,and in my head I was thinking
like Ringling Bros or whatever.
So let me back this up, my wifesays to me last week sometime,
(04:06):
she goes, "Did you see thatTriton College," which is a
small junior college not too farfrom us, "is having a circus?"
It's their 50th anniversaryof this circus, they call
it the Triton Troupers.
I was like, "Sure."
We're at a point in thespring right now where it's
been miserable for a while,anything we can do to get
the kids out of the house.
(04:26):
I'm sure you weredoing the same thing.
Dave Schmidt (04:28):
Yep.
Josh Bretl (04:29):
So I said, "Yeah, let's go to the circus."
Tickets were six-dollars, sowe're not breaking the bank on
this, it was in this gymnasiumof Triton College, which is
smaller than the high school gymyou and I played basketball in.
Glory days,
Dave Schmidt (04:43):
Glory days.
The gym I tackled you in?
Josh Bretl (04:46):
Yeah, that gym.
It was smaller than that.
But I have to say it was asuper pleasant experience.
Dave Schmidt (04:55):
Tell me more.
Josh Bretl (04:55):
So this is not Ringling Bros, this is not
people who are professionalcircus ... Are they actors?
Performers?
Dave Schmidt (05:04):
Oh, how dare you?
Yes, performers.
Josh Bretl (05:06):
These are people like you and I.
There is every age, thereis every body type there is
the this was their passionand they did it on the side.
There were clowns, but theseweren't your creepy clowns,
these were friendly old peopleclowns and friendly young people
clowns and clowns on stilts.
They were friendly though, notlike creepy in the woods come
(05:30):
out of a sewer type of clowns.
Dave Schmidt (05:31):
I don't know what kind of circus you've been
to prior, but usually thoseclowns are not like Pennywise
coming out of the forest.
Josh Bretl (05:38):
But clowns don't usually interact with me
usually in a circus, butthey're waiting for you at
the door, they're helpingyou get in line for tickets.
But the performers, there'smultiple trapeze artists,
there was guys climbing thechairs that got stacked on
top of tables, there wasthe spinning wheels that
people spun themselvesaround in, the rope artists
hanging from the ceiling.
(05:58):
But these are all people thatjust do this on the side,
all live in Chicago, andonce a year they perform.
There was a ringmaster whosung this opening number.
Everyone there was happy, fromthe performers to the audience.
They served popcornand cotton candy and
everything was a dollar.
You weren't gettingjacked around for that.
(06:19):
It was a little long, itprobably was about half-an-hour
longer than it needed to be.
Dave Schmidt (06:24):
Okay, I feel that.
Josh Bretl (06:25):
But if that's my only complaint,
this was fantastic.
There was probably 2000 peoplethat were in there doing this.
Dave Schmidt (06:33):
Wow.
Josh Bretl (06:33):
So watching the circus, and they had two
performances that day, I'm surethe second one sold out as well.
So if anyone's listening,the Triton Troupers Circus
was something that I wouldhighly recommend if you
have children, or even ifyou just feel like a child.
Dave Schmidt (06:50):
First of all, a lot of people are listening,
so I wouldn't say if anyoneis listening, of course,
people are listening to this.
Josh Bretl (06:54):
It was more like, if you feel like a child or if
you have children, if you'relistening and have that.
Dave Schmidt (06:59):
So I feel at home with carnies like that.
Those are my people,because like you said,
they are normal peopledoing what they love to do.
I'm sure they're notgetting paid a whole
lot of money to do that.
Josh Bretl (07:14):
Not at six-dollars a pop on admission.
Dave Schmidt (07:16):
No, definitely not.
Josh Bretl (07:17):
I just hope it was covering their cost.
It was truly, it was cool.
Dave Schmidt (07:21):
Carnivals and circuses pop up a lot in my
universe, my universe of creepymovies and shows, and I just
have a deep, deep love for it.
Josh Bretl (07:28):
Actually, maybe this was a moment over
the weekend where I hadmy inner Dave come out.
I felt like I was part,I was really enjoying it.
It was cool.
Dave Schmidt (07:38):
You had been taking more strides
in life to be like me,which I do appreciate.
Josh Bretl (07:43):
We're going to meet in the middle someday.
Someday way down the road.
Dave Schmidt (07:47):
In return, I'm drinking out of your
University of Illinois mug.
Josh Bretl (07:50):
I have noticed this, the last two days
you've been stealing mycoffee cup in the office.
Dave Schmidt (07:54):
Mm-hmm.
couple reasons, one, I want tobe like you when I grow up, but
two, I like the matte finish.
It's just a nice feeling mug.
Josh Bretl (08:03):
It's a nice size, it's wide, but it also
narrows in the middle so theheat doesn't escape too bad.
It's a good coffee mug.
Dave Schmidt (08:09):
It reminds me of Medicare Part D.
Josh Bretl (08:11):
Medicare Part D.
Medicare.
Dave Schmidt (08:14):
Medicare, baby.
Josh Bretl (08:18):
So that's our topic today.
Dave Schmidt (08:19):
Yeah, yeah.
People are well aware of that.
Josh Bretl (08:21):
I've been putting it off for a while, it's not
something that ... Actually,Medicare is not something
that we do in our office.
We don't sell Medicare,we don't participate.
We do, we have people herewho are of Medicare age,
my father being included.
But we don't, this is notsomething we do for our
clients on a normal basis.
(08:42):
But because it is such anintegral part of people's
lives and retirement, it'ssomething that we talk about
with every single clientthat walks in the door, and
it's probably one of thebiggest questions people have.
Dave Schmidt (08:53):
I bet.
It seems very confusing.
Josh Bretl (08:55):
Well, when someone turns 64, I don't know why 64 is
the magic age, I think they wantto give themselves 12 months,
they start receiving more mail,junk mail about Medicare than
they could possibly imagine.
Dave Schmidt (09:09):
From who?
Josh Bretl (09:10):
People that want to sell them Medicare.
You know the stereotypethat used car salesmen have?
Dave Schmidt (09:15):
Mm-hmm.
Josh Bretl (09:16):
Medicare people may be worse on a whole.
It's hard to find agood Medicare person.
We're not going to talkabout that, you already
know this, but there's apart-two to this series here.
Part-two, we are going todo our first live interview,
and we, for years, havenever referred out Medicare
(09:36):
stuff, because there wasn'tanyone we could trust.
There was no one out there.
We finally have found awonderful Medicare person.
The way it happened was myfather was turning 65, he was
becoming of Medicare age, andhe didn't know who to turn to.
He had a really goodfriend from high school
who said to him, "Hey, Ihad this great experience
with this guy Dave Wylly.
(09:56):
You should sit down with him."
So he did and this waslife-changing, because we
get approached all the timeby Medicare people, "Hey,
send me your clients."
No, thank you.
But Dave Wylly has been alife-saver for our clients
and for us, he reallydoes a great job and his
knowledge is second-to-none.
So part-two of this podcastseries I spent 20 minutes
(10:18):
talking to Dave about reallythe inner workings of it.
So today, I want to talkabout how it impacts retirees
in some of the higher levelstuff, so that when people
listen to part-two withDave and myself, they have,
not you, Dave, they have abetter understanding of it.
Dave Schmidt (10:34):
Let's get going, baby.
Josh Bretl (10:39):
Now, just so you guys know, if Dave sounds really
excited during this podcast,this is probably the one topic
that we talk about that boresthe absolute snot out of you.
I think it has to do with thefact that it's almost more
nuance-y than the tax code.
Alex (10:55):
Hashtag tax nerd.
Dave Schmidt (10:57):
So Josh, what I do appreciate about you
though, it's such an enthrallingtopic, you didn't even bother
involving Erin, because shewould have fallen asleep.
You took the time to write outa nice bullet point list of what
we'll be talking about today.
Josh Bretl (11:08):
I did.
I wanted to hit some of the highlevel stuff, before Dave and I
dig into it on part-two here.
But planning for healthcarein retirement is a
significant componentof anyone's retirement.
We talk about our own retirementplanning process, and there's
five components to it.
One of them is healthcare,even though we don't work
with Medicare here, healthcareis a major component.
(11:30):
It's going to be a big expensefor a lot of people, and taking
control of it really matters.
So depending upon when youretire will depend upon what
your healthcare looks like.
If you retire prior to age 65,you're going to have to find
some private insurance, maybecontinuation of your company
policy, maybe we have to goover to the Exchange and find
(11:52):
some health insurance thatway, but that's part of it.
But when you turn 65, almosteveryone in this country
will be impacted in some way,shape or form by Medicare.
Dave Schmidt (12:03):
Can I interrupt?
This may be one of the fewtimes I have a question,
because you say almost everyone,who is not part of that?
Or is that not somethingyou want to get into?
