‘Terry’ has mantle cell lymphoma. The long term prognosis isn’t promising.
His condition is ‘managed’ with Calquence, a drug that costs $14,692/month! He works for a large employer with spectacular benefits; i.e., there’s no premium and his drugs are covered at 100%. Certainly not the norm.
But Terry turns 65 in January and would like to retire and enjoy whatever time is left.
If he signs up for Medicare, his Part B premium will be $144.30/month; a Medigap plan will cost $163; and a customized Part D drug plan $78, although still leaving him with out of pocket costs of $6,350/year.
The $10,974 total almost brought him to tears. Single, living alone on a very modest income, he concluded he’ll keep working as long as he can.
It’s times like this when we duck into the phone booth and change into Superman!
We helped Terry explore Medicare low income subsidy (LIS) programs called Extra Help. We found him no cost ‘coupons’ from the maker of Calquence.
Now he can retire.
The pleasure of helping people like Terry means the term “job lock” will likely only apply to me!
