Dan Drews: [00:00:00] Okay. Get situated

Dan Drews: Hello, everyone, and welcome to Aging in Place, the Greater Naperville Area’s family guide. Our goal here is to help the sandwich generation, which is middle-aged adults, typically in their 40s to 60s, who are squeezed by the responsibility of simultaneously supporting their aging parents and raising their own children.

Dan Drews: We wanna help their parents age gracefully as possible and reduce stress through education and community connection. It takes a village, folks, and there are a lot of great resources and ideas that we try to uncover through expert guests that know the local area very, very well. I am your host, Dan Drews, and with me is my co-host and sponsor, Brennan Roberts, the owner of Seniors Helping Seniors for the Greater Naperville Area.

Dan Drews: And we also wanna thank one of our other supporters, the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce, who is a great advocate for all businesses [00:01:00] that support seniors in the Naperville area. Brennan, good to see you again. How are things at Seniors Helping Seniors? 

Brennen Roberts: Oh, doing great. You know, we’re… feel like our work is very rewarding, getting to work with people all the time.

Brennen Roberts: And as you know, we, uh, help seniors kind of age with grace and live in their homes as long as they can. And we do it through, uh, non-medical home care, such as, like, companionship, activities, support with, uh, the house, um, activities of daily living. And we do it through this unique intergenerational model, where our caregivers are primarily seniors themselves who are really able to connect with their peers on a, on a, on a good basis.

Brennen Roberts: So it’s like getting help from a friend in many cases. 

Dan Drews: Well, it’s a great model, and thank you for all the work you do in the Naperville area. I know we all appreciate it, so. Folks, our show today is gonna focus on how to prepare your parents and yourself for the steps of navigating Medicare and healthcare insurance in retirement.

Dan Drews: To help us with that, we are lucky to be joined by [00:02:00] Sheril Hagie. Sheril is a financial professional and senior health consultant at Advocate Insurance Agency. She is qualified to assist individuals, families, and small businesses through the complex insurance world. Sheril spends most of her days educating clients on the best ways to implement the different insurance products that best fit their specific situation, from Medicare and life insurance to disability and long-term care policies.

Dan Drews: Sheril, thank you for joining us today. Thank you. We’re so glad to have you here. Can you tell us a little bit about what got you into this business? 

Sheril Hagie: Uh, my aging parents- Mm … uh, basically got me into this business. I took my dad on in 2012 after my mother passed away in 2011 and, um, had to help him navigate through his insurance.

Sheril Hagie: Um, too expensive, was bankrupting him. Um, just- You know, [00:03:00] thank my parents for this and, you know- I th- 

Dan Drews: I think that’s what gets us in a lot into this ki- kind- Yeah … of business. Yeah. Brendan, I know you had a similar case. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Yeah, I think I’ve heard that a lot. That was a similar thing with me, trying to help my father navigate his way through the, you know, home care, assisted living, nursing home, and just, you know, if you’re not familiar with it, it’s can be overwhelming for people.

Brennen Roberts: Correct. And certainly there’s so many layers of it, just the care, but then the financial and insurance is just so confusing. And I know as a child, trying to help take over his financials and preparing insurance- Yes … I was very, very confused. And so, you know, I, you know, I appreciate people like you that are helping- 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah

Brennen Roberts: our parents and other people’s parents and stuff work through that, ’cause it’s so important and it’s overwhelming, 

Dan Drews: you know? Yes. E- even in preparing for today, I’ve been impressed about all the things that I didn’t know about, call it red tape, potholes. Everything we’re gonna talk about today, there’s tons of it, right?

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm. It’s everywhere. 

Sheril Hagie: There is a lot of it. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Um, and it’s [00:04:00] everywhere, and it’s very hard to navigate for your seniors. I’m… I don’t care how- smart you are, how educated you are, it is a difficult thing to navigate. Um 

Dan Drews: And is that overwhelming feeling probably a lot what you get from your clients?

Dan Drews: They just don’t know where to start or how to start? 

Sheril Hagie: It… Correct, very overwhelmed. Um, received a phone call a couple of days ago from a woman. Um, she contacted Lisle Park District, and they gave her my name, and she’s retiring. She’s 64. Um, she went on the website and couldn’t make heads or tails of it. Wow.

Sheril Hagie: And she’s an educated woman, um, getting ready to retire. She’s, she even said to me, she goes, “I’ve got two master’s degrees.” 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. “

Sheril Hagie: And this is overwhelming for me. I’m not sure where to go, what to do first. Um, I’m getting conflicting stories from friends and neighbors. Um, and then you go on a website, and y- you get conflicting things there,” she said, “So I just need help.”

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. You don’t trust what- So … you’re gonna get out of AI these [00:05:00] days. Correct. Yeah, it’s, um… I just think that’s true, just, um, a lot of things with the children or… And anytime you’re, no matter how smart you are, anytime you’re navigating something for the first time, and you really don’t- 

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm … 

Brennen Roberts: have to worry about it too much, and- Right

Brennen Roberts: until you have to worry about it. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Brennen Roberts: And then you don’t know what questions to ask and where to go and what the resources are. 

Sheril Hagie: And people are also afraid of, in their words, messing it up, because it’s going to be very hard to un-mess up once you create that mess. If you click the wrong box or you, you know, you click the wrong date or enter in a wrong date for something, you know, then you’re going through another portion of red tape to get all of that undone.

Dan Drews: Oh. Yeah. So. It’s, it’s like me trying to put a sump pump in my house. If I… I know- … if I screw it up in the beginning, the whole thing’s gonna be a mess. Oh, my gosh. Right? But, but to that point, we need experts like yourself to kind of make sure that we’re pointed in the right direction so that we don’t have to undo a lot of errors in the long term, so.

Sheril Hagie: Right. Yeah. And, and people don’t know where to go. You know, they’ll [00:06:00] call somewhere, and they’ll be like, “You do it all online. Just go online. Just Google it.” No, you Google Medicare… I, I have it in one of my presentations. If you Google Medicare, you get some sort of crazy number like 3 billion responses- Oh, my 

Brennen Roberts: gosh.

Brennen Roberts: Oh. 

Sheril Hagie: If you Google Medicare. Um, it’s crazy. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. It’s everyone’s wanting to get a piece of the action- It’s- … ’cause there’s so much- Correct … money and, you know, insurance and care. So, um- It’s … yeah. It’s, it’s, it’s, it’s very confusing. So, I mean- 

Dan Drews: Well, why don’t we start at the beginning about why this is so important, right?

Dan Drews: You, you had some, uh, stats that you gave us, too. About 64% of future retirees believe that Medicare will cover their long-term care costs. Um, what… Talk a little bit about what’s the perception, I guess, and the reality. 

Sheril Hagie: So perception is that it’s going to cover long-term care There’s people talk to their neighbors and they’ll be [00:07:00] like, “My mom’s getting paid for.”

Sheril Hagie: Well, what they don’t understand is their mom is on Medicaid. Mm-hmm. So, and that’s a whole other animal. But Medicare will never cover your long-term care costs. Medicaid will, but you have to financially qualify to be on Medicaid. Um, most people are not gonna qualify to be on Medicaid The fact of the matter is Medicare has never covered long-term care, and it never will cover long-term care.

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: So you have to, when you’re sitting down and doing your financial planning, you’re creating your budget, you’re creating your retirement plan, things like that, you wanna think about long-term care. Chances are you’re gonna need long-term care at some point in your life, whether it be early on or later, or midway through your retirement.

Sheril Hagie: It doesn’t mean that you’re gonna stay on long-term care necessarily. You could, depending on what happens, right? Nobody, um, thinks they’re gonna have a stroke or a heart attack or a [00:08:00] Parkinson’s or MS or something. It comes up later in life. You could have an event where you need long-term care for six months- 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm

Sheril Hagie: and then you’re, you no longer need it, right? So long-term care is something that you should always put in your retirement portfolio. You should always talk about that. You should always think about that. Long-term care is very important. Yeah. 

Dan Drews: And do you find that that’s a difficult conversation for families, including the 80-year-old parents and the 50-year-old kids, like, to, they don’t wanna talk about it?