Josh Bretl (12:11):
No, that's a good question.
In fact, as I said that,I'm in my head going,
"It's never everybody, butit's a pretty good chunk."
So when I say almosteverybody, a lot of times
if people are still working,they won't get Medicare.
We have clients thatwe've talked about before
who are moving overseas,they won't use Medicare.
If you die beforeyou get Medicare, you
won't use Medicare.
(12:32):
But other than that, almostevery single person will
be impacted in some way,shape or form by Medicare.
We talk about Social Security,there's a chunk of our
population who doesn't getSocial Security because they
have some other private pensionor some other public pension.
But Medicare, ittouches everybody.
So it can become extremelyimportant in knowing
(12:52):
some of the rules andstuff that go into there.
So did that answeryour question?
Dave Schmidt (12:57):
That's where my head was at.
I figured it was justnuanced, it was more based
on if you're still workingor dead or things like that.
Josh Bretl (13:04):
No, that's the big one.
People worry about Medicare,it's a government sponsored,
it's a government runprogram, and some people
get really hesitant aboutgovernment run programs.
For the most part, it's actuallypretty darn good insurance.
Unless you're coming fromsome amazing insurance policy,
Medicare is not bad Now, theproblem with Medicare is not
(13:29):
every person will accept it.
Dave Schmidt (13:32):
Not every doctor?
Josh Bretl (13:33):
Physician, not every doctor, provider will accept it.
The reason they don't isbecause if they accept
Medicare, they have toplay by Medicare's rules.
Now, the vast majority, vastmajority accept Medicare.
Even in Chicago, some of thebiggest hospitals, Northwestern,
Rush, University of Chicago,they're all Medicare facilities.
So one of the things thathappens though is if they
(13:56):
accept Medicare, theyfollow Medicare's rules.
If they accept Medicare, itdoesn't matter what they think,
what they want to do, they haveto play by Medicare's rules.
Dave Schmidt (14:05):
Sure.
Josh Bretl (14:06):
So the first thing you have to do is
you have to find a providerthat accepts Medicare, and I
will tell you most providersthat people are used to have
probably accepted Medicare.
So if that's the case, let'stalk a little bit about it.
The magic age forMedicare is 65 years old.
Dave Schmidt (14:25):
You're looking at me like, " Confirm that, Dave."
As if you want meto fact-check you.
Josh Bretl (14:30):
Can you be my Medicare fact-checker today?
Dave Schmidt (14:32):
Check the Google, Google says yes.
Josh Bretl (14:34):
That's what next week with Dave
is for, Dave Wylly.
But 65 years oldis the magic age.
Now, there are ways thatpeople get it younger if
they're disabled or havecertain medical conditions,
but everyone at 65 yearsold becomes eligible for it.
Okay?
Dave Schmidt (14:51):
Yeah.
Josh Bretl (14:51):
Now, there are three parts to Medicare,
and I'm actually going togo off of our notes here.
Our notes say thereare four parts.
They say, "A, B, C, and D."
I'm actually going totake C out of it, C is
not technically a part ofMedicare, it's a different
option as that comes in.
We're going to talk about thatin depth next week with Dave.
Dave Schmidt (15:13):
Okay.
Josh Bretl (15:14):
But A, B and D are all federally run
Medicare programs, theyall cover different parts.
So A is free, everybody getsA, it doesn't cost anything.
A is your hospital coverage,it covers the building
that you walk into.
B, you have to sign upfor, you have to apply
(15:36):
for it, and B costs money.
It doesn't matter whoyou are, every month,
B, you will pay for B.
Same with D.
Now, B covers the person insidethe building, so it covers
your doctors, your nurses,things along those lines.
D, which is the newest formof Medicare, covers your
prescription drugs, so it coversthe medications that you take.
(15:58):
There's different ruleswith it, you can enroll
in A and not B and D.
A lot of people do that, A,being free, might as well
have some additional coverage.
A lot of people will waitto enroll for B or D until
they retire or need it orwhenever that comes into play.
If you don't do it in a timelymanner, there can be penalties
and things along those lines,but just be aware of that there.
C is what we call a MedicareAdvantage Plan, it's not run
(16:23):
by the US government, it'srun by private insurance.
So if you take C, youdon't get A and B.
We'll get into that nextweek, but when people
talk about C, it's nottruly federal insurance.
Dave Schmidt (16:33):
Got it.
Run by the BlueCrosses of the world?
Josh Bretl (16:37):
Yeah, private insurance companies.
Now cost and coverage, ourbullet point here on cost
and coverage, Medicarecan be costly, and it is
important to understandtrue out-of-pocket expenses.
So looking at your ownindividual situation, you
want to look at premiums,deductibles, co-payments,
and coinsurance, andMedicare has all of those.
(16:59):
But also, how much you paydetermines on your income.
So as we're doing taxplanning for people, one of
the additional taxes thatpeople have is the increased
Medicare cost, we call itthe IRMAA thresholds, Income
Related Monthly AdjustmentAmount, I think is what
IRMAA stands for there.
Dave Schmidt (17:16):
Oh, two As at the end.
Josh Bretl (17:16):
Yeah, there's two As.
I always forget if it'stwo As or two Ms, it's
either IRMMA or IRMAA.
I think it's the secondone, I'm not positive.
If Erin was here, she'd correctme, she corrects me every
time, but I never remember.
So it's like spellingrestaurant, I can't
spell restaurant.
Dave Schmidt (17:34):
You can't spell restaurant?
Josh Bretl (17:35):
No, it's start with an R and ends with a T.
There's stuff in the middle,there's a U, there's an A,
there's an R, what orderit goes in, I can't spell
it for the life of me.
Dave Schmidt (17:42):
No, I am a former spelling bee champ,
2nd, 3rd and 4th grade, soI'm a little embarrassed to
be sitting across the table.
You eat at so many restaurants.
Josh Bretl (17:51):
Yeah, I can probably spell the name of
the restaurants more thanI can spell restaurant.
Dave Schmidt: Spell Fogo de Chao. (17:56):
undefined
Josh Bretl (17:57):
F-O-G-O D-E C-H ... I don't know.
Dave Schmidt: You're like, "Meat." (18:00):
undefined
All right, perfect.
Moving on, moving on.
He can't spellrestaurant, folks.
Josh Bretl (18:08):
Now, Medicare only covers certain components,
there's a limit to what Medicarewill cover, so that's where the
co-payments, the coinsurance,that comes into play.
What a lot of people willbuy on top of Medicare is a
Medicare supplement, sometimesreferred to as a Medigap Policy.
It makes up the differences,and those are sold by private
(18:31):
insurance companies, so the BlueCrosses of the world, United
Healthcare, all of that stuff.
So all of that junk mailthat I told you people were
getting, it's not comingfrom the US government, it's
coming from these insurancecompanies that want to sell
people those Medigap orMedicare supplements, as well
as the Medicare Advantage.
A lot of it's MedicareAdvantage, they love to
(18:51):
sell Medicare Advantage,big commissions in those.
Dave Schmidt (18:54):
Sure.
Josh Bretl (18:55):
Now, for some people they work well, but you want
to make an educated decisionas that comes into play.
Dave Schmidt (19:00):
I've started researching that for when
I retire and get my calfimplants, I need to have
specific Medigap insurance.
Josh Bretl (19:06):
I've seen your calves, you don't need implants.
Dave Schmidt (19:08):
But I want them bigger.
Josh Bretl (19:09):
You want them bigger?
I think they have realityshows about that out in
Los Angeles somewhere.
Dave Schmidt (19:15):
I'm sure they do.
Josh Bretl (19:18):
Now, for A and B, you're not usually looking
to review that every year.
Now, you might reviewyour Medigap coverage or
your supplement there,because the pricing could
change, there are differentthings that could happen.
Now, the nice thingwith Medigap insurance,
Dave Schmidt (19:36):
Supplement?
Josh Bretl (19:37):
The supplement, is every company is required
to cover the same things.
Dave Schmidt (19:42):
Okay.
Josh Bretl (19:43):
So every company's policy is identical, but
they may have differentpremium amounts, so they
may cost different amounts.
So looking at those on anannual basis becomes important.
Dave Schmidt (19:53):
Are you locked into terms or contracts?
Josh Bretl (19:55):
I'm going to get into that next week with
Dave Wylly a little bit.
When you first sign up, be itage 65 or whenever you retire,
you can go to any company youwant, they can't limit you
based on preexisting conditions.
But if you changecompanies, they can run
you through a medical.
So the first decisionyou make, you have to
(20:16):
be well aware of that.
So if you change, if you wantto switch at 75 years old and
you've been on it for 10 years,they can actually decline you.
Dave Schmidt (20:23):
Okay.
