Ultrabella Investments & Insurance Solutions

05/29/2026

According to the National Council on Aging, Medicare beneficiaries can face significant out‑of‑pocket costs each year for deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance.

Medicare Insurance Plans are options that may help cover certain costs Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) doesn’t pay. They are offered by private insurance companies.

Depending on the plan you choose, a Medicare insurance policy may help pay for some of the remaining costs such as copayments, coinsurance, and deductibles. Benefits, availability, and premiums vary by carrier, and your state of residence.

Premiums and benefit structures for Medicare insurance plans can vary substantially between insurance companies — even for the same plan in the same ZIP code. Reviewing options from several carriers, rather than enrolling with the first one you see, may help you identify a plan that better fits your situation.

California insurance license number is #4006732

*The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.*

05/27/2026

The latest projection from The Senior Citizens League (TSCL), a nonpartisan senior group, estimates the 2027 Social Security COLA at 3.9%. This is a significant increase from its earlier estimate of 2.8%, and it reflects concerns about rising inflation.

It's not set in stone, but it's looking pretty likely.

05/27/2026

Under the new law, Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California) will not cover long-term services and supports, including nursing home care and home-based care, for applicants whose home equity exceeds $1 million. Exceptions exist for properties zoned for agricultural use, according to a recent report from Justice in Aging.

Medicaid generally limits older adults and people with disabilities to about $2,000 in countable assets, but a primary residence has long been exempt under the idea that people should not have to lose their homes to receive care.

New Medicaid rule will cap home equity at $1 million for long-term care eligibility beginning in 2028, potentially affecting homeowners.

05/26/2026

This year, forecasting the 2027 numbers was more difficult because the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) did not publish official CPI-W data for October 2025, due to the federal government shutdown last year. The official numbers should be released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) by early November of this year.

Will you owe the Medicare IRMAA surcharge in 2027? Grab your 2025 tax return and check the projected brackets and surcharges for next year.

05/26/2026

📊 IRMAA is based on your Modified Adjusted Gross Income from two years prior. Your 2024 return determines your 2026 Medicare Part B and Part D premiums.

The first surcharge bracket starts at $109,000 for single filers and $218,000 for married filing jointly. Crossing by $1 adds $81.20 per month to Part B and $14.50 per month to Part D, per person, for the full year.

Traditional IRA withdrawals, RMDs, and inherited IRA distributions all count in full. A $50,000 RMD raises your MAGI by $50,000 whether you needed the money or not.

Roth conversions are the item that catches the most people. The full converted amount is added to your AGI in the year of conversion. A $150,000 conversion in 2024 can push your 2026 bracket even if your ongoing income is well below $109,000.

Tax-exempt municipal bond interest is also added back into MAGI for IRMAA purposes, even though it is not federally taxable.

Qualified Roth IRA and Roth 401(k) withdrawals do not appear on your tax return and are invisible to IRMAA. HSA withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are also excluded.

The 2-year lookback means income spikes from home sales, business sales, or large conversions show up in Medicare premiums two years later.



P.S. Every Friday I send a short email with the week's top post, my take on the best article I read, and what I'm writing about on the site. Link in the comments.

The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.

05/26/2026

Following a reported 3.9% increase in the CPI-W in April from the prior-year period, nonpartisan senior advocacy group The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) increased its 2027 COLA prediction from 2.8% to 3.9%. Meanwhile, independent Social Security and Medicare policy analyst Mary Johnson lifted her 2027 COLA forecast to 4.2%. For added context, Johnson's 2027 COLA estimate had sat at 1.7% just a few months earlier.

If Johnson's latest estimate of 4.2% were to prove accurate, it would mark the fourth-largest raise for Social Security recipients in 36 years, topped only by a 5.8% increase in 2009, 5.9% lift in 2022, and 8.7% jump in 2023.

A second consecutive year with a "Trump bump" can provide a big boost to Social Security checks -- but this is only part of the story.

05/26/2026

📋 Only 37.7% of eligible seniors are enrolled in SNAP, according to NCOA's Benefits Participation Map, which tracks enrollment data for adults 65 and older nationwide.

The gap is not primarily explained by ineligibility. More than 9.1 million seniors who qualify for SNAP are not enrolled.

The Medicare Savings Program covers the $202.90 monthly Part B premium for qualifying enrollees, plus deductibles and copays. Fewer than half of eligible seniors, 49.1% nationally, are enrolled.

SSI provides monthly federal cash payments to adults 65 and older with limited income and resources. Nationally, only 39.5% of eligible seniors collect it, leaving 3.6 million unenrolled.

Enrollment rates vary significantly by state. Florida has 930,895 eligible non-participants in SNAP alone. Texas has 556,104 eligible non-participants in Medicare Savings Programs.

BenefitsCheckUp at ncoa website is a free screening tool that checks eligibility for 2,000+ federal and state programs. It takes about 10 minutes and requires no account to use.



P.S. Every Friday I send a short email with the week's top post, my take on the best article I read, and what I'm writing about on the site. Link in the comments.

The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.

05/26/2026

I asked ChatGPT to create a caricature of myself based on everything "it" knows about me....yikes pretty accurate....except I don't offer P&C, life, car, business, or home insurance....just Medicare plans and employee health insurance/retirement coverage.

Pretty funny caricature of my cat though 😂

https://www.planenroll.com/?purl=xf9y9C7I

https://reps.wellthcare.com/

05/26/2026

https://reps.wellthcare.com/

05/25/2026

📊 This is an updated version of a post I ran about a month ago.

Your Social Security statement shows four benefit estimates. Most people look at the age 62 figure and stop. That figure is also the permanent floor for anyone who claims at the earliest possible age.

For workers born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67. The benefit shown at 67 is your primary insurance amount (PIA), and every other number in the statement is calculated from it.

Claiming at 62 reduces the PIA by 30% permanently. The reduction does not reverse after full retirement age.

Waiting until 70 adds 8% per year in delayed retirement credits past FRA. For someone with a $2,000 PIA at 67, the benefit at 70 is $2,480 per month.

The break-even age between claiming at 62 and 70 is roughly age 80 using simple cumulative dollars. If health or longevity concerns make reaching 80 unlikely, claiming earlier captures more total lifetime income.

SSA calculates your benefit using your highest 35 years of wage-indexed earnings. If you worked fewer than 35 years, each missing year is counted as zero and included in that average. A single added zero year on a $60,000-per-year earnings record reduces the AIME by roughly $143 per month.

The statement also estimates what you will receive if you stop working today. If you plan to continue working, the actual benefit will be higher. Check your statement at ssa.gov and look for years that show no earnings or a lower amount than expected.



P.S. Every Friday I send a short email with the week's top post, my take on the best article I read, and what I'm writing about on the site. Link in the comments.

*The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.*