It’s tax preparation time and there is no better time to take stock of your finances. Tax reporting forms are piling up and you’re beginning to sort through receipts from last year for deductions (telling yourself next year will be the year you get organized!)

As you look over how much money you made and how you spent your money, it’s a good time to look at some of your insurance expenses and make sure you have the right coverage and take advantage of your tax benefits. Here are  tips:

Life Insurance — Take a look at your life insurance policy in light of last year’s income. Do you have enough coverage to take care of your loved ones in case something happened to you? Often we’ll buy life insurance and then forget to update the coverage to reflect current lifestyle. If you have a term life insurance policy you purchased several years ago, you also may find that you can buy a new policy with more coverage for the same or less premium. A recent survey from MetLife Mature Market Institute found that over 40% of people admit they don’t have enough life insurance coverage or aren’t sure.

Long Term Care Insurance – Long term care insurance policies comes with tax benefits. A Federal tax credit is available to you each year. The amount depends upon your age. If you are using a tax preparer make sure they know you have a long term care policy. Some states also provide a tax credit or deduction. Check your state tax laws to find out what is available to you.

Health Insurance – If you are still working and have a flexible saving account don’t leave money in your account. You have until mid-March to use those benefits so make that doctor, dentist, and optometrist appointment now and use up your funds…or you lose them.

Health Insurance Deductions — For many people reaching the threshold of 7.5% of your adjusted gross income can be difficult. But if you are self employed and paying your own health insurance premiums you’ll want to find out what is deductible. Many seniors with Medicare health insurance plans don’t realize that they may now be eligible for this deduction. Their health care expenses could include their Part B premiums, their Medicare health insurance premiums, co pays and deductibles, their prescription drug costs and most out-of-pocket health care expenses.

For those on Medicare, reviewing expenditures during the previous year may also provide an important picture of whether their Medicare plan is the right plan and if it is appropriate to consider switching to a different type of Medicare plan in the coming year.

Tax day in 2012 is April 17. Once you’ve gathered up your information and sent it off to the IRS, take a look at your insurance coverage and see if some changes need to be made to your insurance plans in 2012.

Guest contributor Laura Rossman heads up communications for iQuote by Longevity Alliance. The independent national insurance broker works with more than 20 companies to help seniors compare and find the best term life insurance, medicare supplement plans, and long term care insurance. Laura has worked in the health and senior care services industries for over 20 years.

      Mrs. C. was 85 years old when our agency was hired by her son to provide home care for her.  Up until that point, Mrs. C. lived on her own while her son lived in another state and traveled a great deal for his work.

      He was relieved to have us step in and initially provide his mother with eight hours of care, seven days per week.  She was very demanding and difficult to please, which took some time for the aides working with her to get used to.  She called the agency day and night, and we seemed to provide direct or indirect care 24 hours a day.

      Mrs. C. was suspicious and did not trust anyone, either in person or over the phone, which is why it was so unusual for her to be a victim of fraud.  Nonetheless she became one.

      A routine was established for Mrs. C. and she seemed to begin to trust the two aides who were caring for her.  The number of hours that we provided home care increased, first to 12 hours per day, then to 24 hours. Basically, Mrs. C. was never left alone anymore. Our aides were well trained to ferret out fraudulent phone calls and attempt to swindle money from patients.

      At some point, Mrs. C. was hospitalized with an irregular heartbeat.   The hospital allowed us to provide her regular aide only during the day.  Therefore, she was on her own in the hospital room at night.

      Within five days we brought the patient back home.  A month later her son called me and asked if any of the aides working with his mother live inFlorida.  I did not understand what he meant, but told him that both aides lived inNew York City.

      He explained that he was billed by a credit company, from which he never had a credit card, for $18,000, for furniture and other household goods that were purchased inFlorida.  The credit card had been created in his mother’s name.