Josh Bretl (20:23):
Now, there is one company here in Illinois, Blue
Cross Blue Shield that doesnot, they'll take anybody,
so it's nice to have that oneadvantage or that one plan
that's out there for that.
Now, the other part isprescription drug coverage.
Dave Schmidt (20:40):
Part D.
Josh Bretl (20:41):
Part D, that is something that you want to
look at every single year.
The reason for it is becausethe drugs you take every year
could change, each companycovers drugs differently.
There is no federal mandateto say, "Hey, you have to
cover this drug by this muchand that drug by this much."
Every company getsto determine that.
Dave Schmidt (21:00):
Oh, wow.
So it's like lineitem by line item.
Josh Bretl (21:02):
Line item by line item, and this happens in the
fourth quarter every year,you need to look at that.
They cover it with differentamounts, so one company
may say, "Hey, this is afive-dollar a month drug."
The other company may say thatsame drug, the same prescription
might be $50 a month.
Dave Schmidt (21:17):
That could change year to year?
Josh Bretl (21:19):
Year to year.
Dave Schmidt (21:20):
Wow.
Josh Bretl (21:20):
So just because it was cheap this year,
doesn't mean it's goingto be cheap next year.
So Every year that issomething that needs to be
re-looked at, and Dave has agreat strategy of how he does
that and what he recommends.
So Medicare is something thatpeople should not be afraid of,
it's not something that theyshould run away with fear, but
it's something that they needto look at every single year.
(21:42):
It's something that, ifthey're truly going to
own their retirement,this is part of that.
This is not something youwant to bury your head in
the sand, this is somethingthat you want to be proactive
in that planning process.
Dave Schmidt (21:53):
I like it, because it sounds a lot like
when you talk about taxes.
You retire, you have all thiscontrol with your taxes, and
with Medicare, same thing.
You have all this control inyour retirement, you've just got
to make sure you actually do it.
Josh Bretl (22:07):
Yeah.
It's your life, this is a timewhen you actually have the
power to do something about it.
Taxes, investments, healthinsurance, it's all-
Dave Schmidt (22:15):
Sushi restaurants that Josh can't spell.
Josh Bretl (22:18):
Sushi, I can spell sushi.
Dave Schmidt (22:19):
Well, yeah.
You can spell sushi.
Josh Bretl (22:21):
S-U-S-H-I.
Restaurant?
Mm-mm.
Dave Schmidt (22:24):
What's the plural of sushi?
Josh Bretl (22:26):
Sushi's.
I don't know.
But no, that is thejoy of Medicare.
Didn't I make thatpainless for you?
Dave Schmidt (22:38):
You did, and actually we're doing
really good on time too.
I'm really quite impressed.
Josh Bretl (22:41):
You thought I was going to drone on and on.
Dave Schmidt (22:44):
I thought so.
I thought you'd be like,at 24-minute mark, still
on bullet point two.
Josh Bretl (22:49):
That's what next week's for, I knew we
were doing a two-parter.
Dave Schmidt (22:51):
Yeah.
Josh Bretl (22:53):
I encourage everyone to come back for next
week's, or the next episode,it won't be next week, but
next episode, because we'vealready recorded it, it's
a fantastic recap there.
Dave Schmidt (23:01):
Perfect.
Well, you did cover allof our bullet points.
Anything else you'd like to sayon Medicare or are you good?
Josh Bretl (23:08):
No, I want to get to know you.
Dave Schmidt (23:11):
Josh, it's so forthcoming of you.
Yeah, what?
What?
Okay.
Hey, Mister Josh,let's take a break.
You've been talking for solong and my ears are sore.
Let's not make them snore,listening shouldn't be a chore.
Nope.
So let's get toknow Josh and Dave-
Okay.
(23:31):
and watch our ratings soar!
Josh Bretl (23:31):
Cheep, cheep.
Dave Schmidt (23:32):
Aw, yeah.
Were you planning that,or was that impromptu?
Josh Bretl (23:44):
No, I actually was not planning that, but
as I was listening to thesong, I was thinking, "What
bird can I do this time?"
I went, "Cheep, cheep."
Dave Schmidt (23:53):
You would be a great candidate to take
classes at Second City, theway you come up with these
bird sounds is just majestic.
Josh Bretl (24:00):
Oh, yeah.
Me and improv, I canroll with anything.
Dave Schmidt (24:04):
You do love to talk.
So all right, we've got PodDecks over there, you did not
go through it, so I assumeyou have a question for me.
Josh Bretl (24:10):
I did not, but like the bird sound, I came
up with a question and it'ssomething that I don't know
about you that I'd like to.
Dave Schmidt (24:20):
Again, very forthcoming.
I appreciate that.
Josh Bretl (24:22):
So if you were to be in the circus, what
part of the circus wouldyou like to partake in?
Dave Schmidt (24:31):
Oh, my ... That's a great question.
I've considered a career inthe circus, believe you me.
Josh Bretl (24:40):
I actually do believe you.
Dave Schmidt (24:41):
Oh, absolutely.
It would be amazing.
So apart from me nothaving horns on my head
or being eight-feet tall-
Josh Bretl (24:49):
yeah, the circus didn't have any of that.
Are you going tospin yourself around?
Flip upside-down?
Dave Schmidt (24:54):
No, no.
Josh Bretl (24:54):
Ooh, you're the strong man.
Dave Schmidt (24:56):
Definitely not the strong man.
So you've played basketball withme a few times in your life.
Josh Bretl (25:01):
A couple times in the past.
Dave Schmidt (25:04):
Do you remember what our good friend Kevin
used to say about me?
Josh Bretl (25:06):
You couldn't get a piece of paper under your legs?
Dave Schmidt (25:09):
Yeah, I have a negative vertical jump.
So if I were part of the circus,I would be the Cirque de Soleil.
I'd be the acrobats up in theair doing flips, the trapeze
artist, because it would belike I'm floating on air and
my big massive body wouldbe flung around by people.
Josh Bretl (25:28):
Can you imagine the girls who'd try to catch you,
like you're flying at them.
Dave Schmidt (25:35):
If I'm retired, I'm going to
have my calf implants,so I'd be even heavier.
Just like I've never beenable to dunk, something about
being able to just float andfly, that is what I'd be.
I think if I remember thenames right, Dick Grayson in
Batman, I believe he was theRobin in Batman, his family
(25:55):
was trapeze artists and that'show his parents died actually.
Josh Bretl (25:58):
Oh, that's sad.
Dave Schmidt (25:59):
Yeah, very sad.
Josh Bretl (26:00):
Let's bring it down.
Let's make everybodycry here, Dave.
Dave Schmidt (26:05):
Yeah, that's how we do it, Josh.
How about you?
Josh Bretl (26:08):
Well, I definitely don't want to fly,
I have a fear of heights.
I get motion sickness.
In fact, the last act werethese ladies on ropes spinning
themselves around like crazy,and my son Alex looks at
me, he goes, "I'd throw-up."
I was like, "Yeah,me too, buddy."
Dave Schmidt (26:22):
That's awesome.
Josh Bretl (26:24):
I'd want to be the ringmaster.
Dave Schmidt (26:26):
Oh.
Would you sing?
Josh Bretl (26:27):
Oh, yeah.
I'd sing.
If you're flying throughthe air, I'm singing.
Here's why, and again, I'venever been to the circus
before, but this guy comes outin the first act and it's like
everyone's out there and heis singing, he is getting the
energy up, and he has command.
He was the first person tomake everybody happy, and
I was like, "I want to makepeople happy like that guy."
Dave Schmidt (26:49):
You want to set the stage.
Josh Bretl (26:51):
I want to set the stage for it.
So I want to be the ringmaster.
Dave Schmidt (26:53):
It is funny how-
Josh Bretl (26:54):
that will surprise nobody.
My mother will listento this thing and go,
"Yep, of course you do."
Dave Schmidt (26:59):
You have to control everything.
I too have a fear ofheights, and I get
motion sickness as well.
I just think it goes backto, if I'm in the circus,
I can be somebody who I'mnot in my day-to-day life.
I can be flying like asoaring eagle through the
air going, "Ca-ca" like you.
Josh Bretl (27:15):
Cheep, cheep.
Dave Schmidt (27:16):
Yeah.
Maybe poop on a fewpeople in the audience.
That's a really greatimpromptu get-to-know
Josh and Dave question.
Josh Bretl (27:24):
I'm glad, the cards are way down there,
I couldn't reach them.
Dave Schmidt (27:29):
Speaking of can't reach, I can't
really see the screen.
Hang on.
Josh Bretl (27:32):
Oh, hold on.
Alex (27:33):
Hashtag tax nerd.
Dave Schmidt (27:34):
Nope, that's not the one I want.
Josh Bretl (27:35):
Wrong button.
Dave Schmidt (27:35):
Yep, wrong one.