Dan Drews: Is that, do you find that very often? 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. I do find that a lot, and a lot of it comes down to cost on a long-term care plan. Long-term care, there are several different types of long-term care now, where in the past there was one type of long-term care, and it was use it or lose it. So you’re paying in these exo- ex- exorbitant amounts in premiums, and you may never use it, and then it’s just the insurance company’s making out like a bandit, right?

Sheril Hagie: Because [00:09:00] they’re taking your premiums. You pass away, what happens to the policy? It goes away, right? Um, there are other types of long-term care where you can have it, um, and have beneficiaries. So if you don’t use it, and you pass away, then that money goes to- Hmm … your beneficiary. 

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: So that’s the, the, where I run into problems with people, is they don’t wanna talk about it because of cost.

Sheril Hagie: There are cost-effective ways now to get long-term care, and the younger you are when you buy into it, the better off you are. I always say to people, if you’re planning for retirement in your 30s, 40s or 50s, have that conversation with someone. Put that plan in place now, because if you’re going to pay for it on a monthly basis, your premiums are a lot lower.

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: And your premiums are your premiums. They don’t go up as you age in a different type of long-term care policy. Now, they do if you go into a traditional long-term care. Um, that’s [00:10:00] my last resort, is something traditional, the choose it or lose it. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: But it’s very, very important to have that conversation when you’re younger.

Sheril Hagie: Now, I do have, I’m working with a 76-year-old woman right now who’s putting long-term care in place. 

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: She’s very healthy Um, she is putting in a lump sum of money versus making payments, and you can do that. So she’s pulling money out of a portfolio, and she’s putting in anywhere between 100 and 150,000 into a long-term care policy, into an annuity, a long-term care annuity actually, um, where she’s gonna have a bucket to pull from later on in life if she needs it.

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. But 

Dan Drews: that- Well, that, that could be an interesting strategy. I, um, we were talking with, uh, one of our, uh, financial advisor guests too, with some seniors that have, uh, RMDs, required minimum distributions, and you have to do- Yes … something with that. That sounds maybe- Yes … like a good avenue for that. Yeah.

Sheril Hagie: Correct. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Correct. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Hmm. I mean, it’s like anything, you should plan when [00:11:00] you don’t need it, ’cause if you- Yeah … wait until you absolutely need it- Correct … then it’s a problem, so. And I- 

Sheril Hagie: Yes … 

Brennen Roberts: yeah, I think it’s kind of interesting, it’s just kind of throws you off almost, like, the idea of, like, Medicare, when actually it’s kind of like, uh, Medicare covers the care, but they don’t cover the care, right?

Brennen Roberts: Correct. So, like, obviously in home care we see that all the time, where- 

Sheril Hagie: Yes … 

Brennen Roberts: people are navigating a, they’ve had a health event, and they’ve been in the hospital, and they’re going to skilled care, and then they’re ready to come home, but they need help, you know, getting to the bathroom, doing all that stuff.

Brennen Roberts: Yes. And they’re like, “Can, and Medicare covers this.” No. No, it does not. 

Sheril Hagie: No, it does not. And there are policies out there for that. Um, you know, I’m partnered with a couple of different carriers that you can get a hospital plan, you can get a home health plan, cancer plan, things like that, and they’re pretty inexpensive.

Sheril Hagie: Um, I don’t, I like to educate people. I don’t like to talk, um, at people. I want to educate them and [00:12:00] on the things that are out there to help them, and they’re pretty inexpensive. And the younger you are when you buy into them, the cheaper they’re gonna be. Um, like life insurance- Mm-hmm … or, um, final expense is what we call it when you’re dealing with someone that’s in the, that’s of the older age.

Sheril Hagie: My dad, I didn’t realize he didn’t have a substantial life insurance policy to bury him until he was 80. We had this discussion and he goes, “I have $5,000.” And I’m like, “Oh, oh.” That- “No, hold up here.” 

Brennen Roberts: Not gonna cover a lot. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: So I wrote him on a $10,000 final expense plan when he was 80. 

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: And, you know, it worked beautifully.

Sheril Hagie: Is it expensive? Um, it depends. H- His was $100 a month for $10,000. Um, he passed away four and a half years into that plan, but then I had the $15,000 to bury him. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. [00:13:00] Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: And if anybody knows, it costs between 10 and $15,000 depending on what you’re doing, sometimes more, to bury one of your loved ones. 

Dan Drews: Yeah.

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah, 

Dan Drews: yeah. 

Brennen Roberts: Well, 

Dan Drews: I tell you- So- … one of the things you mentioned there, Sheril, is wanting to help educate people. And for our audience there, regardless of any topic we talk about, you need to find folks like Sheril that don’t wanna talk above your head and confuse you with a lot of, uh, slang terms, but can sit down with you and walk you through it.

Dan Drews: So I applaud you for having that educator kind of mindset for folks that come in. And, and with that, let’s kinda talk about the beginning of the beginning here as we get into how do you even start to sign up for, uh, Medicaid. 

Sheril Hagie: So 

Dan Drews: for Medicare- Or Medicare. I’m sorry. Yep. Look it, I’m already getting it wrong too.

Dan Drews: I, I’m glad we’re having this, this show. 

Sheril Hagie: So for Medicare you want to and start, you wanna start the enrollment process three months before your 65th birthday. So you’re gonna start when you’re 64, so three [00:14:00] months prior, um, to the 65th birthday, and you have the three months prior, the month of your birthday, and three months after.

Sheril Hagie: I never suggest waiting until the month of your birthday or three months after. I always want everyone to start three months prior because it’s a process. Um, you never know how long it’s going to take to be approved, and by that I mean you’re doing it all online now. Um, they really don’t wanna help you in the Social Security office anymore.

Sheril Hagie: They will tell you to go do it all online. If you’re not savvy online, um, it could take a little longer. You’re gonna need help. If the person helping you doesn’t know what to do, then you’re kind of in a mess, right? So you wanna start that beforehand, the three months before. Yeah. Because I have seen it take- Four weeks, eight weeks, 12 weeks to get approved Wow Because you’re filling it out online, it’s going to the Social Security office.

Sheril Hagie: So you sign up through [00:15:00] ssa.gov through Social Security. It’s going to the Social Security office, and it could sit on someone’s desk, which in fact happened when we were calling on someone that we were reaching the 12-week mark and there was still no approval. It was on someone’s desk at the Social Security office.

Brennen Roberts: Well, y- you’d told me earlier that you had gone into Social Security office recently and had, you know, bless them, but they’re- 

Sheril Hagie: Yes … 

Brennen Roberts: pretty understaffed, and you said there was like one person there helping out. 

Sheril Hagie: One person helping. There were two people waiting, and it was a three-hour wait. 

Brennen Roberts: Wow. Oh my goodness.

Sheril Hagie: Um, and I can help you navigate through this process. All you need to do is call me, and I will help you. I’m a no-cost educator. So what that, what does that mean? That means that my dad made me promise to help people, um, and not charge them. And I legally, I, I could charge a consultation fee and help you sign up for Medicare Part B, and A and B, and walk you through the process and things like that.

Sheril Hagie: That’s not part [00:16:00] of who I am. That’s not part of my business standard. My business standard is to educate you and show you how to do this and walk you through it side by side, that way nothing gets missed and you know exactly what is going on. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, you need to know as the client or as the Medicare beneficiary how to do this and what’s going on.

Sheril Hagie: Now, you’re never gonna have to do this again, sign up again, but you should know. You should be there watching. You know, there are questions that I need to ask you that are on there. Some of them are not easy to understand, right? Yeah. So I will sit there with you at no cost and walk you through this process.

Sheril Hagie: I will hold your hand. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, when you first sign up for a ssa.gov account, you, there’s a third-party identifier on there. You have to be identified through id.me or login.gov. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: If it’s your first time signing up, that’s a whole other animal, trying to get verified through [00:17:00] one of those two sites. And I’ve seen it happen.

