I talk to people every day who want to retire but don’t think they can. They have plenty of money in the bank — financially, they’re ready. But they’re worried about the cost of health insurance. It’s a legitimate concern. You’ve spent your career with group coverage through an employer, and losing that safety net is scary. “How do people even get insurance if they don’t work for a company?” They get it from people like us.

Our office works with a lot of financial advisors. They all have clients who need exactly what we do — individual health insurance and Medicare plans. That’s our specialty. We could do more in the insurance world, but we’d rather be really good at those two things. Fortunately, we are.

Let’s say you’re 60 and you’ve reached the point where going into the office every day grinds your gears. You want to travel. Visit the grandkids. Play more golf and pickleball. Maybe you just want to wake up, pour a cup of coffee, and move slowly. Whatever your reason — here you are. And the one thing holding you back is health insurance. Don’t let that be the reason you keep working if you don’t want to or need to. That’s exactly where we come in.

Here’s how it typically works: your financial advisor reaches out to us and sets up a call or a meeting. The first thing we do is tell you how lucky you are to have them in your corner — and how smart they were to call us.

When you retire, you have three options:

COBRA — a continuation of the coverage you already have. Right now your employer is covering a big chunk of that cost. When you leave, you pick up the whole bill. It’s expensive, but it’s familiar.

A Marketplace plan — also called an ACA or Obamacare plan. The price varies based on your income, which is where your financial advisor earns their keep. They’ll help minimize your adjusted gross income, and if we can get that number low enough, you’ll qualify for a subsidy that makes your premium very manageable.

A private plan — lower premium than the first two options and a bigger network than a Marketplace plan, but it doesn’t cover pre-existing conditions. If you don’t qualify for a subsidy and don’t have ongoing health issues that need coverage, this is often the way to go.

Health insurance in this window is a bit of a game — we’re finding you the best coverage for your situation and stretching it as long as we can. The end goal is hitting age 65 and stepping into the wonderful world of Medicare. But that’s a story for another day.

Wisdom beyond our years.

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Ready to retire?