Josh Bretl (27:36):
Is this the one?
Dave Schmidt (27:37):
Dave relates to retirees.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Josh Bretl (27:43):
I didn't walk over the top-
Dave Schmidt (27:44):
No, I appreciate that.
Okay, so despite Medicare beingreally boring to me, I have
two takeaways about Medicare.
One is that everybody getsit, regardless of whether
or not they want it.
The second part is that you'regoing to have it assigned
to you, you have options, soyou better optimize it for
(28:04):
yourself and for your situation.
Okay?
Josh Bretl (28:07):
Okay.
Dave Schmidt (28:07):
So it's just like US history class in high school.
Josh Bretl (28:13):
Mr.
Tourney?
Dave Schmidt (28:15):
Yeah.
Anybody that knows me, oranybody that's listened to
the podcast knows that Istruggled during high school,
I was very disinterested.
Josh Bretl (28:22):
Just with academics.
Other than that,you were rock solid.
Dave Schmidt (28:26):
Off-campus lunch and basketball
were my strengths.
So I was forced to takeUS history, I had no
interest, I still don't,and I'm thinking, "Okay.
Well, I've got to take thisclass, so how can I make
the best use of this time?"
I have two options, eitherI could say, "No, I'm not
taking US history, I'mgoing to drop out of high
(28:47):
school and become one ofthose cool kids that just-"
Josh Bretl (28:49):
How close were you to that?
Dave Schmidt (28:51):
Oh, hours.
It was a realistic option,I would disappoint my
whole family, my parents,drop out of high school.
Josh Bretl (28:58):
You get used to that after a while, I've heard.
Dave Schmidt (29:00):
And work at Bruegger's Bagels
the rest of my life.
Or option B, I could bullymy friend Josh into doing
my homework and projectsfor me, so that I would
pass US history class.
I say the word bully, I reallydidn't, I asked really nicely.
I'm like, "Hey, canyou help me with this?"
As soon as you started helpingme, I walked away and let
(29:21):
you take over everything.
Josh Bretl (29:23):
You're actually remembering it incorrectly.
Dave Schmidt (29:25):
Really?
Josh Bretl (29:25):
Yeah.
You actually put in so littleeffort that I was worried about
you graduating from high school.
Dave Schmidt (29:32):
I tried to give myself more credit,
tell me how it really went.
Josh Bretl (29:36):
No.
We were doing projects and Iliked US history class, actually
I liked the teacher a lot, hewas very big into technology,
we were making videos, we didall sorts of really cool stuff.
You just refusedto do any of it.
You were a new buddingfriendship that I had, and I was
like, "Dave, do you want help?
You have to do this.
(29:57):
Here, let's do it."
I remember sitting up in theCreativity Lab in the second
floor of York High School, andI made you get pictures ... I
think your mother gave methe pictures to use in the
project, and I did make yousit there with me and do it.
Dave Schmidt (30:13):
This is coming back.
This is all coming back.
Josh Bretl (30:15):
I was like, "I'm going to make you
graduate high school."
Dave Schmidt (30:17):
Oh, my God.
You're right.
You did ask my mom for pictures.
Why was I the only seniorin that class of juniors?
Josh Bretl (30:23):
Because you failed it junior year.
You did, you weretake-two on this.
Dave Schmidt (30:28):
Oh, my gosh.
This has become very humbling.
Josh Bretl (30:34):
But your background to this, I understand it, sure.
Now, I hope you take more,when it's time for Medicare
for you, or anyone who'slistening, I'm sure you're not
the only one who's listeningthat felt the same way about a
certain class in high school.
Dave Schmidt (30:51):
Yeah.
Josh Bretl (30:51):
But when it's time for Medicare, you need
to either figure it out onyour own, or find someone
like me who's really going tocare about you and make sure
that you do what's right.
Because yes, you couldhave dropped out of high
school and I'm glad youdidn't, as is Becks, but
(31:13):
...Dave Schmidt: And Big Mike.
And Big Mike.
But with Medicare, you don'thave a choice, and they're
not going to drop you out,there's not an option B, you
can't just do something else.
You're going to get it, and itcould be a financial nightmare,
or it can determine what kindof ... If you have a health
issue or something like that, itcan determine how much coverage
(31:34):
or what kind of care you canget afterwards, and how much
money you can waste and lose,and things along those lines.
So I do see it, and there arepeople out there who care about
you and will make sure thatyou graduate, or at least that
you get the right coverage, youdon't pay more than you have
to, and you can put yourselfand your family in a situation
(31:57):
where you own your healthcarecoverage and retirement.
Dave Schmidt (32:00):
I'm going to give people a little inside scoop
as to what's going through myhead right now, not as if I
ever hold back, but I imagineJosh and I and our friend Matt
having dinner or lunch whenwe're 65 years old, talking
about the good old days.
The topic will come up,Josh will be like, "Matt,
how are you doing withyour Medicare coverage?"
Matt will be like,"I'm doing great, Josh.
How are you?"
(32:20):
Josh will be like, "Oh,I've been set for years."
The both of you will slowlylook at me, I'll have a
stack of papers, I'll havedisheveled hair, and I'll just
throw the papers in the air,I'll be like, "I am so lost."
Josh will be like,"David, I've got you."
That's how I see it going.
Josh Bretl (32:35):
I've got you.
Dave Schmidt (32:36):
I've got you.
Josh Bretl (32:37):
I'm also a year younger than you, so I'll
have to be proactive andmake sure that you get your
stuff taken care of here.
Dave Schmidt (32:44):
Fair enough, man.
Who knew we'd have somuch fun with Medicare?
Did you know that?
Josh Bretl (32:48):
That was the most serious DR2R, we
really went back deep nottalking about basketball.
Dave Schmidt (32:55):
I do appreciate bringing to light the facts
of how it all went downin high school, not my
revisionist history of it.
All right, Josh, let's givepeople ... So part-two is
coming up in a few weeks here.
Josh Bretl (33:11):
Yeah, we're going to talk to David Wylly, our
local Medicare expert who werefer to in our office, and
we really break down somenitty-gritty, some of the things
that everyone needs to know.
If that's all you know,it should be enough to get
you through US history.
But it's a great podcast,it's not boring, it will not
(33:31):
put you to sleep like it didto Dave in US history class.
But it's a must listen foranyone who is going to have
Medicare be part of their life.
Dave Schmidt (33:42):
Perfect.
For some people likeme, I have no choice,
I have to listen to it.
Josh Bretl (33:45):
That's true, yeah.
Dave Schmidt (33:46):
Awesome.
So we're not saying byeanymore, instead we're
saying, "Arrivederci, Josh."
Is that how you say it?
Arrivederci.
Josh Bretl (33:55):
I can't spell restaurant, you
want me to say that?
Dave Schmidt (33:57):
Arrivederci.
Josh Bretl (33:57):
Buenos noches.
Dave Schmidt (33:58):
Buenos noches, I like it.
All right, cool.
Alex (34:02):
Hashtag tax nerd.
Because it is such an integral part of people's
lives and retirement, it'ssomething that we talk about
with every single clientthat walks in the door, and
it's probably one of thebiggest questions people have.
Medicare is something thatpeople should not be afraid of,
it's not something that theyshould run away with fear, but
it's something that they needto look at every single year.
It's something that, ifthey're truly going to
(00:23):
own their retirement,this is part of that.
This is not something youwant to bury your head in
the sand, this is somethingthat you want to be proactive
in that planning process.
Dave Schmidt (00:33):
Medicare, with all its parts and options,
intimidates a lot of us.
And for good reason.
But your host of the show,Josh Bretl, along with his
prize pupil, yours truly,well, we got your back!
In the first of what will bea two part blockbuster, we're
bringing you the ins and theouts of a federal healthcare
(00:54):
benefit from which we allstand to, well, benefit.
The trick is figuring outhow Medicare works, and
the right strategy foryour individual situation.
You'll learn on this episodethe difference between parts
A, B, C, and D, as well as keysafeguards to consider when
putting together your plan.
(01:15):
So, yeah, don't shyaway from Medicare.
There are people who can helpyou sort this out and ensure
that you own your healthcare,how much you spend or waste,
as well as your qualityof coverage in retirement.
So taxes, investments, healthinsurance, it all matters.
And the Retirement EqualsFreedom Podcast is here to
(01:36):
turn those dreams of freedominto your retirement reality.
This is The RetirementEquals Freedom Podcast.
Your host, Josh Bretl, is theowner of FSR Wealth Strategies.
And for the last 20 plusyears, Josh has helped fine
folks like you gain theconfidence to make retirement
(01:56):
the best part of your life.
And me?
Well, hello hello!
I'm Dave, Josh's longtimefriend, co-host and fan of
those delicious, crunchy andsuper unhealthy snack rolls
at Thornton's gas stations.
