Medicare questions, answered
These are the questions people actually ask me — usually in the first five minutes of a call. If yours isn't here, call or text me at (913) 472-2330 and I'll answer it directly.
Last reviewed: September 2026. General education about the Medicare program, not a description of any specific plan.
How much does it cost to work with an independent Medicare broker?
Nothing. An independent Medicare broker is paid by the insurance carrier if you choose to enroll in a plan, not by you. Your monthly premium is the same whether you enroll through a broker, directly with the carrier, or through a call center. There is no fee for the appointment, no fee for follow-up questions, and no invoice at any point.
Medicare.gov and 1-800-MEDICARE are the free official sources for plan comparisons.
When should I sign up for Medicare if I'm turning 65?
Your Initial Enrollment Period is a seven-month window: it starts three months before the month you turn 65, includes your birthday month, and ends three months after it. Signing up during this window is the safest choice, because it is the only time you can enroll in Part A and Part B without a late-enrollment penalty.
Waiting past your Initial Enrollment Period can add a permanent 10% surcharge to your Part B premium for every full 12-month period you were eligible but did not enroll.
What is the difference between Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement?
Medicare Advantage (Part C) replaces Original Medicare with a private plan that usually uses a network of doctors and often adds extras, while a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) pairs with Original Medicare and covers your share of the costs with no network restrictions. Medicare Advantage typically has lower monthly premiums with costs that vary as you use care; Medigap typically has a higher monthly premium with much more predictable costs. Neither is universally better, so the right answer depends on your doctors, your prescriptions, your travel plans and how you feel about risk.
Both are different from Part D, which is prescription drug coverage.
What is the Annual Enrollment Period and when is it?
The Annual Enrollment Period, also called Medicare Open Enrollment, runs from October 15 to December 7 every year. During that window you can join a Medicare Advantage plan, switch between Medicare Advantage plans, drop Medicare Advantage and return to Original Medicare, or change your Part D prescription drug plan. Any change you make takes effect January 1 of the following year.
This is different from the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, January 1 to March 31.
Can I keep my current doctors?
Usually yes, but it depends on the type of coverage you choose. Original Medicare (Parts A and B) lets you see any provider in the country who accepts Medicare, and a Medicare Supplement adds no network of its own. Most Medicare Advantage plans use a network, so your doctors and hospital need to be in that plan's network for the plan to cover them at the in-network rate.
Checking your doctors against a specific plan is the first thing I do on any appointment.
Can I change my Medicare plan after I've already enrolled?
Yes. If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to another Medicare Advantage plan or return to Original Medicare between January 1 and March 31 each year. You can also make changes during the Annual Enrollment Period from October 15 to December 7. Outside those windows, you generally need a qualifying life event, such as moving outside your plan's service area or losing other coverage.
If you are in Original Medicare with a Medigap policy, changing Medigap plans in Kansas may require answering health questions.
Do I need a Medicare Supplement if I choose Medicare Advantage?
No. You cannot use a Medicare Supplement with a Medicare Advantage plan, and enrollment in one is generally not permitted while you are enrolled in the other. Medicare Advantage plans have their own out-of-pocket maximum, which is what a Medigap policy would otherwise provide on top of Original Medicare.
This is one of the most common points of confusion when comparing the two paths.
When can I buy a Medicare Supplement, and can I be turned down?
Under federal law you get a one-time Medigap Open Enrollment Period: six months starting the first month you are both 65 or older and enrolled in Part B. During that window an insurance company must sell you any Medigap policy it offers without asking health questions or charging you more because of your health history. After that window, insurers in Kansas may use medical underwriting, meaning they can turn you down or set your price based on your health.
Important for Kansas: Kansas does not have a Medigap 'birthday rule,' so unlike some states there is no annual no-questions-asked window to change Medigap plans after the initial six months.
Does Medicare cover dental, vision and hearing?
Original Medicare generally does not cover routine dental care, routine vision care or hearing aids. It does cover medically necessary care in some related situations, such as dental care that is required as part of a covered procedure. Coverage for routine dental, vision and hearing depends on what type of Medicare coverage you choose.
Medicare.gov lists exactly what Part A and Part B cover and what they do not.
What does Medicare not cover?
Original Medicare does not cover long-term or custodial care, which is help with daily activities like bathing, dressing and eating rather than medical treatment. It also generally does not cover routine dental, vision and hearing care, care received outside the United States, or personal care assistance. Medicare covers skilled nursing facility care only for a limited period, and only after a qualifying hospital stay.
Medicaid, not Medicare, is the program that covers long-term custodial care for people who qualify financially.
I'm helping my parent with Medicare. What can I actually do?
Quite a lot. You can sit in on appointments, help gather the medication list and doctor list, take notes, and help compare options. Anyone can call 1-800-MEDICARE for general questions, and a parent can name you as an authorized representative by contacting 1-800-MEDICARE with them present. You generally cannot enroll someone in a plan without their consent, and you should not use their Medicare number on your own.
I'm happy to have adult children on the call. Most of my clients bring someone.