Sheril Hagie: I’ve sat with somebody in Ottawa, Illinois, and we couldn’t get her verified through either one of those because her email, she had gotten married, didn’t change her name, didn’t change her name on her Social Security number, had two different emails out there, and her address on her driver’s license didn’t match the address of where she was living.

Dan Drews: No kidding. Mm. So- So the do- so this site was just like, “Ah, we can’t, we can’t confirm this is who you are.” Correct. Wow, okay. 

Sheril Hagie: So we ended up calling Social Security, and she did have to make an appointment, and she did have to go into the Social Security office to be physically verified. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: So, yes, it’s, it can be troublesome- 

Brennen Roberts: Absolutely

Sheril Hagie: trying to do this on your own. There’s so many different factors that go into it. 

Brennen Roberts: To your point, you’re like, even if you’re 98% and percent certain that you have the right answer for this question, like, that this is like, feels very important- [00:18:00] Right … to get it right, I’m like, eh, if I had an expert there helping me out.

Sheril Hagie: Well, and there’s also re-entry numbers and things like that. And it, it will say, “Print this page.” Well, if you’re someone that’s not tech savvy, you don’t have a printer, you don’t know how to print that to a PDF and save it on your laptop, things like that, I will do all that for you. If you don’t have an email, we will create you an email.

Sheril Hagie: I will help you set that up on your phone. Mm-hmm. We will send all those documents via, from, I’ll save them all as a PDF, and I will forward them on to you. Um, so it’s, it’s very hard to navigate. You have got re-entry numbers in case you wanna save and go back in and, you know- It’s difficult. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. Ugh. 

Sheril Hagie: And anyone- I-

Sheril Hagie: can set up an ssa.gov account at any time in your life. You don’t have to wait till you’re 64, 65 years old. I set mine up in my 30s. Yeah. 

Dan Drews: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Um. 

Dan Drews: And, and why is that? 

Sheril Hagie: You can watch your Social Security on there. 

Dan Drews: Oh, okay. 

Sheril Hagie: So you have to work 40 [00:19:00] quarters in order to qualify for Medicare. 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, and you can see how many quarters you’ve worked, how much, if you retire now, how much is your Social Security check gonna be.

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Things of that nature. Um, I just signed my husband up. He did not have one. He’s 54, and he watches it now. Once a month, he goes in and he looks at it. And I’m like, “You don’t need to watch it that often.” But, ’cause we’re not near- It’s 

Brennen Roberts: not gonna change that dramatically- Right … in a month. 

Sheril Hagie: We’re not near retirement age.

Sheril Hagie: Right. But, um, yeah, so he’s now set up with one. Yeah. It’s just easier to set it up- I believe when you’re younger. I set up one for both of my kids. They’re 26 and 

Brennen Roberts: 23. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, they both have an ssa.gov account- Mm-hmm … because then they can see how many quarters have you worked. There’s a little green bar and it fills in as you’re working.

Sheril Hagie: Um, so yeah, it’s- That’s it. 

Brennen Roberts: So it sounds like a good recommendation most people wouldn’t know about. 

Sheril Hagie: Correct. 

Brennen Roberts: Go out there and sign up and set your account. Yes. It’ll save you a- at least one step when you get closer to that. 

Sheril Hagie: It will save you at least [00:20:00] one step, and that’s when I get phone calls I’ll, I will say, “Have you signed up for ssa.gov yet?”

Sheril Hagie: And they’ll be like, “What?” “

Brennen Roberts: What? I don’t, I don’t know.” They’ll be like, “What’s 

Dan Drews: that?” Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Right. Yeah, 

Brennen Roberts: yeah. And I- 

Sheril Hagie: And then 

Brennen Roberts: your kids will be like, “Oh, my mom signed me up- 

Sheril Hagie: Right … 

Brennen Roberts: uh, 30 years ago.” 

Sheril Hagie: Exactly. And you wanna save all your login info so you can get in and out of there and, and navigate the site. But yes.

Dan Drews: Yeah. Well, I was also interested to learn that you can also, you might be eligible for Medicare if you’ve got certain medical conditions too, like kidney failure and such. Yes. But, I m- without maybe listing them all, give us a sense of what that means. 

Sheril Hagie: So end care or end stage renal failure. 

Dan Drews: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, that will automatically qualify you.

Sheril Hagie: I do have some clients in their 30s and 40s that are on Medicare. Um, traumatic brain injuries. Really? Things like that, you can’t work. Um, if you are on disability for 24 straight months, on month 25- Hmm … you will be enrolled in Medicare. Uh, I have a personal friend of mine, [00:21:00] she’s 45 years old, she was in a severe car accident in 2014, I think it was.

Sheril Hagie: Uh, traumatic brain injury, a lot of head injuries. Uh, she had a stroke- 

Brennen Roberts: Hmm … 

Sheril Hagie: um, from this, and she has been on Medicare- Hmm … since that accident- 

Brennen Roberts: I 

Sheril Hagie: mean- … because she’s disabled. 

Brennen Roberts: That’s- I imagine that enrollment process is probably even more difficult than, uh- 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. So it’s, you know, it is what it is, but it’s, it’s out there for you if you’ve been on disability.

Sheril Hagie: Um, there are people that have children at home that are in their 20s that are on Medicare because they’ve been on disability. 

Dan Drews: Hmm. Interesting. You know? They- I bet you that is not a commonly known thing in the universe there, yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: It, it is not. Yeah. You know, you have kids that are born with muscular dystrophy- Mm-hmm

Sheril Hagie: um, cerebral palsy, things like that, that have been in wheelchairs since they were, should have been walking, right? Mm-hmm. Um, as they’re growing. And yes, they do qualify [00:22:00] for Medicare. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah, yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm. 

Brennen Roberts: Um, well, I mean, that, that’s great ’cause it’s obviously intended to be the, the safety net and- Correct

Brennen Roberts: healthcare for, for everyone who needs it. You know, as we all know, our healthcare system’s a little, little wonky here in the US . So. 

Sheril Hagie: Right. And they do have requirements that you have to meet- 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: to be on that, but, um- You’re going to qualify for it if you’re, you’re not working, you have been deemed disabled, you’ve been on disability, you know, for 24 straight months.

Sheril Hagie: You’re going to meet one of the- 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: qualifiers on 

Brennen Roberts: there. The, the, the intent is not to have people fall through the cracks- Correct … I think. So as long as you- Correct … as long as you know how to navigate the system a little bit, hopefully you can get there. So. 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. 

Dan Drews: Well, we talked a little bit about, earlier about kind of the timeline.

Dan Drews: I- if you could walk us through that again, too, like when you should enroll in Medicare. And like, if I’m coming into you for the first time, do I need to be bringing in my Social [00:23:00] Security card? You know, what, what sort of, I guess, documentation or things do I need- I- … in order to kind of prepare myself? 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah, and I was also wondering, like you mentioned those dates, too, like does the, does the government send you a notification, like enroll in this?

Brennen Roberts: Or is it just everybody’s supposed to- … intuitively know that they need to 

Sheril Hagie: do it? You will start getting stuff in the mail from the Department of Social Security and Medicare. Really? 

Dan Drews: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: You will. And a lot of people think, because I educate on this, a lot of stuff you do get in the mail is a scam. 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm.

Dan Drews: Oh. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, so don’t, don’t take that as like the word. Um- 

Dan Drews: So what should people be looking for? Like, what, what… The, the logo from 

Sheril Hagie: Social Security in front of it? It’s Social Security Administration Office, and they have that seal. Same thing with Medicare, so you want to look at that. medicare.gov, um, is the Medicare site.

Sheril Hagie: Uh, Medicare, Medicare very rarely communicates with you. Mm. Okay? They’re not going to… 99 per- Mm … I, I’m gonna say this, 99% of the time Social [00:24:00] Security and Medicare will never call you. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: But they do call sometimes. 

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: So I just had a client get a call from Social Security. 

Brennen Roberts: Interesting. Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: She had done something, um, through her portal, and she clicked the wrong box.