All right all right.
Enough of me talking.
Let me let you let meend my introduction so we
can get on with Medicare.
(02:18):
FSR Wealth Management is aregistered investment advisor
located in Elmhurst, Illinois.
Information and opinionscontained in this audio
have been arrived atby FSR Wealth advisors.
All information herein isfor informational purposes
and should not be construedas investment advice.
It does not constitute an offer,a solicitation or recommendation
to purchase any security.
FSR is not providing legal,tax, accounting, or financial
planning advice in this audio.
These views are as of thedate of this publication
and are subject to change.
(02:58):
Oh, man.
Josh, happy Tuesday, man.
Josh Bretl (03:01):
It's been a minute since we've recorded a podcast.
Dave Schmidt (03:03):
Yeah.
I'm a little sad today.
Josh Bretl (03:06):
A little Debbie down today, why is that?
Dave Schmidt (03:08):
Yeah.
I'm a little Debbie down today,because I saw what we're talking
about, I saw the show notes.
Josh Bretl (03:13):
This is not your favorite topic.
Dave Schmidt (03:15):
No, it's not.
So hopefully, you'll be able toget me back into a better mood.
And, by the end, we'll bedoing a song and dance.
Josh Bretl (03:27):
I will actually say this is a topic that scares a
lot of people, because it hasa major impact on their lives.
But before we get into thattopic, can I talk about
something else that scares me?
Dave Schmidt: Yeah, a little bit. (03:39):
undefined
Sure, go ahead.
Josh Bretl (03:40):
So I did something that I was afraid
of this last weekend.
Dave Schmidt (03:44):
Bathing?
Josh Bretl (03:45):
No, I'm good with bathing, I'm good with bathing.
I have been for acouple years now.
But I went to a circuswith the children.
I'm not really a circus person,and in my head I was thinking
like Ringling Bros or whatever.
So let me back this up, my wifesays to me last week sometime,
(04:06):
she goes, "Did you see thatTriton College," which is a
small junior college not too farfrom us, "is having a circus?"
It's their 50th anniversaryof this circus, they call
it the Triton Troupers.
I was like, "Sure."
We're at a point in thespring right now where it's
been miserable for a while,anything we can do to get
the kids out of the house.
(04:26):
I'm sure you weredoing the same thing.
Dave Schmidt (04:28):
Yep.
Josh Bretl (04:29):
So I said, "Yeah, let's go to the circus."
Tickets were six-dollars, sowe're not breaking the bank on
this, it was in this gymnasiumof Triton College, which is
smaller than the high school gymyou and I played basketball in.
Glory days,
Dave Schmidt (04:43):
Glory days.
The gym I tackled you in?
Josh Bretl (04:46):
Yeah, that gym.
It was smaller than that.
But I have to say it was asuper pleasant experience.
Dave Schmidt (04:55):
Tell me more.
Josh Bretl (04:55):
So this is not Ringling Bros, this is not
people who are professionalcircus ... Are they actors?
Performers?
Dave Schmidt (05:04):
Oh, how dare you?
Yes, performers.
Josh Bretl (05:06):
These are people like you and I.
There is every age, thereis every body type there is
the this was their passionand they did it on the side.
There were clowns, but theseweren't your creepy clowns,
these were friendly old peopleclowns and friendly young people
clowns and clowns on stilts.
They were friendly though, notlike creepy in the woods come
(05:30):
out of a sewer type of clowns.
Dave Schmidt (05:31):
I don't know what kind of circus you've been
to prior, but usually thoseclowns are not like Pennywise
coming out of the forest.
Josh Bretl (05:38):
But clowns don't usually interact with me
usually in a circus, butthey're waiting for you at
the door, they're helpingyou get in line for tickets.
But the performers, there'smultiple trapeze artists,
there was guys climbing thechairs that got stacked on
top of tables, there wasthe spinning wheels that
people spun themselvesaround in, the rope artists
hanging from the ceiling.
(05:58):
But these are all people thatjust do this on the side,
all live in Chicago, andonce a year they perform.
There was a ringmaster whosung this opening number.
Everyone there was happy, fromthe performers to the audience.
They served popcornand cotton candy and
everything was a dollar.
You weren't gettingjacked around for that.
(06:19):
It was a little long, itprobably was about half-an-hour
longer than it needed to be.
Dave Schmidt (06:24):
Okay, I feel that.
Josh Bretl (06:25):
But if that's my only complaint,
this was fantastic.
There was probably 2000 peoplethat were in there doing this.
Dave Schmidt (06:33):
Wow.
Josh Bretl (06:33):
So watching the circus, and they had two
performances that day, I'm surethe second one sold out as well.
So if anyone's listening,the Triton Troupers Circus
was something that I wouldhighly recommend if you
have children, or even ifyou just feel like a child.
Dave Schmidt (06:50):
First of all, a lot of people are listening,
so I wouldn't say if anyoneis listening, of course,
people are listening to this.
Josh Bretl (06:54):
It was more like, if you feel like a child or if
you have children, if you'relistening and have that.
Dave Schmidt (06:59):
So I feel at home with carnies like that.
Those are my people,because like you said,
they are normal peopledoing what they love to do.
I'm sure they're notgetting paid a whole
lot of money to do that.
Josh Bretl (07:14):
Not at six-dollars a pop on admission.
Dave Schmidt (07:16):
No, definitely not.
Josh Bretl (07:17):
I just hope it was covering their cost.
It was truly, it was cool.
Dave Schmidt (07:21):
Carnivals and circuses pop up a lot in my
universe, my universe of creepymovies and shows, and I just
have a deep, deep love for it.
Josh Bretl (07:28):
Actually, maybe this was a moment over
the weekend where I hadmy inner Dave come out.
I felt like I was part,I was really enjoying it.
It was cool.
Dave Schmidt (07:38):
You had been taking more strides
in life to be like me,which I do appreciate.
Josh Bretl (07:43):
We're going to meet in the middle someday.
Someday way down the road.
Dave Schmidt (07:47):
In return, I'm drinking out of your
University of Illinois mug.
Josh Bretl (07:50):
I have noticed this, the last two days
you've been stealing mycoffee cup in the office.
Dave Schmidt (07:54):
Mm-hmm.
couple reasons, one, I want tobe like you when I grow up, but
two, I like the matte finish.
It's just a nice feeling mug.
Josh Bretl (08:03):
It's a nice size, it's wide, but it also
narrows in the middle so theheat doesn't escape too bad.
It's a good coffee mug.
Dave Schmidt (08:09):
It reminds me of Medicare Part D.
Josh Bretl (08:11):
Medicare Part D.
Medicare.
Dave Schmidt (08:14):
Medicare, baby.
Josh Bretl (08:18):
So that's our topic today.
Dave Schmidt (08:19):
Yeah, yeah.
People are well aware of that.
Josh Bretl (08:21):
I've been putting it off for a while, it's not
something that ... Actually,Medicare is not something
that we do in our office.
We don't sell Medicare,we don't participate.
We do, we have people herewho are of Medicare age,
my father being included.
But we don't, this is notsomething we do for our
clients on a normal basis.
(08:42):
But because it is such anintegral part of people's
lives and retirement, it'ssomething that we talk about
with every single clientthat walks in the door, and
it's probably one of thebiggest questions people have.
Dave Schmidt (08:53):
I bet.
It seems very confusing.
Josh Bretl (08:55):
Well, when someone turns 64, I don't know why 64 is
the magic age, I think they wantto give themselves 12 months,
they start receiving more mail,junk mail about Medicare than
they could possibly imagine.
Dave Schmidt (09:09):
From who?
Josh Bretl (09:10):
People that want to sell them Medicare.
You know the stereotypethat used car salesmen have?
Dave Schmidt (09:15):
Mm-hmm.
Josh Bretl (09:16):
Medicare people may be worse on a whole.
It's hard to find agood Medicare person.
We're not going to talkabout that, you already
know this, but there's apart-two to this series here.
Part-two, we are going todo our first live interview,
and we, for years, havenever referred out Medicare
(09:36):
stuff, because there wasn'tanyone we could trust.
There was no one out there.
We finally have found awonderful Medicare person.
The way it happened was myfather was turning 65, he was
becoming of Medicare age, andhe didn't know who to turn to.
He had a really goodfriend from high school
who said to him, "Hey, Ihad this great experience
with this guy Dave Wylly.
(09:56):
You should sit down with him."
So he did and this waslife-changing, because we
get approached all the timeby Medicare people, "Hey,
send me your clients."
No, thank you.
But Dave Wylly has been alife-saver for our clients
and for us, he reallydoes a great job and his
knowledge is second-to-none.
So part-two of this podcastseries I spent 20 minutes
(10:18):
talking to Dave about reallythe inner workings of it.
