What is Pinterest? Pinterest is a website that allows users to create theme-based pinboards to share things they find on the web. Users can pin things to their own pinboards or browse pinboards created by other people.

These are serious considerations for a hearts-and-flowers month, but what better time to demonstrate the love you have for each other and for your family than by ensuring that you and those you care about are adequately protected? Then make this February extra-special by giving each other a special “gift of love” in the form of life insurance.

Call us to set up an appointment to discuss your options. 800.524.3519 Don’t leave the ones you love with financial burden if something were to happen to you.

Click on the Insure Your Love logo above to make a slide show to send to your Valentine and read more about the importance of life insurance. Send your loved one a Valentine’s Day Card!

On August 1, 2011, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released an amendment to the Interim Final Regulations for preventive care under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). The amendment applies to non-grandfathered individual insurance policies as well as non-grandfathered insured and self-insured group health plans.

The amendment provides additional guidelines for women’s preventive services. Health plans will need to cover women’s preventive services, including birth control, without copayments or deductibles. The guidelines reflect the recommendations made last month by the independent Institute of Medicine.

For plan years beginning on or after August 1, 2012, non-grandfathered plans will be required to cover the following additional preventive care services for women with no cost sharing:

• Annual well-woman visits
• Screening for gestational diabetes
• HPV DNA testing for women 30 years and older
• Sexually-transmitted infection counseling
• HIV screening and counseling
• FDA-approved contraception methods and contraceptive counseling
• Breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling
• Domestic violence screening and counseling

For more detail on the amendment and the additional preventive care services for women, visit:www.hrsa.gov/womensguidelines/.

For more information on the existing PPACA preventive care guidelines, visit:http://www.healthcare.gov/center/regulations/prevention/taskforce.html.

Plans may impose cost sharing on brand name preventive drugs if a generic version is available and is just as effective and safe for the patient to use. Cost sharing would not be permitted on the generic drug.

Don’t let insurance companies get away with it either.  Most seniors haven’t quoted their Medicare Supplement policy in years.  A lot has changed in the market place, including the addition of new carriers which means she could be getting a cheaper rate for the same policy! That’s like stealing money from Grandma!

Ask if you can help her get a new quote on her policy.  All we need is Grandma’s birth date, zip code,  whether she smokes or not, and one of her homemade cookies.  Ok, ok! You can keep that as your reward for saving her money! She will love you for it.

Once we have a new policy set up, we will continue to search for lower rates when her rate increases every year.  We do all the work, you reap all the reward!  If Grandma and Grandpa both apply at the same time they get even more discounts!

Feel free to call or email us to run quotes for you or to ask questions about Medicare Supplement Policies.

Health Care Reform Timeline

The credit might actually benefit you more than you think it will – Did you know that the credit includes more than medical insurance premiums? Your dental, vision, cancer, critical illness, and gap premiums also can qualify for the credit. Just that little piece of information may help you maximize your credit this year. For more details to help you understand and take advantage of this new credit, click here.

Symptoms of Computer Vision Syndrome:
Headaches – This is the primary reason why most people seek an eye exam. Most often headaches occur toward the front of the head and toward the middle or end of day.
Dry or irritated eyes – Although blinking is a reflex, people tend to blink less often when looking at a computer than when reading or performing other tasks.
Neck and/or backaches – When our visual system isn’t seeing properly, we may assume awkward positions to compensate, which can lead to neck and back pain. Poor posture can magnify discomfort.
Double vision – When working at close distance for extended periods, people may experience double vision.

Prevention Tips:
Center your monitor directly in front of you.
Sit at arm’s length from your monitor, slightly further back for larger monitors.
Position the top of your screen level with your eyes, slightly lower if you wear bifocals or trifocals to accommodate viewing through the lower portion of the lens.
Tilt your monitor slightly upward.
Beware of windows, which may cause glare.
Reduce the brightness of your monitor.
Increase your monitor’s resolution making icons and words larger.
Follow the 20/20/20 rule to avoid visual fatigue; take a 20 second break, every 20 minutes, and look at least 20 feet away.
Clean the screen of your monitor weekly.
Try to blink more often when using your computer.
Wear computer glasses with anti-reflective lenses.
Schedule routine eye exams with an optometrist.

Information courtesy of Ameritas, providing dental and vision coverage.

Thank you for your patience while the website is in transition.