Guiding with Kindness:

When Carlos Hernandez was a child, his father told him you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar. He took that advice to heart last year, when he followed in his father’s footsteps as the owner of Palomino Insurance.

“I think kindness is the most underused skill in the world,” said Hernandez. It’s the guiding principle he uses as he helps his clients navigate the often-overwhelming world of Medicare plans.

“It’s scary turning 65,” he said. “You start to feel like you’re getting older and you’re losing your confidence in a lot of different things. I want to flip that script for them. I want them to turn 65 with confidence.”

Hernandez does this in a number of ways, but primarily by listening to each client’s needs, lifestyle and what matters to them.

He starts by looking at the client’s full medical profile, including every single medical provider they’ve seen and all the medications they are taking.

“Then I start to build a comprehensive profile of different plans that offer coverages for certain doctors and certain medications,” Hernandez said.

He also considers the client’s travel habits. A plan for a snowbird may not suit a full-time Florida resident, for instance.

“I give them all the best options they have available to them,” Hernandez said. “Then they select the plan for them.”

Palomino Insurance works with all the major providers, and the service doesn’t cost its clients anything.  Each provider has its own perks. One might have a relationship with a pharmacy that lowers medication prices for clients, while another might have robust resources. Hernandez can steer his clients to the best fit for them.

However, all insurance providers offer additions to Original Medicare, as well as an alternative to it. Palomino Insurance can help its clients select an array of Medicare Supplement Plans, or Medigap, that cover out-of-pocket costs not covered by Original Medicare, including copays and deductibles. These plans don’t require referrals, so they’re ideal for people with frequent medical needs.

Medicare Advantage Plans are alternatives to Original Medicare and often encompass vision, dental, hearing, and prescription drug coverage. Clients who choose this option typically have to select from a network of providers and may need referrals for specialists. These plans likely cost less in premiums but more in out-of-pocket expenses than the Medicare Supplement Plans.

Hernandez saw first-hand how invaluable selecting the best plan can be when his father was going through his terminal cancer treatments. After submitting millions of dollars in insurance claims, his father owed only a small sum.

“If you find the right plan that works for you and works for your life situation, you’re usually going to be covered pretty well,” Hernandez said. “It’s inspiring to see that a simple selection like that can really help you and change your entire experience with something like cancer.”

He knows that most people aren’t as well-versed in health insurance and Medicare options as he is and his father was. That’s where Palomino Insurance steps in.

“It can feel really overwhelming,” he said. “I handle everything for my clients, so it gives them peace of mind and they can focus on other things.”