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: And they called her, and she called me, and she goes, “Is this true? Will they be calling me?” And I’m like, “What number did they leave you?” 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: So I checked the number, and I said, “Yes, go ahead and call them back. Something must have went wrong with something.” And she goes, “I was in there messing around. I must have clicked something wrong.”

Dan Drews: Hmm. Well, I would- So- … applaud that person for being vigilant like that because- 

Sheril Hagie: Yes … 

Dan Drews: I’m sure as you run into it with your clients, there’s scammers out there all the time trying to replicate, you know? 

Sheril Hagie: And she was afraid to call them back. I made time in my day to go to her house and was there when she called, so we called together.

Dan Drews: Wow, 

Brennen Roberts: that’s great. 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. Great person care. So you, you will get notifications. Um, you want to pay attention to those notifications. I always tell everybody, open [00:25:00] all of your mail. I find with a lot of seniors, they don’t open their mail. 

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: And they will get stuff in the mail, and they will say, “Well, I never got that.”

Sheril Hagie: Yes, you did. Well, I threw that away. If you’re ever questioning anything, call me. I will look at it. If you can snap a picture of it, if I’m in the area, I will come look at it personally. Uh, I have an office at the Lisle Park District, um, in the senior center. You wanna drop it off there with the secretary there, you know, put my name on it, I’ll look at it and I’ll get back to you and tell you this is garbage or this is something that you really need to pay attention to.

Dan Drews: I’ve got a, I’ve got a question on that. I’m curious from your perspective, let’s call it over the last 10 years or so, have you seen an evolution in the, uh, complexity or the, um, I guess the capability of some of these scammers, right? Like- Oh, definitely … you know, where stuff start- 10 years ago stuff might have been in crayon, and [00:26:00] now-

Dan Drews: boy, it’s, it’s hard to discern what’s real and what’s not. 

It 

Sheril Hagie: is. Yeah. Especially with phone calls and AI now. Mm-hmm. Uh, mail I can pretty much tell if it’s real or not in the mail. Um, but phone calls, those are getting harder and harder to detect if it’s scams or not- 

Dan Drews: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: with AI going on. 

Dan Drews: What, what recommendation would you give for folks if they get a phone call that they don’t feel 100% confident in, what, what would you recommend?

Dan Drews: Hang up. Hang up? Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Hang up. Yeah. Block the number. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: I always tell everybody, “Hang up and block the number.” When I do my educational seminars out in public, I will show people. I’m an Android user, not an iPhone user, so but I will show them on my phone this is how you block a number. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: If you… So say you have Humana Insurance, and somebody from Humana keeps calling you and calling you and saying they’re with Humana.

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm 

Sheril Hagie: But it’s a different phone number, they’re not with Humana. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: They’re more than [00:27:00] likely a robocaller and they’re trying to swit- trying to get you to switch your insurance. Happened to a client of mine in Streator, Illinois. Um, her daughter called me and said, “When did you change Mom’s insurance from Aetna to WellCare?”

Sheril Hagie: And I said, “I didn’t. We didn’t change your mom’s insurance. Aetna’s the best plan out there for her right now.” And she goes, “Well, she’s on WellCare now.” And I go, “What did she do?” 

Brennen Roberts: Mm. 

Sheril Hagie: Interesting. “Did she answer the phone?” What happened is someone called her, they told her they had a better plan. She okay… She said something and they switched her.

Sheril Hagie: No. 

Brennen Roberts: Just on the verbal okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Just on a verbal okay over the phone. 

Brennen Roberts: Wow. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, so we had to get her switched back. We had to use a special election period. We were able to get her switched back though. So then we blocked that number on her phone, but unfortunately, I don’t know how many scam calls you get a day, I get, like, 12.

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, you, and you block them and then they call from another number. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Right? Yeah. So. [00:28:00] 

Brennen Roberts: Your, your strategy is, like, sometimes, like, get a callback number, then you can do a reverse lookup of the number- Right … but it, which is a little technical, but you know. Right. Just pop it into- 

Sheril Hagie: You 

Brennen Roberts: just-

Brennen Roberts: a Google search and, you know, it’ll, uh, if it’s associated with the- 

Sheril Hagie: Right … 

Brennen Roberts: SSA. And, and you 

Sheril Hagie: know- 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm … 

Sheril Hagie: they’re getting creative through the mail too, and things like that. And I always tell everybody, I have clients… I, I’m pretty niche in what I do, is I will do home visits. Um, so if you don’t feel comfortable coming to my office, if you want to meet me at a restaurant, I will meet you there.

Sheril Hagie: If you want to meet me at a coffee shop, I have one client who loves to meet me at Bone & Beef. Um, I’ve met with her at her home twice, and now she wants to go to Bone & Beef all the time. Um, which is fine. I will meet you anywhere you want me to meet you, even if it’s at your home. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. Yeah. I, I know… I, I don’t, I’m a little curious if there are tools out there like LifeLock and things like that, that, that are designed to help protect people’s identity and credit.

Dan Drews: Do, do those [00:29:00] tools help i- in anything in your industry or no? Is that- 

Sheril Hagie: Not that I’ve seen- Okay. Okay … or not that I’m aware of. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, I personally have LifeLock, and it, it, it helps. Mm-hmm. I think everybody should have something like that. Um- Because somebody tried to buy a car in California- 

Brennen Roberts: Really? … 

Sheril Hagie: with my Social Security number a few years ago.

Sheril Hagie: Um, and I was notified immediately, uh, via phone call and email from LifeLock. Hmm. Uh, so but in the healthcare industry, no, not really. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, I was flipping through the TV last night and Dr. Oz was on. We all know he heads up Medicare and Medicaid now. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: And he was talking basically about the scams.

Sheril Hagie: And my husband’s like, “Change the channel.” I’m like, “No, I’ll go upstairs and watch this because I need to know this.” And there are so many scams out there. My dad was scammed with medical devices that he never received. 

Brennen Roberts: Really? 

Sheril Hagie: Uh, yes. So they will bill your insurance. They will call you and say, “Do you [00:30:00] have knee problems?

Sheril Hagie: Do you have back problems?” And all they need you to verbally say is yes, and they can use that yes and apply it to anything. 

Dan Drews: Hmm. And so they’ll charge you for a knee brace- 

Sheril Hagie: That you don’t even get … 

Dan Drews: that you don’t ever get, and they’ll bill it through to- 

Sheril Hagie: Through your insurance. Unbelievable. They’ll figure out who your insurance is.

Sheril Hagie: My dad was on Humana, and we got his EOB or explanation- Mm … of benefits. And I’m like, “What are all these charges?” And I called Humana, and I was like, “Please don’t pay these. These are all fraudulent.” 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: And there’s… Yeah, there’s a lot of fraud that goes on with Medicare- Ugh … and Medicaid. Yeah. So. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. Well, I tell you what, let’s, um…

Dan Drews: So get us back to, uh, I guess the enrollment piece too. We’ve got a grid or a chart here. Talk to, talk to us a little about, about what this, this grid or chart kind of- So- … uh, helps us explain. 

Sheril Hagie: This grid is one of the things that I carry with me all the time to show people. So I made this grid. It shows you [00:31:00] when you should start applying.

Sheril Hagie: So if you were… My birthday’s in November, so when I’m 64 and I’m going to apply, I’m not gonna wait till November when I turn 65. I’m gonna start my process in August. August 1st, no matter what my date of birth is, my date of birth is November 5th. Mm-hmm. I don’t start it on the 5th. I start it on the 1st of August.

Sheril Hagie: That’s when I can go in and apply for Part A and B, okay? To get the process started. My end date is February 28th, 29th if it’s a leap year. Mm. Um, like I, like I always tell everybody, don’t wait till February. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Yeah. I- is the… Does the clock tick, like if you appl- start the application process at the end of the period?

Brennen Roberts: Is that okay if it’s not been approved yet? Yeah, and 

Sheril Hagie: yes. It, it is, but I don’t suggest starting the process- Mm … saving and exiting and going back in, because you’re gonna forget. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You’re gonna forget, and you might lose that re-entry [00:32:00] number, so you need that re-entry number to get back in there. If you don’t print it or write it down, you’re gonna lose that.