So today, I want to talkabout how it impacts retirees
in some of the higher levelstuff, so that when people
listen to part-two withDave and myself, they have,
not you, Dave, they have abetter understanding of it.
Dave Schmidt (10:34):
Let's get going, baby.
Josh Bretl (10:39):
Now, just so you guys know, if Dave sounds really
excited during this podcast,this is probably the one topic
that we talk about that boresthe absolute snot out of you.
I think it has to do with thefact that it's almost more
nuance-y than the tax code.
Alex (10:55):
Hashtag tax nerd.
Dave Schmidt (10:57):
So Josh, what I do appreciate about you
though, it's such an enthrallingtopic, you didn't even bother
involving Erin, because shewould have fallen asleep.
You took the time to write outa nice bullet point list of what
we'll be talking about today.
Josh Bretl (11:08):
I did.
I wanted to hit some of the highlevel stuff, before Dave and I
dig into it on part-two here.
But planning for healthcarein retirement is a
significant componentof anyone's retirement.
We talk about our own retirementplanning process, and there's
five components to it.
One of them is healthcare,even though we don't work
with Medicare here, healthcareis a major component.
(11:30):
It's going to be a big expensefor a lot of people, and taking
control of it really matters.
So depending upon when youretire will depend upon what
your healthcare looks like.
If you retire prior to age 65,you're going to have to find
some private insurance, maybecontinuation of your company
policy, maybe we have to goover to the Exchange and find
(11:52):
some health insurance thatway, but that's part of it.
But when you turn 65, almosteveryone in this country
will be impacted in some way,shape or form by Medicare.
Dave Schmidt (12:03):
Can I interrupt?
This may be one of the fewtimes I have a question,
because you say almost everyone,who is not part of that?
Or is that not somethingyou want to get into?
Josh Bretl (12:11):
No, that's a good question.
In fact, as I said that,I'm in my head going,
"It's never everybody, butit's a pretty good chunk."
So when I say almosteverybody, a lot of times
if people are still working,they won't get Medicare.
We have clients thatwe've talked about before
who are moving overseas,they won't use Medicare.
If you die beforeyou get Medicare, you
won't use Medicare.
(12:32):
But other than that, almostevery single person will
be impacted in some way,shape or form by Medicare.
We talk about Social Security,there's a chunk of our
population who doesn't getSocial Security because they
have some other private pensionor some other public pension.
But Medicare, ittouches everybody.
So it can become extremelyimportant in knowing
(12:52):
some of the rules andstuff that go into there.
So did that answeryour question?
Dave Schmidt (12:57):
That's where my head was at.
I figured it was justnuanced, it was more based
on if you're still workingor dead or things like that.
Josh Bretl (13:04):
No, that's the big one.
People worry about Medicare,it's a government sponsored,
it's a government runprogram, and some people
get really hesitant aboutgovernment run programs.
For the most part, it's actuallypretty darn good insurance.
Unless you're coming fromsome amazing insurance policy,
Medicare is not bad Now, theproblem with Medicare is not
(13:29):
every person will accept it.
Dave Schmidt (13:32):
Not every doctor?
Josh Bretl (13:33):
Physician, not every doctor, provider will accept it.
The reason they don't isbecause if they accept
Medicare, they have toplay by Medicare's rules.
Now, the vast majority, vastmajority accept Medicare.
Even in Chicago, some of thebiggest hospitals, Northwestern,
Rush, University of Chicago,they're all Medicare facilities.
So one of the things thathappens though is if they
(13:56):
accept Medicare, theyfollow Medicare's rules.
If they accept Medicare, itdoesn't matter what they think,
what they want to do, they haveto play by Medicare's rules.
Dave Schmidt (14:05):
Sure.
Josh Bretl (14:06):
So the first thing you have to do is
you have to find a providerthat accepts Medicare, and I
will tell you most providersthat people are used to have
probably accepted Medicare.
So if that's the case, let'stalk a little bit about it.
The magic age forMedicare is 65 years old.
Dave Schmidt (14:25):
You're looking at me like, " Confirm that, Dave."
As if you want meto fact-check you.
Josh Bretl (14:30):
Can you be my Medicare fact-checker today?
Dave Schmidt (14:32):
Check the Google, Google says yes.
Josh Bretl (14:34):
That's what next week with Dave
is for, Dave Wylly.
But 65 years oldis the magic age.
Now, there are ways thatpeople get it younger if
they're disabled or havecertain medical conditions,
but everyone at 65 yearsold becomes eligible for it.
Okay?
Dave Schmidt (14:51):
Yeah.
Josh Bretl (14:51):
Now, there are three parts to Medicare,
and I'm actually going togo off of our notes here.
Our notes say thereare four parts.
They say, "A, B, C, and D."
I'm actually going totake C out of it, C is
not technically a part ofMedicare, it's a different
option as that comes in.
We're going to talk about thatin depth next week with Dave.
Dave Schmidt (15:13):
Okay.
Josh Bretl (15:14):
But A, B and D are all federally run
Medicare programs, theyall cover different parts.
So A is free, everybody getsA, it doesn't cost anything.
A is your hospital coverage,it covers the building
that you walk into.
B, you have to sign upfor, you have to apply
(15:36):
for it, and B costs money.
It doesn't matter whoyou are, every month,
B, you will pay for B.
Same with D.
Now, B covers the person insidethe building, so it covers
your doctors, your nurses,things along those lines.
D, which is the newest formof Medicare, covers your
prescription drugs, so it coversthe medications that you take.
(15:58):
There's different ruleswith it, you can enroll
in A and not B and D.
A lot of people do that, A,being free, might as well
have some additional coverage.
A lot of people will waitto enroll for B or D until
they retire or need it orwhenever that comes into play.
If you don't do it in a timelymanner, there can be penalties
and things along those lines,but just be aware of that there.
C is what we call a MedicareAdvantage Plan, it's not run
(16:23):
by the US government, it'srun by private insurance.
So if you take C, youdon't get A and B.
We'll get into that nextweek, but when people
talk about C, it's nottruly federal insurance.
Dave Schmidt (16:33):
Got it.
Run by the BlueCrosses of the world?
Josh Bretl (16:37):
Yeah, private insurance companies.
Now cost and coverage, ourbullet point here on cost
and coverage, Medicarecan be costly, and it is
important to understandtrue out-of-pocket expenses.
So looking at your ownindividual situation, you
want to look at premiums,deductibles, co-payments,
and coinsurance, andMedicare has all of those.
(16:59):
But also, how much you paydetermines on your income.
So as we're doing taxplanning for people, one of
the additional taxes thatpeople have is the increased
Medicare cost, we call itthe IRMAA thresholds, Income
Related Monthly AdjustmentAmount, I think is what
IRMAA stands for there.
Dave Schmidt (17:16):
Oh, two As at the end.
Josh Bretl (17:16):
Yeah, there's two As.
I always forget if it'stwo As or two Ms, it's
either IRMMA or IRMAA.
I think it's the secondone, I'm not positive.
If Erin was here, she'd correctme, she corrects me every
time, but I never remember.
So it's like spellingrestaurant, I can't
spell restaurant.
Dave Schmidt (17:34):
You can't spell restaurant?
Josh Bretl (17:35):
No, it's start with an R and ends with a T.
There's stuff in the middle,there's a U, there's an A,
there's an R, what orderit goes in, I can't spell
it for the life of me.
Dave Schmidt (17:42):
No, I am a former spelling bee champ,
2nd, 3rd and 4th grade, soI'm a little embarrassed to
be sitting across the table.
You eat at so many restaurants.
Josh Bretl (17:51):
Yeah, I can probably spell the name of
the restaurants more thanI can spell restaurant.
Dave Schmidt: Spell Fogo de Chao. (17:56):
undefined
Josh Bretl (17:57):
F-O-G-O D-E C-H ... I don't know.
Dave Schmidt: You're like, "Meat." (18:00):
undefined
All right, perfect.
Moving on, moving on.
He can't spellrestaurant, folks.
Josh Bretl (18:08):
Now, Medicare only covers certain components,
there's a limit to what Medicarewill cover, so that's where the
co-payments, the coinsurance,that comes into play.
What a lot of people willbuy on top of Medicare is a
Medicare supplement, sometimesreferred to as a Medigap Policy.
It makes up the differences,and those are sold by private
(18:31):
insurance companies, so the BlueCrosses of the world, United
Healthcare, all of that stuff.
So all of that junk mailthat I told you people were
getting, it's not comingfrom the US government, it's
coming from these insurancecompanies that want to sell
people those Medigap orMedicare supplements, as well
as the Medicare Advantage.
A lot of it's MedicareAdvantage, they love to
(18:51):
sell Medicare Advantage,big commissions in those.
