Showing posts with label medical bankruptcy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label medical bankruptcy. Show all posts

Friday, February 18, 2022

Surprise Medical Bills

 

Flaw in ban on Surprise Medical Bills

If you have a medical emergency, you will no longer need to worry about a large bill from a doctor you did not choose—MAYBE. The 2022 “No Surprises Act” is supposed to protect us against most surprise out-of-network medical bills. For Good Samaritans who donate organs this has always been the rule. However, because of the complexity of dealing with 4 or more institutions regarding medical procedures and their medical billing procedures, you may get caught in a fight with bill collectors they sell the ‘receivables’ to. (Remember, bill collectors get paid to collect the debt they purchased, not to correct a mistake a previous institution made.) Also, know that our Reps gave some providers’ lobbyists a break in which charges are exempt from the law. The ambulance industry CAN charge you even if you didn’t pick the one the in-network institution uses. Another example: I just got a bill from a provider I did not pick. My doctor immediately called in his favorite X-ray person in the same building to do my X-ray since I was in need and the machine was down the hall. So in our medical system, each entity that provides something; anything; that can be coded (an aspirin, X-ray, swab kit, glove, cold/hot pack, etc etc) will add to our bill. If you look at your hospital bill, you will be shocked to find an aspirin can cost $30. If you insist on brand Tylenol instead, it costs more. A trip to the hospital can cost more than a bomb the Air Force pays to arm its fighters.

 

What we regret most

Regret: I wish I had done something or not done something in the past. In The Power of Regret, Daniel Pink asked 16,000 in 105 countries about their top regrets. People regret not building a strong foundation — that is, not saving money early, not being prudent," Pink says. "With financial regrets, they're less about not hitting a home run and more about not regularly getting on base." It is TIME in the market not brilliant advisor stock picking that builds wealth. No advisor can be right all the time so in the long run, you lose more than you gain. The average advisor-managed account earned just 3.79% vs 11% for a pure low-cost stock market index fund. It is the high fees and bad market timing that ruins your investment plans. Starting early, using your average tax refund or $250 a month in a low-cost stock index fund like Warren Buffett recommends provides your best chance of providing an above average retirement income.  

Avoid advisor fees: https://www.amazon.com/New-American-Retirement-System-ReserveTM/dp/1461030072

 

Why unbiased financial leaders say use a fiduciary

A fiduciary is a person or organization that acts on behalf of another person or persons, putting their clients' interests ahead of their own, with a duty to preserve good faith and trust. Being a fiduciary thus requires being bound both legally and ethically to act in the other's best interests. This is the kind of person you want to handle your money and life choices. Otherwise you become an ongoing meal ticket for a salesperson and their firm’s owner. Fidelity owners, the Johnson family, have a net worth of 36 Billions. They did not get to that level working 9 to 5. They take fees every year from your savings and investment accounts (if your money is at Fidelity). On the other hand, Vanguard Group of funds is owned by its investors. You get financial products and services at cost: No middle person fees and charges. Low-cost stock index funds, like Warren Buffett recommends, provide you with your best chance of gaining an above average retirement income. Earn market rates of return not the Johnson’s rate. I don’t work for Vanguard. I moved my money from Fidelity because I earn more at Vanguard. They just cut their fees againTarget Retirement Funds—1/5th the cost of others. I keep more!

Buy at cost and save: https://www.amazon.com/Fiduciary-Rule-BEST-dont-anymore/dp/1530980275

 

Another way wealth people make us pay their taxes

Passing on $ billions tax-FREE to the kids who never have to work and contribute to our society. Shale King Harold Hamm Is Passing Billions To His Heirs Tax-Free. If the kids don’t pay taxes on their $2.3 billions, we will be stuck paying for the courts, highways, airports, and armed forces they depend on. His lawyers carefully structure transactions so they benefit heirs but aren’t technically gifts at all. Thus no gift or estate taxes are paid. Yet he controls the company that provides the wealth. Filings show Hamm used an LLC and more than a dozen different trusts to complete the transfers. Phil Knight used a variety of techniques to move billions of dollars to his family tax-free. Eric Yuan transferred $6 billion worth of shares to unspecified beneficiaries for “estate planning” reasons last March. Late casino mogul Sheldon Adelson shuffled shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. in and out of more than 30 trusts to pass along at least $7.9 billion to family members. Cosmetics heiress Jane Lauder became an overnight billionaire in 2013 when she received L’Oreal SA shares worth more than half a billion dollars. Our so-called ‘representatives’ wrote the tax laws that let them pay NOTHING. You have one way to avoid paying THEIR taxes.