Brennen Roberts: And when you say re-entry, that’s just basically you’re saving your progress. 

Sheril Hagie: And they give you a number. Here’s how you pick up, 

Brennen Roberts: pick up where you left off. 

Sheril Hagie: Yep. They give you a number, and they tell you to print this number or write it down, because they’re gonna ask you what that number is when you go back in to continue the process.

Brennen Roberts: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: So you need that number. So I never suggest starting and stopping. 

Brennen Roberts: I would imagine it’s probably… Even if you lose that, can you even restart a new one or does it get- 

Sheril Hagie: No … you’re punished? So you’re gonna have to call. Yeah, 

Brennen Roberts: yeah, yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Okay. You’re gonna have to call. And wait times, hour, five hours on hold.

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. You said, ugh, hours in the 

Sheril Hagie: line. Three hours in an office. Mm-mm. Right. So you wanna start that process. So if you’re born in March, you wanna start at December 1st the year before. So you’re born in March of this year, of, of… You’re turning 65 March of 2026. Start that process December 1st, 2025. 

Dan Drews: Yeah.

Sheril Hagie: Okay? 

Dan Drews: And is there w- is there [00:33:00] any recourse if you miss the window? Like, if you go past, it… Can you do anything? 

Sheril Hagie: You’re going to be penalized if you don’t sign up for B and D- 

Dan Drews: Mm … 

Sheril Hagie: in your initial enrollment period. 

Dan Drews: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Unless you have credible coverage. And a lot of people are like, “What is credible coverage?”

Sheril Hagie: Credible coverage is employer insurance. 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Or you’re on your husband or wife’s insurance. Um, that’s credible coverage. And it has to be medical and, uh, prescription drug coverage to be credible coverage. Sometimes people don’t retire till they’re 67, right? Because… And then they’ll start… They’ll retire at 67, start taking their Social Security benefits at 67, ’cause you get more at that point.

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm. Um, I’m going through this with a client right now. She’s insured until June 30th. July 1st she will start receiving her benefits because she’s retiring. She has… And one of the questions when you go to sign up is, “Have you [00:34:00] had credible coverage?” You’re going to click yes, and it will ask you, “What type of coverage have you had?”

Brennen Roberts: Mm. 

Sheril Hagie: Is it through a union? Is it through an employer? Is it through a spouse? And it has to be one of those. Is it railroad? Um, s- and they list them out. So you wanna make sure you have credible coverage so you don’t get hit with that penalty. I do have clients with Part B and D penalties because they did not enroll.

Sheril Hagie: A lot of the Part D ones, that’s your drugs. I wasn’t on any drugs when I was 65 or 67 when I enrolled. ‘Cause you don’t have to enroll at the age of 65 if you’re still working and have credible coverage. You can enroll for the first time at 67 instead of 65. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm. 

Sheril Hagie: If you’re not on drugs, you still need a Part D plan.

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: I don’t care if it’s just a five milligram statin that you’re not paying anything for or it’s $3, you need drug [00:35:00] coverage because you’re gonna get penalized later. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Ugh. That, that is crazy. We started looking on this topic. I had no idea it was so punitive for… 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. 

Brennen Roberts: Can I ask, like, why is that? Does it just create more paperwork for the government, or is it just meant to be an incentive to- 

Sheril Hagie: It’s-

Brennen Roberts: get enrolled on time or? 

Sheril Hagie: I believe it’s an incentive to get enrolled on time, but- I, I’m not on board with the whole penalty thing. Um, yes, I do think there should be penalties, but I don’t think sh- they should be as aggressive as they are. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Right? So you are notified before you turn 65, “Hey, now is the time to start enrolling in Medicare,” things like that.

Sheril Hagie: So you are notified, so I get the whole penalty thing, but, you know, 10%. 

Brennen Roberts: For life. 

Sheril Hagie: For life. On, on a Part B plan. So, you 

Dan Drews: know- And, and, and explain that again. 10% of your coverage or 10%- So- … [00:36:00] additional? What does that mean? Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: it’s for each 12-month period you go without Part B- Yeah … and do not qualify for an exemption, a 10% surcharge is added to the base monthly premium.

Brennen Roberts: Oh, 

Sheril Hagie: my goodness. So if your premium for Part B is 202.90, which is the lowest premium that they offer right now- Mm-hmm … and it, and your premiums go by income. So if you’re on a 202.90, they’re gonna add 10% to that 202.90. 

Brennen Roberts: That’s crazy. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Brennen Roberts: For- I- … 

Sheril Hagie: every 12 months you go without a Part B plan. 

Brennen Roberts: That’s … Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah.

Brennen Roberts: For life. 

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm. 

Brennen Roberts: For life. 

Sheril Hagie: Yep. So- Yeah, that seems 

Dan Drews: very punitive. Mm. 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. Yeah. So, yeah. So if you go 24 months, it’s a 20% penalty. 

Dan Drews: Oh, my gosh. 

Sheril Hagie: That’s- If you go, you know, 36 months, it’s a 30% penalty. 

Dan Drews: Oh, my gosh. That is a deadline you do not wanna miss then. Holy cow. Right. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Exactly. You don’t wanna miss those deadlines, and Part D is the same way.

Sheril Hagie: There’s different penalties for D, uh, than there are B, but a lot of [00:37:00] people are like … I met with some people last week. They are like, “Neither one of us are on any medications.” And I said, “That’s great.” I said, “I have a plan for you.” “We don’t need a plan. We’re not on medications.” “But you do need a plan.” 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm.

Sheril Hagie: “Because if you don’t sign up for a plan, you’re gonna get hit with that Part D penalty.” “Well, this is dumb.” “Yes, I agree with you.” “I, I totally agree with you.” 

Brennen Roberts: Not you’re dumb. But- This is dumb. Yeah. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: But, you know, this is the law, and this is what you have to do. There are $0 premium Part D out there. Oh, 

Brennen Roberts: interesting.

Sheril Hagie: Yes. Okay. Yes, there are. So for people that aren’t on any medications at all, there are a couple of plans out there that don’t charge a premium. 

Dan Drews: And even if it’s, like, for, like you say, a statin or your thyroid or whatever. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Doesn’t matter. 

Sheril Hagie: Doesn’t matter. Yeah. You have to have that Part D plan.

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You know, and your latent enrollment penalty, it, it, they’re permanent. They’re for the rest of your life [00:38:00] And the Part D one can go up as you age. You know, so if you go 63 days or more without credible coverage for a prescription drug plan after your initial enrollment period ends, you’re getting hit with that penalty.

Dan Drews: Yeah. So- We need to, uh, uh, make a note. We need to send a note into Dr. Oz to pr- To, to, to, to fix that- Right … part of the, of the program. Yeah, that’s, that, that just seems very punitive for someone who’s not using the program for a given period of time. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Right. And to your point, if you weren’t on any prescriptions, you would never think that you need to do enroll in that, so- 

Sheril Hagie: Right

Brennen Roberts: you know, you, you just, you just don’t think down the road about that stuff. Right. So. 

Sheril Hagie: Well, and a lot of people don’t enroll in Part B either because they’re not sick. There’s nothing wrong with me. What do I need Part B for? Why do I wanna pay $202.90 for something I’m not gonna use? 

Dan Drews: Yeah. And t- high level, right, not to take us down a rabbit hole, but quick, can you kind of explain Part B, Part D in [00:39:00] generalities?

Dan Drews: Like, what, what are the parts? 

Sheril Hagie: So you have Part A- Okay … which is hospitals- Yeah … and hospice- Okay … are all grouped under Part A. 

Dan Drews: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Part B is, um, doctors, think doctor’s visits- Okay … durable medical equipment, um, injectable drugs, like your insulins, um, Skyrizis, things like that. That’s all under Part B, as in boy.

Sheril Hagie: And Part D is drugs, so D, drugs. Part D is your drug plan. 

Brennen Roberts: Ah, that’s right. 

Sheril Hagie: So you’ve got three parts. Uh, well, and then you have Part C. I 

Brennen Roberts: was gonna say, I was gonna say C. 

