March 11 – Pharmacy Benefit Managers

What are they and what do they do? And why are they a big part of exorbitant prescription drug costs in America?

April 8 – HHS’s Current Impact on Vaccines in America

Anti-vaccination is a dominant mindset among the people currently running the Department of Health and Human Services. But for them, it’s as much a business model and a grift as a statement of principle. We’ll examine the impact of the federal government’s anti-vax policy on America’s health. And we’ll look at the less-than-altruistic motives that underlie it.

May 13 – Private Equity Funds and the American Healthcare System

The acquisition of hospitals, healthcare systems, personal care facilities, and pharmacies in America by Private Equity Funds, and the impact of these acquisitions on the quality, cost, and accessibility of healthcare services.

June 10 – Impact of Medicaid Funding Cuts

How the current federal administration’s Medicaid policy will adversely impact hospitals and long-term care facilities, and have a disproportionate impact on the chronically ill, disabled, and elderly populations in America.

July 8 – SSA Disability Benefits and Medicaid Work Requirements

A large number of disabled Americans are also recipients of Medicaid health benefits. But the eligibility for Medicaid benefits can require that the beneficiary engage in regular work activity, which could, in turn, jeopardize the individual’s disability status (if not careful in limiting the number of work hours and/or the amount of compensation). This presentation will examine how both these benefits coexist and their eligibility criteria coincide.

August 12 – Failures in Long-Term Care Planning  

The old adage “those who fail to plan, plan to fail” is valid, but it needs a corollary: “those who plan badly deserve the disaster that’s waiting for them.” So often, people postpone care planning decisions till it’s too late. But possibly just as often, people make incomplete and ineffective decisions about their quality of life when their capacity for independence diminishes. This presentation will examine the myths and failings perpetrated by well-meaning (and not so well-meaning) care planning and estate planning ‘experts.’

September 9 – Medigaps and Advantage Plans

We’re going to take a deep dive into the characteristics and rules governing the Medicare private insurance products – Medigaps and Advantage plans. But instead of the standard PowerPoint lecture, we’ll do this as a role-play between the client and the broker, with the client shopping for and enrolling in Medicare products.

October 14 – Using the Medicare.gov Website

An indispensable tool for Medicare enrollment, this presentation will look at the function and operation of the website, and we’ll do some hypothetical scenarios for selecting and enrolling in various Medicare products.

November 11 – What’s New for Medicare and Medicaid in 2027

Everyone’s favorite. What is the current condition of the Medicare and Medicaid systems? And, what changes appear on the horizon for 2027 and beyond? This presentation will be an opportunity for observations and opinions on the status of Medicare and Medicaid, and beyond that, the American healthcare system at large. Where are we at now? Where are we going? And what can we do – to access as effectively as possible the healthcare services and products that we need?