How is a broker different from calling 1-800-MEDICARE or going to Medicare.gov?
They answer different questions. Medicare.gov and 1-800-MEDICARE give you the official, complete list of what is available in your area, and you should use them for that. A broker does the local, personal part: sitting with your actual medication list and your actual doctors, comparing the options available in your county, explaining the trade-offs in plain language, and helping you enroll when you're ready. Both are free, and you can use both.
An independent broker also represents more than one carrier, which is what makes the comparison possible.
Will you look at my prescriptions and what they actually cost?
Yes, and it is usually the most useful thing we do. We take your full medication list with dosages and check it against what each option covers, including whether your drugs sit on the plan's formulary and what tier they land in. Drug coverage is where the biggest year-to-year cost differences show up, so it is worth doing properly rather than guessing.
Formularies and tiers change every January, which is why a fresh check each fall matters more than whatever was true when you first enrolled.
What happens at an annual review, and do I need one?
It is a short conversation, usually about 20 minutes. Plans change their networks, formularies and copays every year, and a plan that fit you three years ago may not fit you now. We look at what changed, whether your doctors and drugs are still covered, and then either confirm you are fine where you are or show you what else is available. If your current plan is still the right one, I will tell you that and we will leave it alone.
If nothing has changed for you the review is quick. If something has, you find out before it costs you anything.
Still deciding whether to call anyone at all?
That's fine, and you should know the free option: 1-800-MEDICARE can answer any Medicare question and give you the complete list of plans in your ZIP code. SHICK, Kansas's free counseling program, can too. Use them. I'd rather you be informed than sold to, whoever ends up helping you.
Questions about my other coverage
These are not Medicare products, and they get their own appointment. See what I can write.
Do you also offer dental, vision or hearing plans?
Yes. These are separate insurance products, not part of Medicare. Original Medicare covers very little dental, vision or hearing care, so most people who want it buy a standalone plan with its own premium. I write these through more than one carrier, so I can compare what's available rather than show you a single company's version.
They are not Medicare plans and they are not part of your Medicare coverage. If you want to look at one, that gets its own appointment, separate from any Medicare conversation.
Do you sell life insurance too?
Yes, once my carrier appointments are in place. I can quote term, whole life and final expense policies for people in the states where I'm licensed. Final expense is the one I get asked about most — a smaller policy meant to keep a funeral and final bills from landing on your family.
Life insurance is not Medicare and has nothing to do with your Medicare coverage. It gets its own appointment, separate from any Medicare conversation.
What is a hospital indemnity plan, and do I need one?
A hospital indemnity plan pays you a fixed dollar amount for each day you spend in the hospital, and the money comes to you rather than to the hospital. It is not Medicare and it does not replace Medicare or a Medicare Supplement — it is a separate product that can offset some of what Medicare leaves you owing. Whether it's worth the premium depends on your situation, and I'll tell you if I think it isn't.
This is a private insurance product, not a government benefit, and nothing about it is endorsed by Medicare. If you want to look at one, it gets its own appointment, separate from any Medicare conversation.
Does anything cover care at home?
Not through Medicare, beyond a limited and specific set of skilled services. For ongoing help at home, people generally look at a home health care benefit or long-term care coverage. I want to be precise about the difference: a home health care benefit is not long-term care insurance and will not cover an ongoing nursing-home stay.
If long-term care is what you're actually trying to solve, tell me and I'll point you toward someone who specializes in it rather than sell you something that doesn't fit.
If you're helping a parent
A lot of my clients are the adult child, not the person on Medicare. Here's how to make that easier on both of you.
What you can do
- Sit in on calls. I welcome it. Two sets of ears on a Medicare conversation is a good idea, not an intrusion.
- Gather the two lists. All prescriptions with dosages, and the doctors and hospitals your parent wants to keep. Those two things drive almost every decision.
- Ask about authorized representation. Your parent can contact 1-800-MEDICARE with you present to add you as an authorized representative, which lets you handle some things on their behalf.
- Take notes. Medicare involves a lot of numbers. Someone writing things down makes the whole conversation more useful.
What to be careful about
- Don't enroll on their behalf without their explicit consent. Enrollment is the person's own decision to make, even when you're doing the work.
- Don't share their Medicare number casually — over email, in a text, or with a website you haven't checked. It's the key to their coverage, and Medicare number scams are common.
- Don't let anyone rush them. If a call or an ad is pushing a deadline, that's a reason to slow down, not speed up. There is nothing legitimate in Medicare that requires an answer in the next ten minutes.
- Watch for anyone claiming government endorsement. No licensed insurance agent or plan is permitted to tell you that Medicare endorses or approves them, or that their website is an official government one. If you see that claim, be suspicious of everything else on the page and call 1-800-MEDICARE directly instead.
If you're dealing with this from another state, remote appointments work well. Video calls are fine and I'll send you a written summary of what we discussed afterward.
Ask me directly
If your question isn't answered here, that's exactly what the appointment is for. No cost, no obligation, and no pressure.