Sheril Hagie: You have Part C, which is your Medicare Advantage plans. 

Brennen Roberts: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Yep. So you have A and B, and if you just have A and B, and D, you need a supplement.

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: You need to throw a supplement in there to pick up the 20% Medicare doesn’t cover. Medicare covers 80%. Medicare is A and B. That covers 80%. You need that supplement through a private carrier to pick up the extra 20, and then you need D for your drugs. Now, if you don’t wanna go that route, you can go an [00:40:00] Advantage plan route And that is Plan C.

Brennen Roberts: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: That is A, B, and D all lumped together in one plan called C Plan. 

Brennen Roberts: Okay? And that’s provided by, like, 

Sheril Hagie: a- A private carrier … Aetna, a 

Brennen Roberts: Blue Cross 

Sheril Hagie: Blue Shield- Mm-hmm … type of thing? Yeah. Just like your supplemental carriers, they’re private insurance carriers. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Yeah. Interesting. Wow. Which, which… Yeah, and that, that could be confusing too.

Brennen Roberts: Like, again, I was, I’d thrown into helping manage my dad’s and at- Mm-hmm … at one point he had an Advantage plan, but at some point I was getting the paperwork, I couldn’t follow it, and at some point they changed the… He lived in a rural area, they changed the, uh, geographic area- Yes … of coverage, so he needed…

Brennen Roberts: So I thought the plan, he would automatically, you know, be enrolled in the same plan the next year- No … but I was overwhelmed by it and I didn’t realize it, and 

Sheril Hagie: he- Yes. And that’s a whole other conversation- … um, between your supplement and your Advantage plans, your geographical area. Medicare’s by zip code and county.[00:41:00] 

Sheril Hagie: Um, so there’s a, um, a portion of Aurora that is DuPage, Will, Kendall, and Kane. Mm-hmm. 

Brennen Roberts: It’s all four counties. 

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm. So… And there’s actually a street in Aurora where three of those counties come together on one street. So you’ve got people talking to each other in their cul-de-sacs, but they’re all in different counties.

Sheril Hagie: Oh, 

Brennen Roberts: gosh. 

Sheril Hagie: And one has this plan, one has this plan, and this one wants this plan, but it’s not available. Well, why is it not available? I live right next door. Well, you pay your taxes in Kendall, they pay theirs in Kane, right? So different- Different counties, different plans. Wow. Yeah. And your plans go by your geographical area.

Sheril Hagie: Will County, Cook County, they have the most Advantage plans offered because they have a huge population. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: And they have a lot of medical centers, right? You live somewhere out in the boonies, say like Streator, Illinois, where I was born and raised, there’s not a lot of [00:42:00] options out there- 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: because it’s a town of 12,000 people.

Sheril Hagie: They don’t have a hospital there anymore. You gotta be trucked to Ottawa or Rockford or Bloomington. So what they offer there isn’t the same as what they offer in Ottawa, Illinois, right? And also, Streator’s got a dividing line. They are Le- LaSalle County and Livingston County. So one side of the street at 12th Street is LaSalle and the other side is Livingston.

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Not the same plans. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah, which can be even more confusing- 

Sheril Hagie: Right … 

Brennen Roberts: if you’re trying to help your parent through this, and- 

Sheril Hagie: Right … 

Brennen Roberts: maybe you don’t live… Maybe you live across the street from them. You’re like- 

Sheril Hagie: Correct … “This is what I understand.” So… 

Brennen Roberts: And 

Sheril Hagie: that’s a whole other presentation- … that, that I have.

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. And yeah, so- It’s, 

Brennen Roberts: it- 

Dan Drews: It’s funny, as- I, I can s- clearly see why people come to you to be the expert on trying to navigate this stuff I know. It’s funny, 

Brennen Roberts: as we’ve gotten into it, it’s like, like Medicare is just the tip of the spear. Correct. And like how confusing that is, it’s like long-term care is a whole nother topic.

Brennen Roberts: Correct. The end benefits. So it’s, it’s like Medicare’s the [00:43:00] simpler part of the whole process. Right. It’s, it’s- 

Sheril Hagie: And that’s why I educate versus sell, right? We all like to make money. I mean- Mm-hmm … that’s what we do. 

Brennen Roberts: Sure. 

Sheril Hagie: W- that’s how we pay our mortgage, right? But I would rather educate you first on what’s out there.

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. And I always tell my clients or potential clients, “I will educate you on everything and whatever you wanna know, but I let you make the ultimate decision as to what plan you wanna go in for your Medicare.” And the more eyes and ears, the better. So if you have kids, invite them in if they wanna come.

Sheril Hagie: I- A spouse, invite them in. 

Dan Drews: I think that’s a great idea. 

Sheril Hagie: Right. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. So- Right? Because they g- they’re gonna have to know what mom and dad are signed up for. 

Sheril Hagie: Correct. 

Dan Drews: Like, even like the, the story you shared where the daughter called you and say, “Hey, when did we switch?” 

Sheril Hagie: Right. 

Dan Drews: If, if sh- if the, she hadn’t been knowledgeable out, about it, the, it, we never would’ve known the switch happened.

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Exactly. Yeah. Exactly. And that plan, her doctors weren’t in that plan. 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm. [00:44:00] 

Sheril Hagie: So- 

Dan Drews: So she’s gonna start incurring a 

Brennen Roberts: whole bunch of out-of-pocket costs- 

Sheril Hagie: Correct … 

Brennen Roberts: and may not be aware that it’s gonna happen. 

Sheril Hagie: Correct. So I first and foremost educate, and I wanna educate to not only the parents, but their children if they wanna be involved.

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: And, uh, there are some children that don’t wanna be involved, or the parents don’t want them involved. You know, I will have children find out that they’re working with me and call me and say, “Hey, what’s going on?” You know, I can’t legally tell them anything unless the parent releases that. Yeah. So it’ll be a three-way phone call.

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. And I’ll be like, “Hey, you know, Margaret, your child is on the phone. What are we gonna do here? What do we wanna do?” 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You know, things like that. So you also have to be careful, um, as well. But yeah, the more eyes and ears in a meeting- Yeah … the better we are. 

Dan Drews: Well, yeah. Especially if one of the children has healthcare power of attorney- 

Sheril Hagie: Correct

Dan Drews: things like that. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: We always run into that. You want healthcare power of attorney. It’s [00:45:00] something I suggest- Mm-hmm … even if you’re healthy, um, is getting a healthcare power of attorney. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: It doesn’t… I don’t care how old you are, especially if you’re… Not to change the subject, if your kids are going away to college, you need healthcare power of attorney on them ’cause they’re 18.

Sheril Hagie: We went through this with my daughter. Her appendix ruptured at college. 

Brennen Roberts: Wow. And the doctors couldn’t tell you anything, right? 

Sheril Hagie: Exactly. So you want healthcare power of attorney. I don’t care how old you are. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You don’t wait till Mom and Dad turn 65. You know, it’s not gonna kick in until something happens anyway.

Sheril Hagie: It’s not like you can go say, “Okay, pull the…” Uh, you can do that. But, “Okay, no, we’re not doing this.” They’re of sound mind and can make their own decisions. It’s not gonna kick in until they’re not. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Right? 

Brennen Roberts: I’ve had the same thing, like, you’re so worried, like, navigating. I don’t know how far away your, uh, daughter was, but, like, you’re hours away.

Brennen Roberts: Six 

Sheril Hagie: hours, 

Brennen Roberts: yeah. Six hours, you cannot be there. Like, “I wanna talk to a doctor. What’s going on?” 

Sheril Hagie: Right, [00:46:00] and she’s- “I wanna 

Brennen Roberts: help.” They’re like, “I’m sorry. We can’t tell you.” 

Sheril Hagie: Right. She’s on the phone and giving me permission to talk to them while we’re driving down to Missouri. 

Brennen Roberts: Wow. Yeah. Stressful drive. 

Sheril Hagie: You know?

Sheril Hagie: Very stressful. So yeah. So you always want medical power of attorney- Right … or healthcare power of attorney. 

