Senior Care Spotlight: Medicare Open Enrollment
Medical Alarms in St. Louis MO: Healthcare Solutions
This Medicare open enrollment is quite different, to say the least…. Years ago, I drove from the “big city of St. Louis” down I-55 to rural southeast Missouri to meet a prospective client on his farm – I thought we’d discuss business in his home. When I arrived, he looked at my high heels, tossed me a pair of boots, and said, “C’mon!” I asked where we were going and he said, “The cows don’t milk themselves.”
OMG! There were so many cows – really, only about eight. He showed me what to do and I proceeded to milk cows as we talked about everything under the sun until he said, “now ain’t ya going to talk to me about long term care insurance?” I had forgotten the reason I was there!
This customer, now a client for over 20 years, taught me so many life lessons that day and in the years to come!
I spoke to him yesterday, now 85-years-old, and he said he’s been thinking about moving into Assisted Living and wanted to ask me questions about how his long term care policy would pay.
This year’s phone review of his Medicare and LTC wasn’t the same as being with him on his farm, with the cows, wearing “my” boots, and sitting on a barn stool next to each other with a cow in between.
I was missing the connection of our pre-COVID lives when I happened to see the following article:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/15/world/cows-cattle-communication-scn/index.html that reminded me of my own experience so long ago. I agree with the cows, I would rather cow-MOO-nicate too!
In closing, I would recommend that everyone re-evaluate their personal situation during Open Enrollment. Sometimes seniors feel that their only option is to move out of their homes into an Assisted Living Facility, like my farmer friend. When you are considering making changes to your health benefits or living situation, due to physical changes or health concerns, consider the benefit of a Personal Emergency Response System. Now is the perfect time to determine what is best for your current situational needs. Like insurance, a medic alert is something that you put in place and hope you never have to use it. Several years ago, we set up my parents as clients of Around the Clock Medical Alarms. My mother has since passed away, but Dad is still a customer. The protection from their service, makes us both feel better knowing he is never alone and IF he needs help, he can get help — “Around the Clock.”
Guest Article Contributed by: Diane Finnestead, MAT, Ed. S.
Health Benefits Consultant, Healthcare Solutions Team; Health and Dental Insurance Broker
314-302-5743 www.dianeinsurancestl.com
Serving clients in Southeast Missouri for over 20 years. Her clients are ages 0-103. She’s a Broker of over 70 companies specializing in Medicare, Health insurance, long term care, and life insurance.
