September 2026: You’re Going To Need Your Hands For This

Hi Erik,

I hope you find this month’s information useful.
It’s the time of year where Medicare is going to be barging into your attention space for the next three months and… we have three sections that await your attention.

Agenda

1. The Four Things That Genuinely Concern Me with Medicare
2. An Oh-So Cute Book Recommendation 
3. Words of Wisdom: You’ll Need Your Hands For This

Concerns with Medicare

It’s that time of year again.
The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) is almost here, which means non-stop commercials, letters, emails, phone calls, and scary headlines.

There are changes coming to Medicare leading into 2027.
There are changes EVERY year going into a new year.

Some of them are meaningful. Some are not – no matter how scary the headlines make them look.

ANOCs Are Hitting
If you are on a Medicare Advantage plan or a standalone Part D prescription drug plan, your insurance company is required to send you an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) by September 30th.

A lot of you are already getting yours with next year’s changes.

Many of those who have reached out to me have seen minimal changes; however, there is still a big chunk of folks who are seeing significant changes, especially with certain Part D drug plans.

Do not panic.
We will get through all of this together.

2027 plans are not made public until October 1st, so if your plan did see significant changes, on October 1st, we’ll be able to see if you have other, more cost-effective options.

There is a lot of fear out there right now – just like every year – but most of what’s out there is not something to be afraid of.

Having said that…

Here are My Four Concerns with the Medicare World
There are four areas of Medicare right now that do concern me – specifically the effects these four areas have on you.

I am making videos for each of the four topics. Part 1 is done, but not visible to the public, so you’re the first to see it. The other three are close behind.

Part 1 – Medicare Marketing Rule Changes for 2027
(Click the title to watch that video)

Part 2 – The Senior Influencer Epidemic (coming soon)

Part 3 – The Knowledge Gap between How Insurance Works and What’s Happening (coming soon)

Part 4 – The Medicare Agent Dilemma (coming soon)

I can be long-winded, so each of those covers a few topics, but all of these concerns stem from the idea that they will actually impact YOUR life with varying levels of cost, convenience, and problems.

With all of these, if you have an agent you trust, rely on him or her over the next few months and be very careful of what people are selling you – including the information offered.
Throw me in that mix as well. Always take what I say and bounce it against your common-sense radar.

On to the more… uplifting topics.

Book Recommendation

The Rosie Project, Graeme Simsion

Please don’t judge me. I’m a hopeless romantic at heart.

When you finish this book, I think you’ll go… “Awwww, that was cute.”
In a good way! 🙂

It is a rom-com – I won’t shy away from it, but it reminds me of my wife and me. Except it’s like… wildly different.

The main guy is awkward (like me) and puts together a questionnaire that will find his perfect match.

The main gal is fun and marches to the beat of her own drum (like my wife) and no one in their right mind would put the two together.

I’ll let you read the rest.

Get It Here

Words of Wisdom – You’re Going To Need Your Hands For This

I am fascinated by… hands.

We all know the phrase… “I know [X] like the back of my hand.”

But… how well do you actually know the back of your hand?

I want you to stop what you are doing, take 10 seconds, and examine your hands. Both the front and the back 🙂

I looked at both, but I chose to focus on my right hand.

I see that there are 4 noticeable scars.
Each one has its own story.
Its own injury… its own mark… pinpointing a time in my life.

I also noticed my fingerprints.
Something mine and only mine.
Something that can be used to identify me for good (unlocking my phone) or for evil (in the event I commit a crime).

But this little exercise took my mind in the direction of remembering what these hands have done – and are capable of doing.

Recently, these hands were used to move both big and small items from our old house to our new house. Which sounds like a simple sentence. All of you reading this can nod your head and say, “Yeah… Totally get it.”

But take a minute and think about what that means.

These hands, and even just these fingers, held back hundreds of pounds (felt like millions) at times, from falling on my toes or from falling on my friend’s toes as he helped me carry things from the house, to a trailer, to another house, and position these heavy objects in our room.

These hands had to reach into countless moving bins… full of small items like cords, coins, hangers, nails, screws, and the contents of our junk drawer.

These same hands…
that are so tough and strong and durable enough to lift things and scrape against door frames, and pry open water bottle lids screwed on too tight for my family to open…

They also have the sensitivity and dexterity to reach into a pile of nuts, bolts, screws, and nails to find the one flat-head screw that matches its twin that I used to secure my bookshelf to the wall.

