Could Medicare plan cut off your drug?

Good afternoon. Most of what happens to your money is decided by rules you never see: payment calendars, lending terms, coverage approvals. Today's three stories are about what changes when you actually know how they work.

On The Money Today:

Let's get into it.

Millions of Americans will see a second deposit land before July ends, and it has nothing to do with a benefit increase. The same thing is set to happen twice more before the year is out. Whether you're one of them comes down to a detail most people never think about.

The 2 a.m. pipe bursts, the vacancies, the tenant turnover: seasoned real estate investors are done with all of it, and they're not selling out to escape. Two strategies let them collect steady checks while someone else does the work. One of them can earn up to 12% interest and takes just 30 minutes to set up. But there's a catch that decides who can actually get in.

Margaret Hvatum, 70, had been taking the same medication for years. Then she switched Medicare Advantage plans, her new insurer refused to cover it, and she couldn't afford the medication on her own. The missed doses put her in a hospital bed. Her case is part of a pattern: insurers reviewed 53 million coverage requests in 2024, more than there are people enrolled in the program. The reason this keeps happening comes down to a step traditional Medicare never required.

The answer is A) More than 8 in 10 times. KFF found that over 80% of appealed Medicare Advantage denials end up fully or partially overturned. The problem: only a tiny fraction of denials are ever appealed, so most people take no for an answer and walk away.