Use your legal tax-FREE account: https://www.amazon.com/Your-Wealth-ReserveTM-Tax-FREE-Investment/dp/1484954882

 

If you earn less than $100,000 a year, start investing NOW

The only way to have enough income in retirement is to start early. Why? Because most working people need time for the Miracle of Compounding to accumulate a large nest egg. It takes large contributions or a long time to have enough retirement assets to live on later. For instance, investing $250 a month for 35-40 years will provide a retirement income of about $45,000 for 30 years. You would need to triple that—or invest $750 a month—if you only have 25 years left to invest. If you wait to start, you will need $2,500 a month for 15 years to reach your goal. This assumes you can earn 10% a year on average in a low-cost stock market index account. This is the type recommended by Warren Buffett. If you rely on a high-fee broker/advisor, it may not be possible to reach your goal at their average of 5.19% annual earnings. Low cost beats high cost over time.

Use the Miracle of Compounding: https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Compounding-Turn-day-into/dp/1470176513

 

Take all your special 2021 credits to offset taxes

2021 was a difficult year for most working Americans. Take all your credits: Child and Dependent Care Credit was supercharged through the 2021 American Rescue Plan. Parents can receive a tax credit worth as much as $8,000 — nearly four times the previous limit of $2,100. The Child Tax Credit provided funds throughout the year but some families may have been shortchanged. The expanded Child Tax Credit, by comparison, provides $3,600 for each child under six and $3,000 for children between 6 to 17. The fact that the tax credit is also fully refundable is important because it could boost the tax refund that many parents receive this year, experts say. Tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in a person's tax liability, versus deductions that lower a person's overall taxable income. Save the $300-$600 tax prep cost by doing your tax return using IRS-approved tax software via IRS free file. Or AARP free tax prep. Do not mail your return since IRS is still processing 2019 paper returns. I just got my refund!

https://www.amazon.com/Tax-Credit-Class-your-credits-ZERO/dp/1539462382

 

Social Security is the best annuity available

Insurance companies make a lot of money from annuities because you receive less than you invest with them. Yes, you are guaranteed payments for the rest of your life but unless you pay more now, your benefit will be cut by inflation over time. That means you receive less and less each month in buying power. At current levels of inflation your benefit will be worth about HALF the current payments in 20 years. Compare SS benefits: annual inflation protection—in 2022, benefits were increased by 5.9% at no extra cost to you. There is no policy charge, commission, admin fees, surrender charges, mortality expenses, investment expenses, or inflation rider fee. You can also create a low-cost income stream like an annuity to supplement your SS benefits.

Use the best: https://www.amazon.com/Best-Annuity-Strategy-Income-Growth/dp/1497532019

 

 

 

?**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************?

 

 

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracyWe rejected an "American fascist" once

 

 

The Path to Dictatorship: 2010-2030

 

GOP guarantees itself a win

 

More subpoenas

 

 

How Govt wastes our money:

Ukraine the new Korea? Putin takes HALF (East of Dnieper) to save face at home

100 more incidents involving counterfeit parts in nuclear power plants in 2021

Manchin’s political veto gives friends $ millions in lobbying fees: making them wealthy

 

GOP asks truckers to come block highways in US: Putin hacker firm invites chaos

Another costly vacation: House returns to work Feb. 28 after Presidents Day recess.

IRS Adds Four “No Rule” Areas for Trusts Estates: wealthy avoid taxes; we pay their tax

 

 

SCAMS/SPINS:

WI Trumpers ban ballot drop boxes: WI supremes help GOP win elections

TX rejects thousands of ballots for primary: GOP secures win before election

Billionaire pays to oust GOP reps who voted to impeach dictator Wannabe: follow cash

 

Two MS whites chase Black FedEx driver in truck: 5 shots: another hate crime?

CA deputy shot Black homeless man in struggle for jaywalking arrest: no charges

FL former cop kills man in phone-in-theater dispute: ‘stand your ground’ defense

 

NYC employees comply with vaxx mandate or face losing their jobs: 940,000 dead

Employees don’t fight mandate for driving, guns, seatbelts, recycle, dog poop, taxes, etc

500 unruly passenger incidents first six weeks of 2022: GOP cancels US do-not-fly list

Is Putin trying to divide us again: fake Trump letter, fake crops, fake food supply chain

Zero Hedge, 1.2 million Twitter followers, published Moscow propaganda as truth

 

Volvo now owned by Geely, Chinese billionaire business magnate Li Shufu.