Brennen Roberts: Yep, yep. I mean, one of the things we’ve said with, uh, lots of previous talks we’ve had with previous guests is, like, just start the conversations early with your parents. Correct. You know, ask questions.

Brennen Roberts: It doesn’t have to be like, like, “Give me access to your bank accounts. Tell me where your stuff is.” Right. You’re just, just asking simple questions. Right. You know, like, “Hey, how do you… Like, how do you get your prescriptions filled? Like, who… How do you pay for it?” Correct. Like, what do you… How do you got…

Brennen Roberts: That kind of stuff and, you know, and you can always, you know, couch it in the premise of, like, “Hey, I was thinking about this,” or, “I’m gonna set things up for my- Uh, yes … my kids and the estate,” and, you know. 

Sheril Hagie: I always did conversations with my dad. He moved in with us in 2012, and I wanted to know as much ab- as much about him as I could.

Sheril Hagie: For personal reasons, because I [00:47:00] wanna let my kids know, right? But also for selfish reasons as I wanted to write his obituary when he did pass away- Mm … the best of my, to the best I could, right? He worked at this place for 45 years or 50 years. He loved to do this, this, and this. So make it as unobtrusive as you can when you’re grilling, I call it grilling-

Sheril Hagie: your parents. Like, I would just go s- in and sit on my dad’s bed and be like, “Oh, hey, so, you know, when did you do this?” You know, and I, I had a book that I wrote everything down in So if you’re just talking to them and being like, “Oh, where do you get your drugs filled? Because I might wanna go there.” 

Brennen Roberts: Mm. 

Sheril Hagie: You know, make it like that.

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, do you have a healthcare power of attorney? What if something happened to you when you were in a car accident? 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You know, what if somebody rear-ended you or something- … and they had to take you via ambulance? 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Or you tell the story, your daughter. Like, oh my gosh- Right … we didn’t set it up with her, so we set up my daughter.

Brennen Roberts: Right. Like, whose- Well- … whose yours? We need yours. 

Sheril Hagie: And that was one of the [00:48:00] first things we did when my dad moved in, is he hired an attorney, he did a will, and he did a healthcare and financial power of attorney, so we had it in place. He was not in good health when he moved in, that’s the whole reason he moved in- 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm

Sheril Hagie: uh, because he was not in good health. But you’ve got to have those difficult conversations, but don’t make them a difficult conversation- Yeah … if you can help it. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You know, just go in and just make it a regular conversation and slip things in here- Yeah … and there. Um, then when I wrote my dad’s obituary everybody was like, “How did you know all of that?”

Brennen Roberts: I had the 

Sheril Hagie: book. Well, I had 10 plus years. 

Brennen Roberts: Talked about him, right. Yeah, yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Right, 10 plus years- Mm … of talking to him- 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm … 

Sheril Hagie: just in a conversational matter- 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: manner. Um, and then I would write it all down. 

Brennen Roberts: That’s good. 

Sheril Hagie: And it, and it’s easier for you too as the adult child when something like that does happen, ’cause now you’ve got it all written down and you’re not…

Sheril Hagie: You’re so upset when something happens, you’re not racking your brain and forgetting something. Mm-hmm. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You can just slide that paper across to the funeral director, which is what I [00:49:00] did. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. And, you know, it’s all right there. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: But you wanna have that conversation too about healthcare, about insurance, about do you have life insurance?

Sheril Hagie: Like, I should’ve had that conversation- Oh, gosh … long before I did with him. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, do you have long-term care? You know, things like that. Maybe we should start looking into this. Mm-hmm. You know, don’t be demanding. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Which- 

Brennen Roberts: We, we had talked about, uh, with our financial planner just the, uh, the, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners report about how much billions of dollars go unclaimed ’cause people don’t know that their parents had life insurance policies- Correct

Brennen Roberts: and stuff, so. 

Sheril Hagie: Correct. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah, always, always good to start early and have those conversations and, you know, again- Right … it’s not like ripping off a Band-Aid, it’s just like, you know- Yeah 

Sheril Hagie: No, and, and especially with Medicare, you’ve got to have these conversations ’cause you don’t want them hit with these penalties, right?

Sheril Hagie: ‘Cause these penalties follow them until they pass away. 

Dan Drews: Well, let’s kind of circle back to that too. We’ve talked a lot about these penalties and the [00:50:00] penalties for not enrolling on time in Part D. Uh, when that happens- Mm-hmm … I imagine people are pretty distressed. Is there anything they can do to fight the system, or are they kind of stuck with the penalty?

Sheril Hagie: They’re kind of stuck with the penalty. Okay. I have some people, a handful of people that are on penalties. I did have a woman in Bolingbrook write this, our senator and congressman about it- Of course she got nowhere, but it made her feel better. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. Um, which, and I applaud her for that- 

Dan Drews: Yeah

Sheril Hagie: for taking the time to write, because she didn’t know she had to. And- She had no defense because it’s in the Medicare & You book every single year. It is posted online. You are mailed stuff that does say if you don’t enroll, you’re gonna get hit with a penalty. But she overlooked all of that because she didn’t have anybody to help her.

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: So- Well- … you know, in Part D, that’s… They’re both following you, but Part D [00:51:00] goes up as you age, as the national base premium goes up. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Right? 

Dan Drews: I mean, that, that’s the part that really sticks with me- Mm-hmm … and that I didn’t know it before our conversation today, is this penalty that goes into place that now you’re stuck with forever, essentially.

Dan Drews: Y- 

Sheril Hagie: you are. Yeah. And the older you are, the higher it is, because as you can see on the slide- Mm-hmm … it’s 1% of the national, national base premium. You know, and you multiply that by the number of uncovered months and round to the nearest $10. 

Dan Drews: Ugh. 

Sheril Hagie: So right now it’s 38.99 is the base premium. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: So my example, if you delayed enrollment for 20 months, you would pay an extra $7.80 a month, 20% times the 38.99 equals 7.80, on top of your monthly plan premium.

Dan Drews: In perpetuity. 

Sheril Hagie: In perpetuity. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: And as that 38.99 goes up, your penalty goes up. So- 

Dan Drews: I, I gotta ask, is… what’s the latest, the, [00:52:00] the… what’s the biggest penalty you’ve seen? Like, what’s the latest- The- … somebody’s come? 

Sheril Hagie: The biggest penalty I have personally on my books is 24.99. 

Brennen Roberts: Wow. 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. Yes. 

Brennen Roberts: Wow. So like- Yeah

Brennen Roberts: 60% of that- 

Sheril Hagie: Yes … on 

Brennen Roberts: top of that. 

Dan Drews: Ugh. 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. And if you’re someone that’s on some high dollar drugs, most of the time a $0 premium plan isn’t gonna be good for you, so you’re gonna be paying a premium as well for that drug plan on top of- The, the penalty, then the premium, and then your drug costs, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Sheril Hagie: So a lot of people might not be able to afford that. 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. Well- 

Sheril Hagie: Um … 

Brennen Roberts: yeah, especially if you’re on a budget, that makes a 

Sheril Hagie: big- 

Brennen Roberts: Correct … impact on your 

Sheril Hagie: bottom line. It, it does. It makes a big impact. Yeah. So education is key. Sure. Paying attention is key. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. Sheril, are there any other, uh, topics that we haven’t hit on today that, uh, you think we gotta bring up before we, uh, before we let you go from our conversation today?

Sheril Hagie: So what I would love to bring up is [00:53:00] enroll online. If you don’t have help, call me. Call somebody. If you don’t like me- If you don’t want a female, um, I don’t care, call somebody. But call somebody that’s knowledgeable on this to help you. Um, it is hard. Like I said, you’ve got to enroll. You have to know what’s going on.

Sheril Hagie: Um, nobody wants to be paying all this extra money to the government if they don’t have to. 

Brennen Roberts: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Okay? 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: We pay enough on it. We pay enough as it is. You don’t wanna be paying anything extra if you don’t have to. Education is key. Start the process. I don’t care if you’re 60 or 63, and you wanna come and have a conversation with me, I’d be happy to do that with you, just so you know what’s coming.

