Business Innovators Radio - Interview with Luke Harrison

Episode Date: August 29, 2024

Luke is a value-added consultant for Medicare, Life Insurance, Annuities, and Ancillary products lines.With a 15-year background in the Senior Healthcare field, Luke has helped thousands of seniors and continues to be a guide today for thousands more.Learn more: https://olininsuranceadvisors.com/Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-luke-harrisonhttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/

Welcome to influential entrepreneurs, bringing you interviews with elite business leaders and experts, sharing tips and strategies for elevating your business to the next level. Here's your host, Mike Saunders. Hello and welcome to this episode of Influential Entrepreneurs. This is Mike Saunders, the authority positioning coach. Today we have with us, Luke Harrison, with Olin and Associates, and we'll be talking about Medicare plants. Luke, welcome to the program. Hey, thanks, Mike. Thanks for having me.

Hey, so we don't have 10 hours straight to talk about Medicare plans in Ohio, because I'm sure that that is so broad, so confusing to people. So I'm excited that you're going to help clarify some of these things. And before we dive into Medicare plans and what to be thinking about, give us a little bit of your story and background. And how did you get into the industry? Sure. Yeah, I wish we had 10 hours to go through everything because that would probably be what

I really need. But I'll tell you what. Yeah, my background, I started off, at least in the professional realm with running a personal care home. That was something that my family had built up. And so I've, you know, dealt with the senior market for about 15 years of my life. And so that was where it all began for me. Moving forward from there, we could fast forward to, I began working on getting my life accident and health licensing. And I started a position at State Farm as a life insurance specialist. I also picked up my property and casualty licensing. And then after working there for a little while, I got into the mortgage industry as well. So I'm a mortgage loan originator, you know, on top of everything else that I've done. And then after a stint there, I discovered

Medicare. And basically that there was an enormous need for somebody to, especially in my area, for somebody to specialize and dive into that market. So moving forward from that, realization, I decided to pursue getting licensed. And then I found, you know, the right connections and people to get me plugged in and working in that market. So that's, that's what led me to where I'm at today. You know, each one of those steps there you mentioned, it was, it came clear to me that you observe needs, you watch for opportunities, and anything that you could do to further your education so that you can give added value to your clients is. what you did. And I didn't hear you say at any point, well, I wanted to make so much money so I got

into this industry and then I wanted to make more money so I did that. Everything that I heard was I saw that need. I saw people needed this. And so I'm confident that you take a teaching educational approach when you're serving your clients. Yes, I do. And a lot of that also is I very much value education, personal development, and continued learning. So I do have a heart for helping people. I always have. I really enjoy what I do because of that. It's a natural fit. And you're right. There's a huge need in every one of those sectors, everything that I've always looked at pursuing, started off with analyzing, is this something that I could be helpful in myself? And can I help with this enormous need? Medicare being one that I've discovered, it's larger than myself. It's more than I could ever handle a loan.

and that's something that I'm currently addressing with building a team and helping other agents too. Well, let's talk a little bit about that when you hear people go, well, what's the right choice of Medicare plans? Because there's not just one. It's not yes or no. There are several options. Where do you start in educating someone on what to first understand so that they can then make that wise choice? Sure. Well, starting off the first thing to try to understand, and it is complicated. right is Medicare itself part A and part B most people will hear about part A part B they've all heard about Medicare but most people don't really understand the distinction how you qualify how you know where do you begin right so part A is your hospital coverage getting into part A involves having 40 quarters that you've worked in your life and that's how you qualify for that so somebody

that's worked a 10 year job or you know anywhere it doesn't have to be the same job but they've worked for 10 years of their life. That would qualify most Americans. Now, there's some nuance there of, say, a stay-at-home mom and things of that nature and how they qualify there. We won't dive into that or the, you know, extreme details, like you said, is we only have so much time. Part B, moving on to that, that's going to be your hospital coverage. So with original Medicare, your hospital coverage ends up having a monthly cost. That in 2024 is around $174 a month. And so that's something that you opt into and by opting into that whenever you become eligible for Medicare and I always advise everybody to do so that allows you to then benefit from the benefits of Medicare. Original Medicare