      His mother never had a credit card in her life, and throughout her life she never handled the family’s finances – her husband had taken care of all the bills and check writing.  After he passed away, her son took over the handling of all his mother’s financial affairs.                                                                           

      I knew that my aides had nothing to do with the fraud, and they informed us that there were no suspicious calls in which Mrs. C. gave out any information on the phone to anybody that could have been used for opening a credit card account.                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

      With the investigation that the credit card company pursued, it seemed that the personal information had been gotten from the hospital, while Mrs. C. was hospitalized.  Who had penetrated the hospital records, and whether it was done by computer or through paper records, is not quite clear.  She may also have been approached by somebody at the hospital and, thinking that the person was part of the hospital staff, may have given out some information. Either way, it seems that her Social Security number, name, address, and date of birth were accurately lifted.

      In Mrs. C.’s case, all her incoming mail was forwarded to her son and he immediately acted upon this fraud.  But often the target of fraud is a senior who has no one to verify the bills for correct charges, and many times will pay for purchases he or she never made. Some of the seniors may also not know that they are not liable for purchases they have not made and, if contested, the credit card company will remove the charges from their account. It takes some calling and following up, but there is no need to rush and pay for it.

      In many cases, no matter how careful we are, we still can be victims of fraud, but we can reduce the chance of it happening by being suspicious and cautious. For more information, please log onto: www.goldenyearsgolden.com

• Overall Drug Pricing and Patient Safety Rating
• Overall Complaint Rating
• Overall Member Experience Rating
• Overall Customer Service Rating

At this relatively late stage in a person’s life, cost and expenses are endlessly important. I recommend you consider all costs associated with a change in Medicare coverage and that you apply the points raised below to your personal situation:

(1)  MedicareBlu RX – S5743

This top rated Medicare plan has contracts available to consumers in Minnesota, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska, Wyoming, and North Dakota. Total premiums for these contracts range from $39.70 – $104.60. Paying a higher premium has its benefits, as the drug deductible associated with that higher premium is much smaller. The drug deductibles for these higher premiums are $0.00 compared to $160 associated with the lower premiums.

(2)  Advocare – H5211

Brought to you by Security Health plan of Wisconsin Incorporated, this plan has contracts available to residents throughout the state of Wisconsin. With total premiums ranging from $26.60 – $62.30, all drug deductibles are at $0.00. On top of that, customer service associated with this plan was 40.1% higher than the average customer service rating for all Medicare Part D plans.

(3)  Kaiser Permanante Senior Advantage –  H0630

This plan from Kaiser is offered to residents of Colorado. Contracts for this Senior Advantage plan vary widely with total premiums from $0.00 – $48.70 and drug deductibles from $0.00 to $320. Quality of customer service associated with this plan was about 12% higher than the average rating for all Medicare part-d plans reviewed.

(4)  Excellus Health Plan, inc – H3335

Contracts offered under this plan vary widely with total premiums from $0.00 – 55.40. Drug deductibles also vary widely for this plan ranging from $0.00 – $160. When choosing new plan, it is important to research the quality of customer service. This company’s quality of customer service associated with this plan was rated about 40% higher than that of all Medicare plans reviewed.

Overall, there are many aspects of Medicare part-d coverage that should be considered before choosing a plan. It is most important to find a plan that works best for you. When choosing a new plan, make sure your health care providers accept the coverage that you’re interested in choosing. Also, be sure check into the extension of your plan geographically to avoid unexpected expenses. And don’t forget, make sure the quality of customer service provided for your Medicare plan is what you expect. There are many useful Medicare ratingson the market that review quality of customer service. I highly suggest using one before finalizing such an important decision.

Peter Griggs is a business development associate at FindTheBest Health, which
helps users compare everything from dialysis centers to community health centers.

Famous Pisces: Sidney Poitier, Aretha Franklin, Peter Fonda, ELizabeth Taylor, Ralph Nader, Bruce Willis, Johnny Cash, Jane Goodall, Nat King Cole, Steve jobs.

