Medicare · Social Security timing · Long-term care · Moab, Monticello & Grand Junction
More than just Medicare.
Medicare is where we start — not where we stop. We help you compare and enroll in the right plan, understand how Social Security and Medicare timing fit together, and plan for long-term care — all coordinated with your financial advisor. Insurance companies pay our fee — so you pay nothing for our services.
One plan, not three errands
Medicare, Social Security & long-term care — planned together
These three decisions are connected: your income shapes your Medicare premiums, your claiming age shapes your income, and a long-term care event can undo both. We help you look at the whole picture.
Medicare
Advantage, Supplement (Medigap) and Part D — compared for your doctors, prescriptions and budget, enrolled on time, and reviewed every fall.
Explore Medicare plans →Social Security Planning
When you claim can mean tens of thousands of dollars of difference over a retirement. Meet with us and get a personalized Social Security analysis — your claiming windows, your Medicare premiums (IRMAA), and your retirement income, mapped together.
Get a Social Security analysis →Long-Term Care Planning
Medicare generally doesn't pay for long-term custodial care — and paying out of pocket can drain a lifetime of savings. We build a long-term care analysis around your assets, then walk through traditional and hybrid coverage that protects what you've built.
Get a long-term care analysis →Want all three looked at in one sitting? Book a private, no-cost Retirement & IRMAA Review — 45 minutes, one-on-one with Brian Penner.
Book a Retirement & IRMAA ReviewWhat's your ZIP code?
We start local — plan availability is set by your county.
How old are you?
This tells us which coverage window you're in.
Which best describes you?
Pick one — you can change this anytime.
How often do you see doctors?
Helps us weigh networks vs. freedom.
Do you take prescriptions?
We match your drugs to the lowest-cost plan.
No cost, no pressure. We do not offer every plan available in your area — for all options visit Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE.
How we help
Everything you need, handled with care
Navigate Medicare “red tape”
Parts A, B, C and D, deadlines and paperwork — we translate it all into plain English and handle the legwork.
Understand all your options
Advantage, Supplement (Medigap) and Part D, compared side by side so you can choose with confidence.
Avoid lifetime “gotcha” penalties
Miss a window and you can pay more for the rest of your life. We make sure you enroll on time, every time.
A custom plan for lifetime care
We match coverage to your doctors, prescriptions and budget — and review it every year as your needs change.
All at no cost to you.
How it works
Get the right Medicare plan in 3 steps
Schedule a free conversation
Tell us your doctors, prescriptions and budget. No cost, no pressure — ever.
Get a personal plan comparison
We compare the Medicare Advantage, Medigap and Part D plans we offer against your needs.
Enroll & get ongoing support
We handle enrollment and stay your local advisor for claims, appeals and annual reviews.
Our services
Explore services, plans & options
Medicare Enrollment Assistance
Turning 65 or new to Medicare — we guide every step of your Initial Enrollment.
Plan Comparison
Advantage vs. Supplement vs. Part D, compared for your exact situation.
Annual Coverage Review
Plans change yearly. We check yours every fall so you never overpay.
Social Security & Medicare Timing
Your claiming age and your enrollment window are two different clocks — we map both around your full retirement age.
Long-Term Care Planning
Medicare doesn't pay for most long-term care. We help you plan for that risk before it drains a lifetime of savings.
Retirement Income & IRMAA Awareness
Your income sets your Medicare premiums. We flag IRMAA thresholds and coordinate with your financial advisor.
Claims Support & Appeals
A real, local advocate for when something goes wrong.
Keep Your Doctor
We help confirm your providers and prescriptions are covered before you switch.
Drug Cost Review
Make sure your prescriptions are covered at the lowest total cost among the plans we offer.
Local health picture · CDC county data
Why plan fit matters in Mesa County, CO
The right Medicare plan depends on your health — and conditions like these are common among adults in Mesa County, CO. It's why we check each plan's drug formulary and specialist network against your doctors and prescriptions before you enroll, instead of comparing headline premiums alone.
Share of adults with each condition (crude prevalence). Source: CDC PLACES county estimates, 2025 release — also available for every Utah, Colorado & Arizona county as machine-readable JSON. Education only, not medical advice.
Benefit from decades of experience
Your personal Medicare & insurance consultant
Brian Penner brings a broad understanding of Medicare, Social Security timing, and long-term care planning — and the patience to make sure you understand every option before you decide.
Meet Brian Penner →For financial advisors, CPAs & attorneys
The Medicare desk for your clients
Your clients' Medicare decisions sit inside your financial plan — IRMAA brackets, Roth-conversion timing, HSA wind-downs, turning-65 windows. We handle the Medicare and long-term care side, keep you in the loop, and never touch the investments — at no cost to you or the client.
How the advisor partnership works →Resources
Latest Medicare guidance
Can I Keep COBRA Instead of Medicare at 65 in Colorado?