Fake ‘vintage’ goods sold are really new: ads for fake vintage stuff: get nothing

Russell Joseph Mutter caught $3.3 million financial fraud, fake statements 16 yrs prison

Mark Boucher, CA, caught stealing $2.2 mil by forging signatures, wire transfers, etc

Kenneth A. Welsh NJ caught stealing $1.9 mil fake wire transfers; arrest

CO elections clerk is sued after passing on voting data to groups behind disinformation

 

 

Royals pay up for Andy’s sex with minor accusation: it’s good to have Queen behind you

 

Hertz caught getting car renters arrested after mistakenly filing stolen vehicle report

 

Football $ 1 billion online gambling boom changes fans into transaction action addicts

NFL censured Super’s half-time show so some wouldn’t be offended: listen carefully.\

Email from Chase: review your contact info: but I don’t have a Chase account: scammer

Scammers reach $800 average take: can you spot them coming after you? Gov can’t

 

Chrysler now ‘Stellantisrecalls 19,808 plug-in Pacifica Hybrid: charging fires

Tesla sued for killing driver when it ran into fire truck by itself: blinking lights attract

Sandy Hook families win $73 million vs Remington but Remington is bankrupt!

 

 

NFT marketplace shuts, citing 'rampant' fakes, plagiarism; so much for online only views

 

Trump and his two eldest children must comply with AG order to testify: take 5th 500 X

Trump’s accountant: his businesses cooked the books, “inflated property values

 

Trump threatens Clinton advisor with death for spying

 

Jobs

The adverts without the football on Sunday: vote on your favorite: $7 million/30 sec.

Some jobs can be done from anywhere if you have the right training or attitude

Citigroup head got 32% increase to cover inflation years in advance: live on $22 mil?

 

Least cost accredited college degrees: MBA, M Ed, MSIT

 

Who owns your account now?

Insurers push Congress to allow annuities as investment’s default: high fees cut earnings

“Americans can exercise Constitutional rights without hiring high-priced lawyer or lobbyist”

Investors not families buying up homes in critical areas in each city

 

New tax we paid to gambling industry: 2021 the highest-grossing year ever: $53 billion 

4 free Covid tests sent to your home: https://www.covidtests.gov/

Some student loan cancellations: fraud rampant in some: DeVry  ITT Technical Minnesota Business/Globe .

 

Miracles:

February 12: 49* at 8 AM northern NJ. Forty nine going to SIXTY! Warming?

Western US draught worst in 1200 years: hottest superbowl ever

This is how royals cut cake: stab down like killing a vampire

 

Space weather took out 40 SpaceX satellites: don’t look into the sun directly

Skaters using drugs OK as long as they use own script and grandpa’s and under age

MIT makes $4 water desalination machine: fresh water for the world

 

Eastern cities hit regularly with costly floods as sea rises faster next 30 years

Flowering plants multiplying in Antarctica as the climate crisis has warmed the summers

Woman Appears to Be Entirely Cured of HIV

 

 

We can apply for Medicare online: https://blog.ssa.gov/apply-for-medicare-online

We can apply for Social Security online: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/

We can apply for health care online: https://www.healthcare.gov/

 

IAN

41 Watchung Plaza, B242

MontclairNJ   07042

973.746.2014

www.InsuranceAdvisorsNetwork.com

Alerts available at http://dankeppel.blogspot.com/

 

Friday, April 3, 2020

Reduce taxes: 2019 IRA contributions by July 15


Reduce taxes: IRA contributions made by July 15
Since the filing deadline was extended to July 15, so was the 2019 IRA contribution deadline. We have more time to buy stocks on sale: $6,000 plus $1,000 for those over age 50 means less taxable income; less tax. Since stocks and funds are down 20% or more, we have a great way to add thousands of dollars to our LONG-TERM fund. Remember, only this asset class can beat inflation over time. Inflation can take up to HALF the purchasing power of our retirement dollars in 25 years. You may even increase your Savers Credit—a reduction in the actual tax owed. Another smart move: convert depressed IRA funds to Roth IRA funds. There is no longer any income limitations on Roth IRA conversions. Also this year your income may be lower since you are not forced to take RMDs. With smaller taxable incomes, you can convert more reduced IRA money and pay tax on a lower amount of income. We were able to slip into the 12% bracket from the 22% bracket this year and thus pay less for 2020 income. Also NJ does not tax SS benefits so we even saved on state taxes. A Roth IRA provides tax-FREE income later when taxes go up to pay for this $2 Trillion bailout.

