Of the many types of insurance available, life insurance is perhaps the most personal. It’s a gift to your loved ones. Often, it’s also an important part of your family’s long-term financial plan. Many different personal and business factors including your health, lifestyle, avocation and occupation can determine the type of plan you purchase and your premium.

Because we take the time to get to know you and your family, Wade & Egbert advisors excel at creating tailored life insurance plans for our customers. We provide you with information and advice to help you adjust your life insurance coverage to your evolving needs.

Your peace of mind is too important to do anything less. Call us today at 383-9061 to learn about how we can design a plan for your unique needs.

By understanding your specific financial situation and long-term goals, our professionals use their knowledge and experience to help you make the most of your resources — in addition to protecting them. An annuity can be an important part of a financial plan, particularly if you plan to work 10 years or more before you retire. For example, many clients use an annuity to manage their savings so they don’t outlive their income.

Annuities are purchased with after-tax dollars and no income tax is paid on accumulated interest until you start receiving pay-outs. A particular benefit of annuities is the ability to annuitize your income - which means your annuity pays you an income as long as you live, even after your initial investment and all interest has been exhausted. (On the flip side, if you die before all the money in your account has been paid out, no further payouts will be made, even to your children.) Income from an annuity may also be taken in a stream over a specified period of time. Either way, you benefit from tax savings.

With changes in laws and the availability of new financial products, it is more necessary than ever to plan your estate — or risk losing a substantial portion to inheritance taxes. Passing on your estate to loved ones is only a part of estate planning. Issues such as long-term care are also important, in order to protect your spouse from losing his or her inheritance to medical bills. Saving you the expense of legal fees, Wade & Egbert professionals will prepare an analysis of your estate at no charge or further obligation. Using this analysis, you will be shown ways to minimize your estate tax liability so more of your estate can be transferred to your heirs. These recommendations can be provided to your attorney and/or accountant so that the entire process becomes a team effort. This is important since each of these professionals provide a different perspective of your unique estate plan. To request information about creating your estate plan, click here to send us an e-mail.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, over 60% of people over the age of 65 will require long-term care during their lifetime, costing these individuals a total of approximately $100,000 each. Medicare cannot come close to covering this cost: it contributes only 8% toward the cost of long-term care. Medicaid, which takes effect only after you have spent all of your resources, pays only 45%.

In light of the insufficiency of government programs, what other recourse do you have? Your children? Most young adults are already working hard to pay mortgages, car payments, educational expenses and other obligations. It is unlikely they will have the large sums of money required for long term care. What about your savings? Well, have you factored long term health care costs into your retirement savings? Many people are hoping to have enough to maintain their quality of life, let alone pay unforeseen long term care costs.

Only long term care insurance can adequately protect you and your family from the potentially devastating effects of paying for long term care.

Long term care insurance is not nursing home insurance. In fact, owning a long term care policy can be your best insurance for staying out of a nursing home. Unlike some other types of insurance, you choose where to spend your benefits dollars, which opens up many alternatives to you, such as home health care.

Wade & Egbert offers a complete selection of health insurance products for groups and individuals, including traditional plans, as well as HSAs, PPOs and other managed care options. But, in today’s market, offering a wide variety of health insurance plans is not enough. You need an insurance professional who knows and thoroughly understands the state and federal laws that can dramatically affect your ability to obtain health insurance or to change from one plan to another. These are the kind of professionals you’ll find at Wade & Egbert. We can design a plan that effectively protects you and your family with the lowest possible out-of-pocket expenses, and with the features and doctors you desire.

Definitions of Health Insurance Options:

Major Medical - provides a full spectrum of medical coverage including hospital stays, outpatient care, and doctor visits. it may also provide coverage for prescription drugs, home health care, nursing homes, and other health services. this type of insurance typically has a deductible and then coverage is provided on a co-insurance or co-payment basis or cost sharing basis until a maximum out of pocket amount is reached and 100% coverage is provided. This type of policy bases its payment on the expenses incurred for medical care.

Short Term Major Medical - this type of policy is for a limited duration, usually up to six months but may be as long as a year. A short term major medical policy will not cover pre-existing conditions. This type of policy bases its payment on the expenses incurred for medical care.

Medicare - a health insurance program administered by the federal government for people 65 years of age and older, some disabled under 65, and people with End-Stage Renal Disease. Medicare is made up of Part A which covers inpatient services and very limited amounts of skilled long-term care and Part B which covers outpatient services, diagnostic testing/imaging, and some durable medical equipment.

Medicare Supplement - a voluntary private health insurance coverage purchased by Medicare enrollees to cover the cost of services not reimbursed by Medicare.