covers 80% of the cost of services that are billable to Medicare and then 20% will be billable to the beneficiary of Medicare. So the member themselves are looking at, you know, without diving into anything else yet, right? That's our starting point. That's our baseline. And that's where everything else comes into place, such as Medicare supplement, Medicare Advantage plans. Well, let's talk real quick about something that came to my mind when you start thinking about costs. Is some of the premiums or costs based on income or what, you know, how do I, what is the

scale that way? Yeah, sure. So there is a income based determination. And so basically, you're going to understand that where most people are. will understand immediately. Do you receive Medicaid benefits? That's the first thing. If you do, then, you know, the state, and that's a state level, can be assisting with the covered costs of the 174 a month or whichever that number, you know, becomes annually. It can go up or down. So if you are a Medicaid beneficiary at the state level, then you should be receiving some assistance there or not,

if not 100% assistance with the cost for your Medicare Part B premium. Then on top of that, we have what's called LIS, low-income subsidy or extra help. They're all synonymous. It's the same thing. That can assist with premiums of plans such as Medicare Advantage plans becoming $0 or reduced, as well as drug costs being reduced based on LIS, which is a federal program. So we have a federal program as well as the state level Medicaid program, which can determine, you know, cost reduction.

Now, I heard you say a couple times original Medicare. So that makes me think that there's something other than original Medicare or there's changes. So talk a little bit about where things have come and then some of the other things that we have heard about, like supplements and Medicare Advantage, things like that. Sure. Yeah, and you're correct there because original Medicare, that's just your Part A and Part B. So you'll hear people talk about Part C, Part D, and then outside of Part C and D, you also have Medicare supplement or MediGAP plans. Again, synonymous. And a MediGap plan is designed to fill in the gaps of original Medicare.

So there are benefit structures within that that work alongside of Original Medicare. Think of that more like if you go on a trip and you want the all-inclusive package, you're going to pay a little bit more every single month, right? It's a higher cost. It does go up every year, but there's some advantages to that. So the two, usually the two people that would benefit the most, somebody that has quite a lot of health issues. If you have a lot of health issues and you're aging into Medicare, turning 65, it's your first time enrolling, then this could be a great option for you. The other individual this might be a great option for is somebody that has done well with their retirement planning. And they simply want to be able to pay into a system that keeps it simple.

they can go see anybody that bills Medicare, and this Med-Sup or Medigap plan is going to work for them. So those are your two primary people. Now, on top of that, you also would have to pick up what's called a standalone Part D prescription drug plan. So this would be now you have original Medicare with a MediGAP or Medicare supplement plan, as it's called, along with a standalone Part D plan. That has been a good option for a lot of people. This year coming, Part D plans will become more expensive. We'll get to that. And so it may not be as strong of an option going forward necessarily.

So like I said at the beginning, you know, we could take 10 hours and I'm sure that is the case, you know, probably like two hours here or two hours there because it would be overwhelming. But what you've just said about original and ABCD and Medi Gap and Advantage makes me think this. No one should feel like, hey, I can go to Google and just Google. the best Medicare plan and go, ding, here it is next. It sounds to me like someone needs to sit down with someone like yourself, have you ask questions, figure out what the very best options are to consider. This is something that is very intricate and you need to know your way to how to navigate

through some of these choices. Yeah, you're absolutely correct. And the nice thing is, of course, somebody could try to figure this out on their own. But, Mike, my advice would be, why would you do that whenever? an agent does exist out there that can assist you with navigating the chaos. And it is chaotic. And it doesn't, and you don't, it doesn't cost them any money to use someone like yourself, right? No, no, it does not.