Billionaires push unproven malaria drug that has killed
Job Creators Network is urging Trump to “CUT RED TAPE” and make an anti-malarial drug called hydroxychloroquine available for treating those sickened with the virus even though it has killed healthy people. Scientists have not tested it on virus patients. Despite this Trump endorsed the use of it and people have died. In Arizona, a couple who heard the president tout the drug ingested chloroquine phosphate — a chemical they’d used to treat their koi fish — mistakenly believing it would prevent COVID-19. The man died and his wife was hospitalized, according to NBC News. Several politicians have voiced the view that seniors should be sacrificed in order to get people back to work and save businesses. One thought leader volunteers ‘grandmas’ to die. Now ventilators are too expensive to make/buy Trump decides. In history, panic has caused mistakes that killed people by providing bad ‘cures.’ Because society elites have good health and access to superior medical care, they advocate their solutions for every person without thinking through the ‘collateral damage.’ If ‘back to work’ senior virus carriers handle your ‘Home Depot’ purchases, you are exposed. Trump ignores Italian-style deaths by promoting April 12 as deadline for back-to-work no matter the risk to actual people. Airlines have filed bankruptcies and kept working before. CEOs always got paid their bonuses. Now Trump and his Treasurer can pick the businesses they like to get a bailout.

Bad time to take money from your already depressed account
Under new Care Act, rules on 401(k) loans would also be relaxed, and some retirees would avoid so-called required minimum distribution, or RMD, rules that might have been onerous. One provision in the bill would let investors of any age take as much as $100,000 from retirement accounts this year without paying an early withdrawal penalty. They also could avoid taxes on the withdrawal if the money is put back in the account within three years. If it can’t be returned, taxes could be paid over three years. People diagnosed with the virus are eligible, along with anyone who “experiences adverse financial consequences” as a result of the pandemic, including an inability to find work or child care. Retirement plan sponsors are told to rely on employees’ word that they’re eligible. Taking money from your future is a hard decision. You not only sell shares at the worst time in 20 years but it will take twice as long—maybe another 20 years—to recoup that money. Besides you will lose the compound earnings during that loan time. Better to trade down your car or borrow from your bank. Like the Great Depression, these are the times that try our soils.

How Trump and tax-credit class hit Corona jackpot
The stimulus bill removes limits on the amount of losses that wealthy investors can use to offset taxes, by writing down the gradual depreciation of assets like real estate. Trump, Kushner and friends will have NO income taxes for years. Plus their accountants can go back to previous years and receive tax refunds. We will be paying Trump and friends for their losses. “There's a huge tax giveaway for people like him and his family in the stimulus package," said the nonprofit legal aid group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington in a tweet. So when you pay your taxes in the coming years you should think of all the money you are giving Trump, Kushner and all the real estate ‘developers’ out there. Trump is barred from the bailout, not his companies. They don’t even have to keep their employees on as other businesses have to for their jackpot. "To a certain degree the government is picking winners and losers in the stimulus bill and we will probably see it become even more political," one strategist said.

Are target-date funds the safest place for my retirement funds?
Unless you have millions of dollars or a Wall Street guru with a perfect record, you are safer in TDF than with a person who makes a living handling your money. An advisor, broker, agent, or money manager are those we traditionally look to when the markets crash. Most don’t save us from disaster. You may be a lucky person to have a sales person who sold your stocks before they went down. Only one or two actually predicted and executed a ‘safe’ sell-all strategy. TDF have the explicit strategy of investing for the long term. The good part is they don’t go down as far as some actively traded securities. They also don’t go up like the active traders claim their choices have. About 21% of retirement money is in TDF. 60% of new money went into TDF. Unless you have a crystal ball, there is no safer vehicle for your long term money. It is the simple and correct solution for most people saving for retirement. As Vanguard founder John Bogle said, you can't control the marketbut you can control your investment fees. Paying just 2% a year to your salesperson mean you are giving HALF of your long-term accumulation away. And your salesperson is not always right!
Why did your ETF close and return money to you
72 ETFs with $1.4 billion in assets shut down and returned their money to investors in the first quarter. Many ETFs are really leveraged market-timing active funds which must act quickly to get out of the super-heated loans. Some use derivatives to amplify returns or losses of the securities they track. Since leveraged ETFs are specially created products designed for speculators, individuals who buy or trade them without understanding how they work should be extra cautious. Many leveraged ETFs are not structured like ordinary ETFs. And unless you know your ETF intimately you will get burned in volatile times. These ETF's shares are destined to lose money over time, a reality that is exacerbated by the fact that the portfolio rebalances daily. Due to compounding, leveraged ETFs held over the long term can see strikingly different returns than the fund's target. Because these funds reset each day, you can see significant losses—even if the fund itself appears to be showing a gain. These are a way to gamble without risking the dangers of directly employing margin debt. You can take the long side (bet that it will increase) or the short side (bet that it will decrease) as both have their own respective ticker symbols