Almost never safely — and the order you do it in changes the outcome. COBRA is not coverage based on CURRENT employment, which is the only kind that lets you delay Part B, so Medicare.gov gives you 8 months after you stop working to enroll “whether or not you choose COBRA.” COBRA runs 18 months. Those two clocks are the whole trap: the person planning to “switch when COBRA ends” is planning to enroll ten months after their protection expired, and nothing arrives in the mail to warn them. Worse, paying the premium doesn’t mean the plan pays — once you’re Medicare-eligible but not enrolled, COBRA “may only pay for a small portion” of your care, because it’s allowed to subtract a Medicare payment nobody made. Then the sequence almost nobody explains: 26 CFR §54.4980B-7 lets a plan cut off COBRA when you become Medicare-entitled AFTER electing it — but entitlement that begins on or before the election “cannot be a basis for terminating” it. Medicare first, then COBRA, and the coverage survives. Plus the 102% and 150% premium ceilings, the 36-month extension for a younger spouse, why a severance check raises your Part B premium in 2028, and Colorado’s own continuation statute — which says outright that an employer need not offer continuation to anyone covered by Medicare. Education, not advice, from Brian Penner.
Read →
How Many Medicare Advantage Plans Are There in Utah County?
Twenty-one — and the count is the least useful thing on this page. The CMS CY2026 landscape file lists 21 MA-PD plans in Utah County (Provo, Orem, Lehi, American Fork) from six carriers, 14 of them at a $0 monthly plan premium, out of 280 offerings across Utah’s 29 counties. If you’ve seen “28 plans in Provo,” that’s a different denominator, not a contradiction: broader tallies fold in MA-only plans, Special Needs Plans that require you to qualify, and sometimes stand-alone Part D. Ask any source what it counted. What actually separates the 21 is the out-of-pocket maximum — $4,900 to $8,900 in-network, a $4,000 spread in your worst year, and two plans can both advertise $0 premium while sitting that far apart. A $0 plan premium is not free coverage: you still pay $202.90 a month for Part B in 2026, plus every copay. Plus the county-line effect nobody models before moving (Sanpete has 6 plans, Juab has 5), the three filters that cut 21 to a short list in ten minutes, why the 4.5-star ceiling rarely breaks a tie, and the option with no plan count at all. Education, not advice, from Brian Penner.
Read →
Do I Need Medicare If I Have VA Benefits in Colorado?
No law requires it — and the VA tells you to sign up anyway. Its own page on VA health care and other insurance answers “Should I sign up for Medicare?” with a flat yes, and one of the three reasons it gives is that “funding for VA health care could change in the future.” The two systems sit side by side and never coordinate: VA pays at VA facilities, or at a non-VA facility only when VA pre-authorized the care in advance; Medicare pays Medicare providers; neither covers the other’s deductibles or copays. Part B is the whole decision — $202.90 a month in 2026, more above $109,000 single / $218,000 joint — because it is the only thing covering you at a non-VA hospital when no authorization exists. And the trap: VA health care is NOT creditable coverage for Part B and creates no Special Enrollment Period, so the late enrollment penalty accrues at 10% of the standard premium per full year, for life. Part D is the exact opposite — VA determined its drug benefit “meets or exceeds” standard Medicare coverage, so no penalty there. Plus the Western Slope version: six VA locations from Grand Junction to Moab, the 30-minute/20-day and 60-minute/28-day community care access standards, and why approval takes time that emergencies don’t. Education, not advice, from Brian Penner.
Read →Got questions?
We have lots of great answers
What if I’m already on Medicare?
We can still help — at no cost. We’ll review your current coverage, check that your doctors and prescriptions are covered, and compare it against the plans we offer to see if you could be paying less or getting more.
Do you charge for your time?
No. Insurance companies pay our fee, so you don’t pay a thing for our services. You get unbiased, local guidance at no cost to you.
What are “lifetime penalties”?
If you don’t enroll in Medicare Part B or Part D when you’re first eligible (and don’t have other qualifying coverage), you can owe a permanent late-enrollment penalty added to your premium for as long as you have Medicare. We make sure you enroll in the right window so you avoid them.
Is it true I could lose my doctor?
Some Medicare Advantage plans use provider networks, so the wrong plan could mean your doctor is out of network. Before you enroll, we confirm your physicians and prescriptions are covered by the plan you choose.
What about additional coverages?
Beyond core Medicare, we can help with dental, vision and hearing, hospital indemnity, and life or final-expense coverage — so the gaps Medicare leaves are covered too.
Do you only help with Medicare?
Medicare is our focus, but it's not where we stop. We also help with Social Security and Medicare timing education, long-term care planning, life and final-expense coverage, and annuities — coordinated with your financial advisor, CPA, or attorney so your healthcare and your retirement plan work together instead of in separate silos.
Let’s connect
Get your free, personalized Medicare roadmap from a local advisor who has your back.
Official Medicare sources
Verify current-year figures with the federal sources: Medicare.gov, Medicare Plan Compare, Social Security (ssa.gov), and CMS.gov. Education only — we do not offer every plan available in your area.
Last updated . Maintained by the Medicare On Main Data Desk · reviewed by Brian Penner, Independent Medicare advisor (NPN 16493717).