Dave Schmidt (18:54):
Sure.
Josh Bretl (18:55):
Now, for some people they work well, but you want
to make an educated decisionas that comes into play.
Dave Schmidt (19:00):
I've started researching that for when
I retire and get my calfimplants, I need to have
specific Medigap insurance.
Josh Bretl (19:06):
I've seen your calves, you don't need implants.
Dave Schmidt (19:08):
But I want them bigger.
Josh Bretl (19:09):
You want them bigger?
I think they have realityshows about that out in
Los Angeles somewhere.
Dave Schmidt (19:15):
I'm sure they do.
Josh Bretl (19:18):
Now, for A and B, you're not usually looking
to review that every year.
Now, you might reviewyour Medigap coverage or
your supplement there,because the pricing could
change, there are differentthings that could happen.
Now, the nice thingwith Medigap insurance,
Dave Schmidt (19:36):
Supplement?
Josh Bretl (19:37):
The supplement, is every company is required
to cover the same things.
Dave Schmidt (19:42):
Okay.
Josh Bretl (19:43):
So every company's policy is identical, but
they may have differentpremium amounts, so they
may cost different amounts.
So looking at those on anannual basis becomes important.
Dave Schmidt (19:53):
Are you locked into terms or contracts?
Josh Bretl (19:55):
I'm going to get into that next week with
Dave Wylly a little bit.
When you first sign up, be itage 65 or whenever you retire,
you can go to any company youwant, they can't limit you
based on preexisting conditions.
But if you changecompanies, they can run
you through a medical.
So the first decisionyou make, you have to
(20:16):
be well aware of that.
So if you change, if you wantto switch at 75 years old and
you've been on it for 10 years,they can actually decline you.
Dave Schmidt (20:23):
Okay.
Josh Bretl (20:23):
Now, there is one company here in Illinois, Blue
Cross Blue Shield that doesnot, they'll take anybody,
so it's nice to have that oneadvantage or that one plan
that's out there for that.
Now, the other part isprescription drug coverage.
Dave Schmidt (20:40):
Part D.
Josh Bretl (20:41):
Part D, that is something that you want to
look at every single year.
The reason for it is becausethe drugs you take every year
could change, each companycovers drugs differently.
There is no federal mandateto say, "Hey, you have to
cover this drug by this muchand that drug by this much."
Every company getsto determine that.
Dave Schmidt (21:00):
Oh, wow.
So it's like lineitem by line item.
Josh Bretl (21:02):
Line item by line item, and this happens in the
fourth quarter every year,you need to look at that.
They cover it with differentamounts, so one company
may say, "Hey, this is afive-dollar a month drug."
The other company may say thatsame drug, the same prescription
might be $50 a month.
Dave Schmidt (21:17):
That could change year to year?
Josh Bretl (21:19):
Year to year.
Dave Schmidt (21:20):
Wow.
Josh Bretl (21:20):
So just because it was cheap this year,
doesn't mean it's goingto be cheap next year.
So Every year that issomething that needs to be
re-looked at, and Dave has agreat strategy of how he does
that and what he recommends.
So Medicare is something thatpeople should not be afraid of,
it's not something that theyshould run away with fear, but
it's something that they needto look at every single year.
(21:42):
It's something that, ifthey're truly going to
own their retirement,this is part of that.
This is not something youwant to bury your head in
the sand, this is somethingthat you want to be proactive
in that planning process.
Dave Schmidt (21:53):
I like it, because it sounds a lot like
when you talk about taxes.
You retire, you have all thiscontrol with your taxes, and
with Medicare, same thing.
You have all this control inyour retirement, you've just got
to make sure you actually do it.
Josh Bretl (22:07):
Yeah.
It's your life, this is a timewhen you actually have the
power to do something about it.
Taxes, investments, healthinsurance, it's all-
Dave Schmidt (22:15):
Sushi restaurants that Josh can't spell.
Josh Bretl (22:18):
Sushi, I can spell sushi.
Dave Schmidt (22:19):
Well, yeah.
You can spell sushi.
Josh Bretl (22:21):
S-U-S-H-I.
Restaurant?
Mm-mm.
Dave Schmidt (22:24):
What's the plural of sushi?
Josh Bretl (22:26):
Sushi's.
I don't know.
But no, that is thejoy of Medicare.
Didn't I make thatpainless for you?
Dave Schmidt (22:38):
You did, and actually we're doing
really good on time too.
I'm really quite impressed.
Josh Bretl (22:41):
You thought I was going to drone on and on.
Dave Schmidt (22:44):
I thought so.
I thought you'd be like,at 24-minute mark, still
on bullet point two.
Josh Bretl (22:49):
That's what next week's for, I knew we
were doing a two-parter.
Dave Schmidt (22:51):
Yeah.
Josh Bretl (22:53):
I encourage everyone to come back for next
week's, or the next episode,it won't be next week, but
next episode, because we'vealready recorded it, it's
a fantastic recap there.
Dave Schmidt (23:01):
Perfect.
Well, you did cover allof our bullet points.
Anything else you'd like to sayon Medicare or are you good?
Josh Bretl (23:08):
No, I want to get to know you.
Dave Schmidt (23:11):
Josh, it's so forthcoming of you.
Yeah, what?
What?
Okay.
Hey, Mister Josh,let's take a break.
You've been talking for solong and my ears are sore.
Let's not make them snore,listening shouldn't be a chore.
Nope.
So let's get toknow Josh and Dave-
Okay.
(23:31):
and watch our ratings soar!
Josh Bretl (23:31):
Cheep, cheep.
Dave Schmidt (23:32):
Aw, yeah.
Were you planning that,or was that impromptu?
Josh Bretl (23:44):
No, I actually was not planning that, but
as I was listening to thesong, I was thinking, "What
bird can I do this time?"
I went, "Cheep, cheep."
Dave Schmidt (23:53):
You would be a great candidate to take
classes at Second City, theway you come up with these
bird sounds is just majestic.
Josh Bretl (24:00):
Oh, yeah.
Me and improv, I canroll with anything.
Dave Schmidt (24:04):
You do love to talk.
So all right, we've got PodDecks over there, you did not
go through it, so I assumeyou have a question for me.
Josh Bretl (24:10):
I did not, but like the bird sound, I came
up with a question and it'ssomething that I don't know
about you that I'd like to.
Dave Schmidt (24:20):
Again, very forthcoming.
I appreciate that.
Josh Bretl (24:22):
So if you were to be in the circus, what
part of the circus wouldyou like to partake in?
Dave Schmidt (24:31):
Oh, my ... That's a great question.
I've considered a career inthe circus, believe you me.
Josh Bretl (24:40):
I actually do believe you.
Dave Schmidt (24:41):
Oh, absolutely.
It would be amazing.
So apart from me nothaving horns on my head
or being eight-feet tall-
Josh Bretl (24:49):
yeah, the circus didn't have any of that.
Are you going tospin yourself around?
Flip upside-down?
Dave Schmidt (24:54):
No, no.
Josh Bretl (24:54):
Ooh, you're the strong man.
Dave Schmidt (24:56):
Definitely not the strong man.
So you've played basketball withme a few times in your life.
Josh Bretl (25:01):
A couple times in the past.
Dave Schmidt (25:04):
Do you remember what our good friend Kevin
used to say about me?
Josh Bretl (25:06):
You couldn't get a piece of paper under your legs?
Dave Schmidt (25:09):
Yeah, I have a negative vertical jump.
So if I were part of the circus,I would be the Cirque de Soleil.
I'd be the acrobats up in theair doing flips, the trapeze
artist, because it would belike I'm floating on air and
my big massive body wouldbe flung around by people.
Josh Bretl (25:28):
Can you imagine the girls who'd try to catch you,
like you're flying at them.
Dave Schmidt (25:35):
If I'm retired, I'm going to
have my calf implants,so I'd be even heavier.
Just like I've never beenable to dunk, something about
being able to just float andfly, that is what I'd be.
I think if I remember thenames right, Dick Grayson in
Batman, I believe he was theRobin in Batman, his family
(25:55):
was trapeze artists and that'show his parents died actually.
Josh Bretl (25:58):
Oh, that's sad.
Dave Schmidt (25:59):
Yeah, very sad.
Josh Bretl (26:00):
Let's bring it down.
Let's make everybodycry here, Dave.
Dave Schmidt (26:05):
Yeah, that's how we do it, Josh.
How about you?
Josh Bretl (26:08):
Well, I definitely don't want to fly,
I have a fear of heights.
I get motion sickness.
In fact, the last act werethese ladies on ropes spinning
themselves around like crazy,and my son Alex looks at
me, he goes, "I'd throw-up."
I was like, "Yeah,me too, buddy."
Dave Schmidt (26:22):
That's awesome.
