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Financial Wellness Tips

Posted on by djbechard

Pay extra on a credit card balance this month. If you have been carrying a balance, make a plan to pay extra each month so that you can pay off the entire card.

Reflect and write down three money memories from your childhood. Write down a few of your very first money experiences and how they impacted your actions with money as an adult. This can help you come to a greater understanding of why you manage money the way you do.

Have you updated your will? Set a time to review/create your will. Include your spouse or partner if applicable. If you don’t already have one, start gathering the necessary financial documents to meet with an attorney so you can get a will in place. If you have a will and you have experienced any life changes in your family such as a birth, death, marriage, or divorce it may be a good time to evaluate your will and see if any updates need to be made.

Review your insurance.  Make sure that your insurance covers what you need it to cover, your  belongings, out buildings, equipment etc.  If you have a disaster, be sure that you have the insurance to cover it.  If you are a renter, it is highly encouraged to have renters insurance.

Do a home inventory.  Should you have a fire or tornado and lose everything, could you track all the items in your home?  Having a home inventory, will make the process less stressful.

By: Brenda Langdon

Insurance Coverage of COVID-19 Testing

Posted on by djbechard

Over-the-counter COVID-19 tests should be covered by health insurance plans at no direct cost to the consumer. The process by which an insurer covers the cost of tests will vary. Kansans will either receive their tests at no out-of-pocket cost at the point of sale or will need to submit an insurance claim for reimbursement. Insured Kansans are encouraged to be on the lookout for guidance from their insurance provider for how to obtain their over-the-counter COVID-19 tests.

As a reminder, insurers should cover the cost of other diagnostic COVID-19 tests as well, without cost sharing requirements (i.e. deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance). In most cases, you should not receive any bill, including for a provider/facility fee. Kansans are encouraged to contact the Kansas Insurance Department if they receive a bill for COVID-19 testing and have questions if it was appropriately billed.

The Kansas Insurance Department’s consumer assistance division stands ready to assist Kansans with their questions or concerns related to insurance and can be contacted toll free at 1-800-432-2484 or via web at www.insurance.kansas.gov.

By: Brenda Langdon

Life Insurance

Posted on by mjsaxton@ksu.edu

Life insurance protects your family if you should die. The best buy for most people is term life insurance.

Term life insurance is usually issued for 1, 5, 10 or 20 years and remains in effect for that period of time as long as you pay the premiums.  You have to reapply for the insurance at the end of the specified time period.  Premium costs increase as you get older.

You can buy a term life insurance policy in the dollar amount of your choice.

Check with your employer.  You may be able to get term life insurance from a group plan.  It may be less expensive, especially if you have a health problem.

By: Brenda Langdon

Balancing Your Family’s Finances

Posted on by mjsaxton@ksu.edu

Much of life carries some sort of risk, from natural disasters to vehicle accidents and global pandemics. Most risk also carries with it an impact on financial health.

When the consumer thinks about their finances and risk management, there are four ways to think about it.  Each involves taking stock in your own financial comfort level.

Avoid the risk – In some cases you may decide not to own items or participate in activities that could expose you to financial loss.

Retain the risk – It’s impossible to avoid all risks, so in some cases you may decide to cover any financial loss yourself. For example, if you own an older vehicle and decide not to maintain collision insurance, you retain the risk that you will have to pay to have the vehicle fixed if you are in an accident.

Reduce the risk – Taking steps to control or reduce the size or frequency of a financial loss is a way to reduce risk.  For example, by locking the doors of your house, you reduce the risk of theft in your home.

Transfer the risk – When you pay someone else to cover a financial loss you are transferring or sharing the risk. For example, buying insurance to cover losses.

Having at least some cash set aside for an emergency is good.  Depending on your situation that might be a relatively small amount or it might be more. Every dollar that you have in your emergency fund is a dollar that you don’t have to borrow from friends or family members or put on a credit card when something unexpected happens.

By: Brenda Langdon

Medicare Open Enrollment

Posted on by mjsaxton@ksu.edu

The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period is from October 15th to December 7th.  This is a once a year opportunity to review your prescription drug coverage for the coming year.  If you take this time to shop and compare plans, you may be able to lower your co-pays and out-of-pocket costs for 2021 by switching to a different plan.

Free, honest and confidential assistance is available through the Post Rock District Extension Office, to shop and compare prescription drug plans.

Even if you aren’t changing plans, make sure your pharmacy is still in your plans network next year.  Plans may change their network pharmacies each year.

Call the Post Rock District Extension Office to set up an appointment.  Meetings can be scheduled in the county in the Post Rock District that is most convenient for you.

By: Brenda Langdon

Health Insurance Considerations

Posted on by Marci Metz

When choosing a health insurance plan there is much to consider. What benefits do you need? Which health care providers do you prefer to use, and which can you use? What costs are you comfortable paying? Do you have an emergency or “rainy day” fund to cover expenses in case of sickness, job loss, or economic downturn?

Many factors should be considered when deciding which policy best suits your needs. The right plan for you will depend on your health and your financial situation.

  • Determine which benefits beyond the essential health benefits covered by all policies are most important to you and your family.
  • Check the drug formulary for your prescription drugs and the list of network pharmacies when looking at your options.
  • Check to make sure the providers you want to use are in the plan’s provider network.
  • Weigh the costs of not only the premium, but also the deductible, coinsurance, and copayments for the plans you are considering.

The University of Maryland Extension has some great tools to help consumers be smart about buying and using health insurance. Contact Nora Rhoades at nrhoades@ksu.edu or 785-346-2521 to access the resources available from K-State and other extension networks.

By:  Nora Rhoades

Buying and Using Health Insurance – Consumer Resources

Posted on by Marci Metz
Nora Rhoades
Family and Youth
Development Agent

When choosing a health insurance plan for you and your family there is much to consider. The right plan for you and your family will depend on your health and your financial situation. The University of Maryland Extension provides some helpful consumer resources. These tools can help consumers be smart about buying and using health insurance. To access the resources visit https://extension.umd.edu/insure/consumer-resources.

By:  Nora Rhoades