Sheril Hagie: Okay? You’ve got to know what’s coming, and you’ve gotta start this process when you’re 64, not 65. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. And I would say if you’re in your [00:54:00] 50s and you’ve got aging parents, encourage them to make the call. Correct. And, and, uh, you know, make sure that they are as prepared as they need to be as well. So this is- Yes

Dan Drews: not just if you’re going into it, but if you’re the children of people going into it, make sure your parents are on the game. 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. Mm-hmm. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: And make sure you know where you’re applying. So you’re applying at ssa.gov. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You can call the Social Security office, or you can book an appointment at your local Social Security office.

Sheril Hagie: Now, I will say, when I was in there a week or two ago trying to get some booklets and stuff, they were not taking appointments at that time. 

Dan Drews: Really? 

Sheril Hagie: Yes. So I don’t know if it was just that particular office, but I did say them, hear them say they were not taking appointments anymore- Hmm. 

Dan Drews: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: at that time.

Sheril Hagie: So strictly walk-in, and there’s a wait time, and they are understaffed. So you can call. You’re gonna wait on the phone forever. 

Dan Drews: Hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: I had one person tell me she hung up after four hours. 

Dan Drews: Oh. Four hours? Wow. Oh, 

Sheril Hagie: man. [00:55:00] So ssa.gov is going to be your friend. Um- And just do it sooner rather than later. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Just- 

Dan Drews: And if, and if, and if you, if any people out there watching are intimidated even for c- to call you and set up an appointment, give, give us a gist of kind of what that first appointment’s like.

Dan Drews: Just probably get to know you and understand what they need, huh? Yeah. So 

Sheril Hagie: yes. What the first appointment’s going to entail is I’m gonna ask you to bring your current insurance card, your driver’s license. 

Dan Drews: Okay. 

Sheril Hagie: Um, and we’re gonna go over everything. We’re gonna go over, have you enrolled in an ssa.gov account?

Sheril Hagie: No? Great, let’s do that. Let’s try to get you enrolled in that first and foremost, ’cause that’s where you’re gonna go to apply. So you need that a- that account set up. Um, what are your thoughts on moving forward with Medicare? Do you have any concerns? Um, excuse me. What type of medications are you on, if any?

Sheril Hagie: Because that’s gonna determine what type of Part D plan that we’re going to enroll you in. Um, what [00:56:00] are your thoughts on a supplement versus an advantage plan? Um, things like that. Do you have any questions on an advantage plan? Do you have any questions on a supplement? Do you have questions in general on what Medicare A and B cover?

Sheril Hagie: I can point you in the direction. I can print documents out for you to take home. You wanna call me anytime, call me. If I don’t answer the phone, leave me a message, I will call you back. If you want me to come to your home, you feel more comfortable there, less intimidating, I can do that. 

Dan Drews: If you want a good Italian beef sandwich.

Sheril Hagie: Right, I can do that. 

Dan Drews: Well, and, and Sheril, I applaud you. You’ve mentioned it a couple times. You’ve got a heart of an educator, and I think anybody in this space for aging folks or the kids of aging folks really needs that for topics like this, because it’s important for them to not only go through the steps, but understand the steps like you’re talking about as well.

Dan Drews: And, and 

Sheril Hagie: that is key. You wanna understand it. You don’t [00:57:00] want somebody talking at you. 

Dan Drews: Mm-hmm. 

Sheril Hagie: Because then you’re never going to understand it. Yeah. You’ve gotta have communication back and forth. They need to be asking me questions in order for them to understand it. If I feel like they’re not comprehending what I’m saying, I will print stuff out or I will just jot down notes.

Sheril Hagie: Mm-hmm. Or I will type up notes, and I will give them to them when they leave and be like, “So this is what we went over.” Mm-hmm. “

Brennen Roberts: If 

Sheril Hagie: you have any questions, call me. I don’t care, call me.” I had somebody call me at 10:00 one night. I answered the phone. I normally don’t. I answered the phone because I saw, I knew the phone number.

Sheril Hagie: You knew 

Brennen Roberts: who it was. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. And I was like, there’s got to be a problem here. 

Brennen Roberts: Yep. Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You know? And, and I always tell my clients too, if there is a problem and you’re call… Like, you’re, you’ve been taken by ambulance to the hospital or whatever, and it’s the middle of the night. Mm. My phone goes to sleep at 10:00 PM, I’m not gonna lie, wakes back up at 6:00 AM If I think it’s somebody that’s gonna have [00:58:00] a problem, I will put them in my favorites list, and then that phone call will ring through 

Brennen Roberts: Mm.

Sheril Hagie: Um, if you’re somebody that you’re calling me during the day during business hours and I don’t pick up and you’ve left me a message, I- my message says 24 to 48 hours for a return phone call. If you can’t wait that long, and they just keep calling, call… I will answer the phone, even if I’m with a client.

Sheril Hagie: Or I tell them, “Text me 911.” 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: Don’t call 911. Like, text me 911- Yeah, 

Dan Drews: 211 … 

Sheril Hagie: that it’s, it’s important. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. 

Sheril Hagie: You know? Yeah. I need to call you before the 24 or 48 hours timeframe that I give in my, in my voicemail. I’m, I’m generally always calling you back- 

Brennen Roberts: Yeah … 

Sheril Hagie: within a couple of hours. Yeah. Anyway, but yeah, education is key.

Sheril Hagie: Having other people in the meeting is key if you can. Um, and just starting the process when you need to start the process. Three months [00:59:00] prior is when we actually need to start it. We can’t start it before. We wanna start it at that three-month timeframe, but if you want education before that three months, call me.

Sheril Hagie: Yeah. I will help you through the process. 

Dan Drews: Yeah. And what’s the best way? Should they call or email? Either way 

Sheril Hagie: fine with you? Either way. Okay. Yeah. Either way is fine with me. Yeah. They can call me. They can email me. 

Dan Drews: Great. 

Sheril Hagie: Text message is okay. Um- I get a zillion a day, so sometimes that might get overlooked.

Sheril Hagie: So a phone call with a voicemail if I don’t answer or an email is, is a lot better- 

Dan Drews: Sounds good. 

Sheril Hagie: Well- … than a text message … 

Dan Drews: we could not appreciate having you on today’s episode more. You’ve been fantastic. I applaud you again with your heart of an educator, you know, trying to teach people about this, uh, topic as well.

Dan Drews: Because I tell you what, my head’s spinning- … even just from the conversations we’ve had today, too. So- Yeah. Uh, I w- I wish I 

Brennen Roberts: would’ve had this conversation several years ago. 

Dan Drews: I know. But I’m gonna go back now- Yeah … and I’m gonna have a conversation with my [01:00:00] parents to make sure that they’ve got everything buttoned up, too.

Dan Drews: So, uh, so Sheril, thank you again for, uh, taking the time with us today and helping us navigate all this topic and assist our seniors to continue to find them a way to age in place and kind of have a, a fulfilled and healthy retirement. We really appreciate the knowledge. Yeah. And Brennan, thank you as always for being a sponsor of the program, for Seniors- Yeah, mm-hmm

Dan Drews: Helping Seniors and helping bring these educational pieces to the area. Yeah. We, uh, we appreciate that as well. Thanks. Well, as we say, 

Brennen Roberts: it takes a village, and there’s a lot of great people out here like Sheril out there looking- It does … out for people, so. 

Sheril Hagie: It takes 

Brennen Roberts: a village for sure. Good to connect 

Dan Drews: here.

Dan Drews: Yeah. Well, listen, folks, uh, we look forward to you joining us next time for our newest guest, and look for more content on some of these topics on our Facebook and YouTube pages as well at Seniors Helping Seniors Greater Naperville. But until then, folks, as we’ve said, it does take a village- … so do your part in the village.

Dan Drews: Thank you for joining us. I s- I 

Brennen Roberts: stole your- And we’ll 

Dan Drews: kind of talk here a little bit … I stole your thunder on that. You did. That’s okay. It takes a village. I 

Brennen Roberts: [01:01:00] forgot that was in your last part of 

Dan Drews: your