Josh Bretl (26:24):
I'd want to be the ringmaster.
Dave Schmidt (26:26):
Oh.
Would you sing?
Josh Bretl (26:27):
Oh, yeah.
I'd sing.
If you're flying throughthe air, I'm singing.
Here's why, and again, I'venever been to the circus
before, but this guy comes outin the first act and it's like
everyone's out there and heis singing, he is getting the
energy up, and he has command.
He was the first person tomake everybody happy, and
I was like, "I want to makepeople happy like that guy."
Dave Schmidt (26:49):
You want to set the stage.
Josh Bretl (26:51):
I want to set the stage for it.
So I want to be the ringmaster.
Dave Schmidt (26:53):
It is funny how-
Josh Bretl (26:54):
that will surprise nobody.
My mother will listento this thing and go,
"Yep, of course you do."
Dave Schmidt (26:59):
You have to control everything.
I too have a fear ofheights, and I get
motion sickness as well.
I just think it goes backto, if I'm in the circus,
I can be somebody who I'mnot in my day-to-day life.
I can be flying like asoaring eagle through the
air going, "Ca-ca" like you.
Josh Bretl (27:15):
Cheep, cheep.
Dave Schmidt (27:16):
Yeah.
Maybe poop on a fewpeople in the audience.
That's a really greatimpromptu get-to-know
Josh and Dave question.
Josh Bretl (27:24):
I'm glad, the cards are way down there,
I couldn't reach them.
Dave Schmidt (27:29):
Speaking of can't reach, I can't
really see the screen.
Hang on.
Josh Bretl (27:32):
Oh, hold on.
Alex (27:33):
Hashtag tax nerd.
Dave Schmidt (27:34):
Nope, that's not the one I want.
Josh Bretl (27:35):
Wrong button.
Dave Schmidt (27:35):
Yep, wrong one.
Josh Bretl (27:36):
Is this the one?
Dave Schmidt (27:37):
Dave relates to retirees.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Josh Bretl (27:43):
I didn't walk over the top-
Dave Schmidt (27:44):
No, I appreciate that.
Okay, so despite Medicare beingreally boring to me, I have
two takeaways about Medicare.
One is that everybody getsit, regardless of whether
or not they want it.
The second part is that you'regoing to have it assigned
to you, you have options, soyou better optimize it for
(28:04):
yourself and for your situation.
Okay?
Josh Bretl (28:07):
Okay.
Dave Schmidt (28:07):
So it's just like US history class in high school.
Josh Bretl (28:13):
Mr.
Tourney?
Dave Schmidt (28:15):
Yeah.
Anybody that knows me, oranybody that's listened to
the podcast knows that Istruggled during high school,
I was very disinterested.
Josh Bretl (28:22):
Just with academics.
Other than that,you were rock solid.
Dave Schmidt (28:26):
Off-campus lunch and basketball
were my strengths.
So I was forced to takeUS history, I had no
interest, I still don't,and I'm thinking, "Okay.
Well, I've got to take thisclass, so how can I make
the best use of this time?"
I have two options, eitherI could say, "No, I'm not
taking US history, I'mgoing to drop out of high
(28:47):
school and become one ofthose cool kids that just-"
Josh Bretl (28:49):
How close were you to that?
Dave Schmidt (28:51):
Oh, hours.
It was a realistic option,I would disappoint my
whole family, my parents,drop out of high school.
Josh Bretl (28:58):
You get used to that after a while, I've heard.
Dave Schmidt (29:00):
And work at Bruegger's Bagels
the rest of my life.
Or option B, I could bullymy friend Josh into doing
my homework and projectsfor me, so that I would
pass US history class.
I say the word bully, I reallydidn't, I asked really nicely.
I'm like, "Hey, canyou help me with this?"
As soon as you started helpingme, I walked away and let
(29:21):
you take over everything.
Josh Bretl (29:23):
You're actually remembering it incorrectly.
Dave Schmidt (29:25):
Really?
Josh Bretl (29:25):
Yeah.
You actually put in so littleeffort that I was worried about
you graduating from high school.
Dave Schmidt (29:32):
I tried to give myself more credit,
tell me how it really went.
Josh Bretl (29:36):
No.
We were doing projects and Iliked US history class, actually
I liked the teacher a lot, hewas very big into technology,
we were making videos, we didall sorts of really cool stuff.
You just refusedto do any of it.
You were a new buddingfriendship that I had, and I was
like, "Dave, do you want help?
You have to do this.
(29:57):
Here, let's do it."
I remember sitting up in theCreativity Lab in the second
floor of York High School, andI made you get pictures ... I
think your mother gave methe pictures to use in the
project, and I did make yousit there with me and do it.
Dave Schmidt (30:13):
This is coming back.
This is all coming back.
Josh Bretl (30:15):
I was like, "I'm going to make you
graduate high school."
Dave Schmidt (30:17):
Oh, my God.
You're right.
You did ask my mom for pictures.
Why was I the only seniorin that class of juniors?
Josh Bretl (30:23):
Because you failed it junior year.
You did, you weretake-two on this.
Dave Schmidt (30:28):
Oh, my gosh.
This has become very humbling.
Josh Bretl (30:34):
But your background to this, I understand it, sure.
Now, I hope you take more,when it's time for Medicare
for you, or anyone who'slistening, I'm sure you're not
the only one who's listeningthat felt the same way about a
certain class in high school.
Dave Schmidt (30:51):
Yeah.
Josh Bretl (30:51):
But when it's time for Medicare, you need
to either figure it out onyour own, or find someone
like me who's really going tocare about you and make sure
that you do what's right.
Because yes, you couldhave dropped out of high
school and I'm glad youdidn't, as is Becks, but
(31:13):
...Dave Schmidt: And Big Mike.
And Big Mike.
But with Medicare, you don'thave a choice, and they're
not going to drop you out,there's not an option B, you
can't just do something else.
You're going to get it, and itcould be a financial nightmare,
or it can determine what kindof ... If you have a health
issue or something like that, itcan determine how much coverage
(31:34):
or what kind of care you canget afterwards, and how much
money you can waste and lose,and things along those lines.
So I do see it, and there arepeople out there who care about
you and will make sure thatyou graduate, or at least that
you get the right coverage, youdon't pay more than you have
to, and you can put yourselfand your family in a situation
(31:57):
where you own your healthcarecoverage and retirement.
Dave Schmidt (32:00):
I'm going to give people a little inside scoop
as to what's going through myhead right now, not as if I
ever hold back, but I imagineJosh and I and our friend Matt
having dinner or lunch whenwe're 65 years old, talking
about the good old days.
The topic will come up,Josh will be like, "Matt,
how are you doing withyour Medicare coverage?"
Matt will be like,"I'm doing great, Josh.
How are you?"
(32:20):
Josh will be like, "Oh,I've been set for years."
The both of you will slowlylook at me, I'll have a
stack of papers, I'll havedisheveled hair, and I'll just
throw the papers in the air,I'll be like, "I am so lost."
Josh will be like,"David, I've got you."
That's how I see it going.
Josh Bretl (32:35):
I've got you.
Dave Schmidt (32:36):
I've got you.
Josh Bretl (32:37):
I'm also a year younger than you, so I'll
have to be proactive andmake sure that you get your
stuff taken care of here.
Dave Schmidt (32:44):
Fair enough, man.
Who knew we'd have somuch fun with Medicare?
Did you know that?
Josh Bretl (32:48):
That was the most serious DR2R, we
really went back deep nottalking about basketball.
Dave Schmidt (32:55):
I do appreciate bringing to light the facts
of how it all went downin high school, not my
revisionist history of it.
All right, Josh, let's givepeople ... So part-two is
coming up in a few weeks here.
Josh Bretl (33:11):
Yeah, we're going to talk to David Wylly, our
local Medicare expert who werefer to in our office, and
we really break down somenitty-gritty, some of the things
that everyone needs to know.
If that's all you know,it should be enough to get
you through US history.
But it's a great podcast,it's not boring, it will not
(33:31):
put you to sleep like it didto Dave in US history class.
But it's a must listen foranyone who is going to have
Medicare be part of their life.
Dave Schmidt (33:42):
Perfect.
For some people likeme, I have no choice,
I have to listen to it.
Josh Bretl (33:45):
That's true, yeah.
Dave Schmidt (33:46):
Awesome.
So we're not saying byeanymore, instead we're
saying, "Arrivederci, Josh."
Is that how you say it?
Arrivederci.
Josh Bretl (33:55):
I can't spell restaurant, you
want me to say that?
Dave Schmidt (33:57):
Arrivederci.
Josh Bretl (33:57):
Buenos noches.
Dave Schmidt (33:58):
Buenos noches, I like it.
All right, cool.
Alex (34:02):
Hashtag tax nerd.
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