No, my services are free to the member and the way that works because, as we know, nothing's free, right? I am compensated indirectly by the government because they'll pay carriers for me to be able to go, you know, educate somebody on Medicare. And if they go through an enrollment with me, then that is how I've been. become compensated. And, you know, thinking about, you know, deeper levels and emotional and things like that, I think that sometimes I've heard this literally before. Well, I just don't want to inconvenience someone to, well, it's good that people realize you get compensated. And it's even

better to realize that it's not my back pocket that pays you. So if this is very confusing to people, and they know that someone like yourself can help them guide and navigate through this, and they don't have to pay you, but at least they don't feel guilty. that they're taking advantage of your time, you're getting compensated, just not from them. I think that's a really great realization for people to keep in mind. I think so as well. And there's another level there that I want people to understand. The reason I'm compensated, and it is usually monthly, is because an initial enrollment can have compensation to myself, but then I have an ongoing relationship that I want to maintain with my

client. So if there's new needs that arise, maybe there's something that's happened or they've had a medical issue. They need help finding a dentist or a vision center, a doctor, a new specialist, or maybe they've moved and they need a new plan. All of those things are ongoing changes and something that I can assist with that member. Why would I do that? Because they will continue to pay me monthly. And again, nothing out of the member's pocket, right? So they're not having to worry about paying for an advisor, but I'm still there. I'm still going to be advising them annually and, you know, maintaining a relationship that benefits them and benefits myself because I want to continue to be paid, right?

So it's a great relationship in my opinion. It's not one and done. Hey, you know, it makes me think, too, that there's nothing in life constant except for change, right? I mean, it's just like we see changes all the time. And talk a little bit about what governmental changes have impacted Medicare's programs, which affects the people taking advantage of Medicare. So whether it's the Biden administration or whether it's any government program, what are some of the things that can impact Medicare and how could that, you know, maybe make changes for the good or negative for beneficiaries? Absolutely. Yeah. And so there, as you've said, there's there's some good, there's some bad. I will say that with government intervention and changes. Medicare is a government program. And so by that, you know, pure nature, they have quite a lot of influence over how everything is going to be moving forward, whether,

the privatized companies like that or not on the Medicare Advantage side or Medigap plan side, you know, it doesn't really, they don't get as much say as we would hope sometimes. And so as you and I know, Mike, the government is broke at the moment, right? So because of that, there have been some new changes put into effect. And some of those changes coming in 2025 in particular are going to be very beneficial, such as the Inflation Reduction Act and the way that will affect Medicare beneficiaries. And there also could be some bad sides of that as an outcome due to the government's shift of financial responsibility to private companies such as UPMC, you know, at NUmana. And I'm just throwing out some names that I'm familiar with, no particular order. So those private companies,

you know, they're vested in the interest of a member remaining healthy. And so whenever the government came out with the Inflation Reduction Act, this, the primary goal of that was to try to reduce the overall cost for drugs for beneficiaries, right? And one of the positive changes of that is for somebody that has a lot of costs for their medications. This is something that could really be a huge benefit. There's a term that is coined called the donut hole. And as of right now, that's how everything works. And there's initial coverage periods whenever everything is covered on one side, but then you hit a gap in the middle, just like a donut. And when that happens, your costs out of pocket as the individual that's insured continue to go up.

And until you hit what's called a catastrophic level, that initial coverage level is $5,030. And then from $5,0.30, until you hit $8,000, you're in that donut hole. At that $8,000 mark, and again, this is 2024, now you're in catastrophic coverage level, and now the carrier has to pay for everything. that $8,000 mark is being lowered to $2,000 in January. So that's a big benefit for somebody that has been through this, right? You're talking a $6,000 out-of-pocket reduction for somebody, and potentially you're saving them an enormous amount of money.

And so that's a great move, that's a great move. And it is going to benefit a lot of people. However, because of that, there was also a shift where the government said, hey, right now, these private Medicare Advantage companies with prescription drug plans, or maybe a standalone prescription drug plan, you know, they only have to pay 20%, but we don't want to pay, you know, 60 to 80% any longer. We're going to shift that over and give financial responsibility of 60% to the carrier. So what does that mean? That's, you know, very confusing, right? That simply means in the same swing, the government lowered the catastrophic level to 2000. And now a company

such as UPMC, Aetna or Humana, will have to pick up 60% of the cost of those drugs. And after $2,000 has been spent, they're picking up the entire cost. And so you can see that would have an effect on the rest of the benefit structure and the money reserves, right, that have to be allocated to be able to handle that cost for a beneficiary in a plant. And I mean, it's kind of like a seesaw. When you push one side down, the other side goes up. So as you've said, if some of these benefits are changing good or bad, then it might make the premiums go up or down. But the point is we don't want programs to go away. So we want better coverages and take care of yourself.