This is why rebalancing is not necessary
Markets have corrections, recessions and bad times. Selling and re-buying is not the best LONG-TERM strategy. New research by Campbell Harvey, Duke U, found that “investors need to understand that rote re-balancing is an active investment decision that increases risk. In an up market, you are selling soaring stocks; “all of a sudden your portfolio has done worse than if you had just let it run.” Re-balancing kills compounding. Almost every broker/advisor tells you to sell when your stocks are soaring and buy something else in order to maintain your 60/30/10 or 80/20 asset allocation. Transactions are their life. But Warren Buffett says: We continue to make more money when snoring than when active. Over time your portfolio of 50/50 stocks/bonds will maintain the growth and income you need to provide a sound lifelong return. For example: Vanguard Wellesley Income Fund has provided 9.5% annual returns since 1970. Corrections (rebalancing) were automatic and limited losses. Since 1970, 7 down markets have still produced over 10% for the S&P500. The market is now where it was Jan 2019.

File your taxes for free
TurboTax and other for-profit tax prep firms are due to raise prices soon. If you have your documents, use your favorite software now and file your tax now for refund. The payment, if any, can be in July; the filing should not. Rumors confirmed: filing delayed to July 15. Check your state for deadline. The federal and state filing can cost you nothing at https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/. Another site has no cost or restrictions: https://www.creditkarma.com/tax. And remember you can usually reduce income and thus tax by making a deductible contribution to your IRA. File now for refund: 90 day interest-free extension if you owe. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-20-18.pdf


**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—do we really want ‘low-IQMobster?

Mob Boss to MI: ‘Kiss my ass first’


Mob Boss blocks travel in NY, NJ CT except for friends/family’s helicopters
Hungary model tempts Mobster to follow emergency powers to jail media


Rescue checks/direct deposit goes out late April: tax returns or SS bank numbers

Test centers only test those with symptoms: virus will spread by no-symptom carriers
ICE detention centers: are they 21st century death camps? 7,000 immigrant children
Increased car emissions destroy air but pleases oil companies who pay election money

SCAMS/SPINS:


GOP gives Kushner $ millions: waive mortgage repayments on Kushner properties
Trump let the Fed ventilator contract expire: thousands from stockpile don’t work

FL GOP: unnecessary to order stay at home: limited testing so ‘many areas have no positives’


Medicare out of pocket bills have not arrived yet: we are in uncharted territory for big bills.
C-19 insurance scam: pay premium get no coverage; fake policy cancels; fake vaccines
12 C-19 scams to avoid: test kits, solicitations, SS calls, bank calls, toilet paper delivery
Purell caught making unproven claims: FDA letter tells them to prove it.
60,000 died in 2017-18 flu season: 44 million caught & survived: Fauci:100-200K C-19

Mark Lamkin KY caught taking loan from client violates rules
Cash Store TX caught made deceptive representations: “50% off”: fine $1.3 mil not jail.
Check your SPAM inbox: masks, ventilators, all virus equipment you want at 50% off!
Money claims to know when the market hits bottom: Actually they have no clue.

Jobs
We should have bought surveillance-software company’s stock: Big Brother all over us.
Trump channeling Pelosi: infrastructure jobs now solves 2 problems: work, bridge, road

Lose job; lose health care: America needs Medicare for All because if lose job should not lose life.


Who owns your account now?

Hold student loan payments at least till Oct: Employer can pay tax free.
Insurers asked to give waiver on premium due: check state guide non-cancel, etc

Nissan recalling 250,000 2012-17 SUVs, trucks and vans: air bags

Miracle:
NYC hotels open beds for hospital workers/non-C-19 patient: Four Seasons for doctors

New 5 minute test for C-19 approved FDA: make 50,000 machines a day eventually.
$100 Go2Vent ventilators ready to be made but owner wants $100 million for plans.
Miracle: Gun dealers are ‘essential businesses’ NRA tells Trump the election score

NYC doctor: "I’m seeing EMS stretchers lining up down the block …”

IAN
41 Watchung Plaza, B242
MontclairNJ   07042
973.746.2014
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