ARIES   (MARCH 21 – APRIL 20)

Even your best laid plans can run afoul of the powers that be, wherever they are lurking. So be it. Allow your gut feelings to take over, Aries. You need to do what you need to do and don’t rely on others to get you to the goal. If the stress gets too much, how about letting things pile up and divert your attention to other more pleasant tasks . And who might that be?

TAURUS   (APRIL 21 – MAY 21)

Fun can get frantic in February because there is too much good stuff going on all over town all at the same time. Such a dilemma! Parse and choose the best of the best and allow your creativity to spurt. Not only will you personally feel more fulfilled, you will also navigate your boat into more selective and elite groups. Fill your sails before your hot air scuttles you..

GEMINI   (MAY 22 – JUNE 21)

Geminis may be at a crossroad. You may have been laser focused on weighing various retirement options. But now you will also need to decide how to best balance these financial goals with the full enjoyement of your home life. Is your scrimping putting a crimp in your domestic agenda? They say the best things in life are free. What do they know?

CANCER   (JUNE 22 – JULY 23)

Itchy travelling feet must be scratched. Cancerians are ready and raring to go anywhere and everywhere. Spread your wings and try someplace new – the tried and true just doesn’t hold the same appeal. Plan your itinerary carefully and ask advice as to the best hotels and sites.  For those with tight budgets, expand your horizons with new stuff nearby. Anyone we know?

LEO   (JULY 24 – AUGUST 23)

Leos are ready and willing to spend on their interests and passions. Your appetite is sated now only by beauty and luxury. And why not? When you’ve got it, flaunt it. There will come a point however where you find yourself spending more and getting less. Know what is what, when is when and who is who. Why and how will follow later.

VIRGO   (AUGUST 24 – SEPTEMBER 23)

Strengthen all of your relationships – from platonic to romantic – especially those that require more sharing and compromises. It will not be as bad or as difficult as you think. In fact, you may find it relatively easy to do. Those Virgos who are seeking new connections should request introductions from friends. You are too fresh for fresh faces now.

LIBRA   (SEPTEMBER 24 – OCTOBER 23)

Don’t be a pin cushion for every backstabber. You are putting out the effort so be sure that you get the credit. The best way to protect yourself is to keep you eyes open for any unusual activity. You will eventually triumph, Libra, but not before your stress level peaks for much of February. So find any excuse to take a nice long relaxing vacation.

SCORPIO   (OCTOBER 24 – NOVEMBER 22)

Your loud party hound antics may rub some of your pals the wrong way. Maybe you are becoming too popular? Maybe you are pulling away from the conformity of the pack? Whatever it is, be sensitive to friends feelings especially when you are all in the social swirl. It is better to celebrate with a crowd than to celebrate alone in a crowd, Scorpio.

SAGITTARIUS   (NOVEMBER 23 – DECEMBER 22)

If the stress of your day to day tasks are getting too much for you, use the next weeks for a temporary escape. Retreat into your cocoon and refresh and recharge. Find ways to enjoy life and put things in perspective. If your home is your castle, pull up the gate and fill the moat with sharks… but not before you let some close companions and the home delivery in.

CAPRICORN   (DECEMBER 23 – JANUARY 20)

You have some great ideas bubbling in your head. How can you best present them to the world? The answer may elude you but that is because it is hard to choose the best way to fully express yourself. Capricorns are often careful and cautious. Maybe too much so. This may be the time to blow the lid off life. Make your mark on the world. Don’t make it a smudge.

AQUARIUS   (JANUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 19)

This is the perfect time to research and implement any long term financial plan. Dream big, Aquarius. Your monetary goals can be within reach with a little discipline, pluck and focus. That may mean curtailing expenses and avoiding frivolous spending on trifles. If you are really clever, you will find a well endowed benefactor to spoil you while you stash your own cash.

PISCES   (FEBRUARY 20 – MARCH 20)

Pisces can enjoy their time on center stage now. Not only can you hobnob and rub elbows with many new and impressive people, you can also show off your talents to the crowd. Play it like you mean it and make good use of time. Before you know it the spotlight will shift and others will elbow into your space. But in the meantime, rubadub with both arms.

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