These same hands…

held my children who, at one point could fit in the palm of my hand, and now, while none of them fit in the palm of my hand anymore… THEIR hands will occasionally make their way into my hand.

My 8-year-old daughter will still hold my hand willingly.
My 11-year-old boy gets creeped out if I try to hold his hand, but when he’s scared, he’ll still hang on tight to my hand.

And my 13-year-old daughter will still reluctantly hold my hand… as long as her friends are watching…

These hands have been the vehicle of death when a monstrous spider infiltrates the room of one of my kids and their scream makes the neighborhood think the world is ending over here.
Or the annihilation of a wasp nest at our front door.
Or pulling weeds in an attempt to halt their incessant march across my yard.

These hands have been calloused at different times of my life and in different places as I lifted weights, worked landscaping jobs, helped my dad manage his apartments, and played sports like tennis and baseball.

These hands have been delicate and soft… wiping tears from my wife’s face.
They have had to be precise during my pre-med exercises of sewing stitches or dissecting tiny mice and certain organs under a microscope.

These hands are used to communicate my excitement or frustration.
They can be arranged in a way to give a gesture that makes my family laugh… or in a way to make a stranger want to punch me in the face.

These hands… are an extension of me… whatever “me” means.
They are typing this newsletter.
They take the thoughts from my brain and do the work to turn these thoughts into a reality.

What I saw… was that these hands are capable of SO, so much.

What did you see when you looked at your hands?
Keep that thought with you.

Jag

When I was young, our neighborhood had a program that assigned each family to another family along our street.
We were responsible for checking in on them – mostly for things like making sure everyone was okay – especially those with disabilities or challenges, or shoveling their driveways during a snow storm, or helping with yard work.

One of the families my dad and I were fortunate enough to know had a special situation.

She was a single woman.
An elementary school teacher who lived at the end of our street.

I remember how much she wanted to be a mother, but up to that point in her life, circumstances just hadn’t lined up for her.

So… she decided to adopt. Specifically, from an orphanage in India.

She adopted a shy little girl.
A couple years later, she adopted another shy little girl.
Then a shy little boy.
And finally, the fourth of four wonderful kids… a little boy named Jag.

But… Jag was different from the rest.

Jag had UNLIMITED energy.
He flew all over the place. He never stopped talking. He was curious about everyone and everything.
He would come right up to you and sit on your lap, ask you your name, and ask if you wanted to play.

He was 3.

There was no such thing as a stranger to Jag. Everyone was his friend.

Jag was named after the Hindu god – Jagannath.
Jagat (universe) Nath (lord), “Lord of the Universe.”

This Hindu god… Lord of the Universe… is traditionally depicted without full arms or legs.

And, the first thing you would notice with Jag – WAY before he plopped into your lap – was that he, like his namesake, didn’t have full arms or legs.

At birth, Jag’s arms ended at about the elbow, and his legs at about the knee, leaving calloused stumps as he still walked, ran, or scooted to his destinations.

And Jag had no hands.

And yet… he never let this keep him from enjoying the activities he wanted to do.
Basketball, soccer, art, climbing, jumping… you name it, he wanted to try it all.

As a young kid myself, at first, I was shocked. Surprised. Confused.
The more I got to know him as he and I both grew up a bit, the more I admired him and his fearlessness.

I don’t know the exact age, but probably when he was around 7 or 8 and I was… 14, his mom ended up getting married. She, her husband, Jag, and his 3 older sisters moved away from our neighborhood and we lost touch.

My Daughter’s Soccer Game
Fast-forward 15 years to about… 8 or so years ago.

I’m all grown up.
I’ve moved to a different city and have a family of my own.
My daughter is playing soccer at the local rec center fields and I hear some of the rec center employees behind me call out, “Jag!” followed by a question.

I turn around and see a young man, in a neon-green shirt, sitting in a motorized wheelchair directing the rec center staff.

His arms end just past his elbows… his legs at his knees… with calloused stumps from where he walked, ran, or scooted…

I peeled away from my family for a second and went up to him.

“I heard your name is Jag… is that short for Jagannath?”

He looked at me… a little confused… and said, “Yes. How do you know that?”

I had the biggest smile on my face as I relayed to him our past.
He was too young to remember me or even much of his time at the house on my street, but he was kind and cordial and explained his role as a manager of the outdoor athletics department of the rec center.

How cool is that?!
Jag is in charge of outdoor sports – including soccer – at the rec center!

His mom, step dad, and siblings were all doing great at the time. After a selfie, I asked that he pass along a hello from me to his family.