Martin Elefant

I speak fluent deductible so you don't have to. Grab my free guide before you renew 👇

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Health insurance is the only product where you pay every month and still need a translator to use it. I'm your translator. Grab my free guide before you renew, link in bio 👇

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@0xdavecryps Calling a $2,385/month plan the "low-premium" option is like calling a shark the "low-teeth" fish. If it's HSA-eligible, at least max the HSA so that $8,200 deductible gets paid in tax-free dollars.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@larry_levitt Turning 65 is the only birthday where the gift is the same doctor visit at a lower price. Tip for anyone getting close: your Medicare enrollment window starts 3 months before your 65th birthday month, so the cake isn't the only thing with a deadline.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Before you fall in love at the eyeglass store, ask your vision plan for the frame allowance. Mine's $150, and every frame that makes me look smart is $189.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@JOJOBABY14 Open enrollment class, lesson 1: add up a year of premiums plus the deductible you'd realistically hit, for each plan. Lesson 2: the answers are in a PDF named Benefits_Guide_FINAL_v3_REAL.pdf. There is no lesson 3, just HR's voicemail.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@CreatorPath Ah, you didn't request a quote, you adopted 40 telemarketers. Ask each caller to put you on their do-not-call list, and next time type https://t.co/h6ffJp8Zp8 or your state's official marketplace address directly instead of clicking search ads.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@FOX29philly Sticker shock tip: check the out-of-pocket max, not just the monthly premium. The premium is what it costs to get in the door. The out-of-pocket max is how much the door can charge you on the way out.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Open enrollment tip: your FSA usually doesn't auto-renew. If you don't re-elect it, you find out on Jan 1 that it ghosted you, and it didn't even leave a toothbrush.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@BrownBuck82 $1,996 and 49 days is the most stressful game show on TV. Check your plan's eligible list first, a lot of them cover stuff like sunscreen and first aid kits, so you can do Supermarket Sweep in the pharmacy aisle.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@FranWalsh73 Using an HSA like a checking account is like buying a treadmill and using it to hang laundry. Technically it works, but you're skipping the part where it gets stronger every year.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Open enrollment tip: picking a Marketplace plan isn't the finish line. Coverage usually doesn't start until you pay that first premium. Skip it and you didn't get insured, you just window-shopped with extra steps and a password.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@realTuckFrumper Whether it's AI or you at 2am with a coffee, the move is the same: get the denial reason in writing and note your appeal deadline. Insurers hate one thing more than paying claims: paperwork that writes back.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@livenowfox Before the sticker shock turns into a full cardio workout, check if you qualify for savings on your state's marketplace. It's the only price tag in America that might have a coupon stuck to the back.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@fox6now Sticker shock tip: don't just auto-renew. Compare a few plans on total cost, not just the premium. Auto-renewing without looking is reordering your usual takeout after they doubled the price and replaced the chef.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Open enrollment tip: before you renew, check that your doctors are in NEXT year's network, not this year's. Networks can change Jan 1. Your plan can break up with your doctor and you only find out at the front desk, the only breakup where you still have to pay rent.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@fox5ny Open enrollment sticker shock: the only shopping trip where the price tag needs its own price tag. If you're on the marketplace, don't skip the Silver plans. If your income qualifies, Silver can come with extra help that lowers your deductible and copays.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@uncvoss Golden handcuffs in teaching are a lanyard with a PPO card on it. Anyone weighing early retirement before 65: check the ACA marketplace first. Plans can't turn you down for pre-existing conditions, and subsidies are based on income, which tends to drop when you stop working.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

@BusinessInsider Employers and employees both battling health insurance costs is the rare fight where nobody wins and the referee still sends you a bill. If your open enrollment is now, check whether your company puts money in an HSA. That's about the only free money left in benefits.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Turning 65? Medigap open enrollment is the 6 months after your Part B starts. In that window, insurers generally can't deny you or charge more for health history. Miss it and they may quiz your health first, the only first date that reads your chart before the appetizers.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Maxing out your HSA is the only Black Friday deal where you pay up front and the free gift is a tax break. Money goes in pre-tax, can grow, and comes out tax-free for medical bills. Finally, a doorbuster where nobody gets trampled until the EOB arrives.

[Martin Elefant @insureMartin]

Download your health plan's app and save the digital ID card now. Because in an emergency, nobody wants to dig through a junk drawer and find three expired insurance cards, a takeout menu, and a battery that may or may not be dead.