So it might go up a buck or two. That's correct. Yes, absolutely. Yeah. And because of that, I mean, this is where having an advisor, I think, is very important more than ever. We're seeing the largest change to Medicare advantage in 10 years. Medicare as a whole is, you know, very confusing to be. begin with. And at this point in time, it's going to see a large shift from somebody that was

comfortable on, say, a Medicare supplement plan with a prescription drug plan to possibly look at a Medicare Advantage plan. Just by making that switch, maybe they've saved themselves, you know, quite a few thousand dollars, we may say. Maybe not. And again, this is where we come back to. It's an individual analysis that needs to be done. Everybody is different. Everyone's situation is different. If I compare 10 different people in a room and ask them all the same questions, you know, what medications are you on? What doctors do you need to see? What specialists do you have? You know, these are things that I need to use to figure out, okay, what is best for that individual. And ultimately, it becomes, you know, that individual's choice of what's best for them. But I act as a

guide and I'm holding a torch up to say, hey, here's what everything really looks like. Here's what your future looks like by your choice, right? You know, 100% and I like that you brought up the point that it is not just a cookie cutter template. Everyone gets the same thing because everyone is different. And it takes those questions and that insight that you would bring to go, ooh, because you said this, you're going to want to consider doing it this way. So when you think about preparing, you know, for retirement, because Medicare is a big part of retirement because I need my health care. What are some of the things that seniors can be doing in advance of retirement just to make sure that they're prepared for the cost and all of that because maybe there's more that goes into it than just electing

XYZ plan for Medicare. Absolutely. Well, the first thing that I would advise anybody to do is begin planning as early as possible. So everyone has a different age for that. Okay, when do I begin thinking about retirement? My advice would be as soon as you're an adult and you have a paycheck. The smartest to do is if you have a 401k, you should be contributing to that. Hopefully your employer's matching that. I would say, you know, any opportunity you have to look into other financial advisors, you know, advice would be smart as well. I myself am not in a financial advisor, but what I do with people to determine what they could do to plan ahead is I will do a fact-finding analysis. And so, for example, one of the easiest ways to do that is to sit down and just look at what somebody's

goals are for retirement, right? Because again, it's not cookie cutter. So what we do is we'll sit down and gauge what the smartest idea for that individual's situation is, how much money to set aside, into what buckets that money should go. And the nice thing is, again, as I am not a financial advisor myself, so what I do is I take all that information to a team of financial advisors, and they'll put together a packet to help that person make the proper decisions. And that way they know they're getting advice from an expert, right? Just like I'm the Medicare expert, right? Life insurance expert, and I will handle annuities. But the conversation here needs to remain on, you know, my role is to be the expert in my field, right? And then I will advise somebody to,

hey, let's look at your situation. Let's build out something together and plan for it. And then I'll bring other experts in where they are needed. I love it because it's like, I don't want to be a jack of all trades because at that point, you're not really an expert. But when you see the need and you bring in different people to the team to provide that area of expertise, guess who wins the client? So I think that is such a great perspective. Well, Luke, I think this is just spectacular. You've really given some great clarity to some ways to think about Medicare.

If someone is interested in learning more and also reaching out and connecting with you, what's the best way that they can do that? So, I mean, I will, I know it's kind of crazy to put this out here, but I do like to provide my personal cell phone number. So I'll just throw that out. That's 814-288-8-433. And you can easily, I mean, text me, call me, whatever you want to do. The other way to reach me, if you feel like just sending an email to get in touch, that would be Luke Olin, which is Olin, the number one at gmail.com. And that's my company email.

So that goes to me. Olin is my middle name. I thought it was a fun little plate on my name to try to go that route with my company. So yeah, you can reach me that way. That's the easiest way to get a hold of me. So if anyone would like to, I'm happy to talk to anybody. I'm licensed in multiple states. And if I'm not in a state that that individual is in, I'll either pick it up myself

or I have a team member that is in that state. Awesome. Well, Luke, thank you so much for coming on today. It's been a real pleasure talking with you. Thanks, Mike. I appreciate you having me on. You've been listening to Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saunders. To learn more about the resources mentioned on today's show or listen to past episodes, visit www.com.