It's Not That Complicated by Ari Parker

From Chapter, a member of the Independent Book Publishers Association, IT’S NOT THAT COMPLICATED by Ari Parker provides insight on “The Three Medicare Decisions to Protect Your Health and Money.”  The book begins with an analogy about pizza and goes on to focus on common situations, explicitly not covering Medicaid or health plans for state, federal and military retirees. Parker, a Stanford Law School graduate, provides a decision worksheet on his website which asks for email and offers services of Medicare planning professionals. For first time enrollees, his book gives some helpful definitions regarding Part A and B (hospital and medical) and Part D (prescription drugs) and has a glossary of other terms. Yes, the details are confusing, but Parker lays it out succinctly and uses bullet points to simplify his explanation. In fact, there is a one page decision tree that addresses the question about when is your best time to enroll. He also mentions details that are not intuitive (e.g., sign-up is through Social Security Administration, not directly with Medicare). The second decision point that he explores in depth (looking at Providers, Prescriptions, and Priorities) has to do with how to cover the 20% of medical costs that Original Medicare does not cover. That is the section that looks at Medigap (supplemental coverage through the government) and Medicare Advantage (private insurance with out-of-pocket maximums). Parker does not seem to be a huge fan of Medicare Advantage plans (they do have some network restrictions), although those are becoming increasingly popular (and somewhat controversial as discussed in the New York Times article). He also mentions using a broker (“even heroes get help”) which is an excellent suggestion for what is by necessity an individualized decision and any comparisons can be an arduous task. In the final section, Parker encourages enrollees to re-evaluate their care each year (especially to assess ongoing provider and prescription coverage); Kaiser Family Foundation has found that less than half tend to do so. IT’S NOT THAT COMPLICATED is a simplified, useful guide.