Robert Wagner Insurance July 2024 Newsletter

 

CDC revises recommended age for RSV vaccines

The CDC announced that the age range for older adults who can receive a recommended respiratory syncytial virus vaccine has been narrowed, and the shots will be made available only to adults age 75 and older and to 60- to 74-year-olds who have a medical condition that puts them at high risk for severe RSV. The new recommendation backs the one made by an external panel of advisers and could reduce the number of RSV shots sold in the US market in 2024-2025 from an expected 93 million to about 55 million.

 

Get Your Health Care Through Covered California? Beware Of This Tax Peril 

Every tax season hundreds of thousands of Californians are hit with an unexpected bill: They owe hundreds of dollars or more to the IRS because they accepted more money in subsidies for health insurance than they were allowed.

The chargeback can sting. Collectively, 415,000 California households owed the IRS close to $690 million in 2021 in charges related to the health care subsidies, according to agency data from the most recent year available. That is roughly $1,662 per person or family. Many people who end up owing money live in lower-income households.

This repayment rule is connected to the federal Affordable Care Act and the state-based health insurance plans it encouraged. Covered California, the state’s insurance marketplace, offers generous premium subsidies to those who qualify based on their income, but people can unknowingly receive too much aid if they underestimate how much they’ll earn the following year or if they lose a dependent and do not report that change.

It is important to report any change in income or dependents to Covered California or you could be facing a tax bill from the IRS.

 

 Medicare 2025 Outlook 

The Inflation Reduction Act, legislation signed into law in 2022, will impact Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage plans in calendar year 2025. When Medicare beneficiaries receive their Annual Notice of Change in September, it will bring changes significantly altering benefits, increasing premiums, and result in medications no longer being stocked by your local pharmacy. As is often the case, legislation results in unintended consequences.

While the intended focus was lowering high prescription drug costs for some people on Medicare and federal drug spending, its probable result will be higher Part D premiums and reduction in pharmacies carrying some high-cost medications.

 

Sun Safety Tips

The best prevention according to  UCI Health dermatologist Dr. Melissa Shive, is blocking and avoiding the sun's ultraviolet rays as much as possible.

It’s never too early to start practicing these sun protection habits.

  • Apply sunscreen liberally and frequently. Shive recommends generously applying a broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen of at least SPF 30 every day before leaving your house. While outdoors, apply it every two hours or more often when sweating or swimming.
  • Wear sunscreen in all weather. Sunscreen is necessary even on overcast days because the sun’s rays can still penetrate the clouds. Mineral-based sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium oxide are the most protective and less likely to irritate the skin.
  • Stay in the shade. This is especially important between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., when the sun is at its peak, Shive says.
  • Cover up. Wear long sleeves, long pants and a wide-brimmed hat while you’re out in the sun. Also, consider clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) rating for an extra shield.
  • Protect your eyes. Exposing your eyes to the sun can lead to ocular melanoma, eyelid cancers, inflammation of the cornea and other problems. Wearing sunglasses that block 99% to 100% of UV rays can protect your eyes by screening out 75% to 90% of visible light.
  • Monitor your skin. Most moles are nothing to worry about. However, moles that are asymmetrical, have an uneven border, are a strange color, bigger than the size of a pencil eraser, or changing should be evaluated by a dermatologist.
 

Preventing Tick Bites

As summer arrives and outdoor activities increase, the CDC offers valuable guidance for staying safe and healthy.

KEY POINTS

  • Reducing exposure to ticks is the best defense against tickborne diseases.
  • Tick exposure can occur year-round, but ticks are most active during warmer months (April-September).
  • You and your family can take several steps to prevent tick bites.

 Preventing tick bites on people 

Before you go outdoors

  • Know where to expect ticks. Ticks live in grassy, brushy, or wooded areas, or even on animals. Spending time outside walking your dog, camping, gardening, or hunting could bring you in close contact with ticks. Many people get ticks in their own yard or neighborhood.
  • Treat clothing and gear with products containing 0.5% permethrin. Permethrin can be used to treat boots, clothing and camping gear and remain protective through several washings. Alternatively, you can buy permethrin-treated clothing and gear.
  • Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents containing DEET, picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (OLE), para-menthane-diol (PMD), or 2-undecanone. EPA's helpful search tool can help you find the product that best suits your needs. Always follow product instructions. Do not use products containing OLE or PMD on children under 3 years old.
  • Avoid contact with ticks. Avoid wooded and brushy areas with high grass and leaf litter. Walk in the center of trails.

Read the complete reort from the CDC

 

4 Essential Nutrients for Men

From the Lose it blog:

While men’s health is influenced by various factors, today, we want to focus on nutrition, specifically, how your food choices impact your health. Here are four nutrients to keep in mind when optimizing men’s health.  

4 Areas to Focus on for Better Health

  • Omega 3’s - Omega 3’s are best known for their positive impact on heart health and inflammation
  • Vitamin D - Vitamin D works alongside Calcium to promote strong, healthy bones
  • Selenium - A key player in fertility and sexual health. In addition, selenium helps promote a healthy metabolism and steady energy levels by supporting thyroid hormones.
  • Fiber - Lowers your risk for Colorectal cancer

From: ANNA SMITH, MS, RDN, LDN

 

Game On!

As a parent or grandparent, sharing stories about the entertainment of your youth is always delightful. Recalling the slow, beige computers and the bulky, walkie-talkie-like mobile phones of the 1990s, or the pinball machines and Atari systems of the 1970s, brings astonished reactions from a generation used to the instant speed of twenty-first-century technology.

Some leisurely activities stand the test of time, with board games ranking high on that list. These games have been among our favorite pastimes since childhood, enjoyed with friends, family, and neighbors, and they remain beloved today.

Chess and checkers have ancient origins and remain among the world's most beloved board games. Recently, numerous board game cafés have emerged throughout America, offering endless hours of play for enthusiasts. Moreover, these games continue to be financially successful, with projections indicating the board game market could exceed $12 billion by 2023.

Undoubtedly, there's an inherent enjoyment in this activity. However, the benefits extend further—board games offer educational and health advantages to players. Here are some ways they enhance our lives.

  1. RULES MUST BE FOLLOWED.
    For most board games, the rules are literally set in black and white, and everyone must abide by them. 
  2. THE ROLL OF THE DICE CAN FOIL THE BEST STRATEGY.
    Have you ever spent a lot of time working on something, only for it to fall apart because of sheer bad luck? 
  3. YOU CAN’T ALWAYS WIN.
    Winning and losing are part of life, and with board games there’s usually only one winner. 
  4. ENJOYING A SLOWER PACE.
    Allowing ourselves to step back, slow down, and process through things is even more important in today’s technological age, when our brains have been rewired for a rapid-fire reality. 
  5. WORKING OUT YOUR BRAIN.
    Perhaps more than anything, this is the best physiological benefit of board games. 

  6. STRENGTHENING BONDS AND HAVING FUN.

    Simply put, board games bring people together. 

Health Benefits

What else can board games do for you? Here are just a few examples of how they can strengthen different skills.

  1. Hand-Eye Coordination/Dexterity - some games show the importance of a steady hand
  2. Deductive Reasoning - some games build this skill.
  3. Strategy - most board games require some sort of strategy.
  4. Tactical Planning - some games require such insight

  5. Nonverbal Communication - some games show other ways to communicate.

  6. Broad Knowledge
  7. Vocabulary
  8. Money Matters
  9. Probability
 
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