Medicare Advantage Plans – are part of the Medicare program. They are offered through private insurance companies and offer you coverage for all the same services as Original

Medicare Part A and Part B, plus additional benefits that Original Medicare does not offer.

Some Medicare Advantage Plans include the new Medicare Part D prescription drug benefits introduced for 2006. With these plans you have one plan that provides your Medicare hospital, medical and prescription drug coverage.

Medicare Advantage Plans are not the same as Medicare supplement or Medigap plans. These types of plans fill in the gaps of what Original Medicare does not pay. When you enroll in a Medicare Advantage Plan, it provides all of your Medicare coverage. No supplement insurance is needed.

Medicare Part D - a federal program used to subsidize the costs of outpatient prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries in the United States. It went into effect on January 1, 2006. The drug benefit is not part of the 'Original' Medicare program, which includes Part A for hospital care Part B for physician, outpatient care and durable medical equipment. The benefit is administered by private insurance companies under the guidelines of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Beneficiaries can obtain the Medicare Drug benefit through two types of private plans: beneficiaries can join a Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) for drug coverage only or they can join a Medicare Advantage plan (MA) that covers both medical services and prescription drugs (MA-PD). The drug plans control drug costs through a system of tiered formularies.

Preferred provider organization or "PPO" - a managed care organization of health care providers who have contracted with an insurance carrier or a third-party administrator to provide health care at reduced rates to the insured. Preferred providers must agree to specified fee schedules and are required to comply with certain utilization and review guidelines. Generally, the PPO providers provide the insured members a substantial discount below their regularly-charged rates creating a mutually beneficial arrangement whereby the carriers save money in claims payout, the insured saves money by incurring lower deductibles and out of pocket expenses and the PPO provider increases their volume of business as almost all insureds in the organization will use only providers who are members.

COBRA - stands for the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986. The COBRA law allows continued health insurance coverage as an extension of an employer group sponsored health insurance plan under certain conditions for a specified amount of time. These conditions include job loss, death, divorce, or other particular life events. The COBRA law only applies to group health plans offered by companies who had 20 or more employees on 50% of its typical business days during the preceding calendar year. The exceptions to this rule are group plans with the federal government and church plans that meet certain criteria with the Internal Revenue Code. There are many detailed time frames for when COBRA coverage can be elected and terminated.

HIPAA - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act has been in effect since July 1, 1997. The primary stated purpose of the law was “to improve the portability and continuity of health insurance coverage in the group and individual markets”. Portability of coverage helps eliminate “job lock” (a person unable to change jobs for fear of losing health coverage for a medical condition affecting the person or a family member).
HIPAA limits exclusions for preexisting medical conditions by providing certificates that detail prior medical coverage. Special enrollment provisions are provided for persons who opt out of an employer’s plan in lieu of other coverage. There are also provisions that guarantee availability and renewability of health insurance for individuals and groups.

Short Term Health Plans - are designed to offer protection for short periods of time (typically one month to maximum of one year). While they offer comprehensive coverage for new medical conditions, they don’t cover preventative expenses, maternity, or pre-existing conditions. They are normally used when individuals first graduate from college or are between jobs.

Health Savings Accounts - A portable savings account that uses pre-tax dollars to pay unreimbursed healthcare expenses. To participate in an HSA, you must be enrolled in a qualifying high deductible health plan (HDHP). You also cannot be covered by another health insurance plan that provides coverage for the same benefits, you cannot be enrolled in Medicare, be a dependent on another person’s tax return or have received VA medical benefits at any time over the past three months. You can contribute up to the annual federal maximums each year (the federal maximums are adjusted each year for inflation).

High Deductible Health Plan or HDHP – These types of plans are also called Consumer Driven Health Plans (CDHP). These plans must meet federal guidelines and typically consist of lower premiums and higher deductibles. Outside of preventive care, the HDHP only begins paying for your healthcare after you have met the deductible.

Wade & Egbert represents several quality carriers of disability income insurance. We will analyze your personal or business situation and make recommendations. This recommendation will be based on all pertinent factors, including health condition, occupation, avocations, costs and what benefits are important to you.

You’ll find a full array of retirement plans at Wade & Egbert, including 401Ks, SEPs, IRAs and profit sharing plans. Our carriers offer top-of-the-line investment funds and FULL ADMINISTRATION at very competitive costs. By having a company that will totally administer your plan - offering approved documents, keeping you in compliance with all government regulations, and preparing all 5500 forms - you eliminate the need for a third party administrator. Thanks to state-of-the-art electronic processing of contributions and on-line access to account information.

This website provides a basic summary of the insurance products offered by Wade & Egbert. It is not a statement of contract and coverage may not apply in all areas. For a complete description of coverage, please read the insurance policy, including all endorsements.