By Jason Alderman
Guest Columnist

If you’ve already retired or plan to in the near future, it’s a good idea to review your health care coverage to make sure it has kept pace with your changing needs.

Adequate health insurance is a vital component of overall financial security, especially as we age and require more medical care.

Here are a few important considerations:

— Most Americans become eligible for Medicare at age 65. Medicare offers numerous plans and coverage options:

Part A primarily covers hospitalization and has no monthly premium

Part B pays for doctor’s bills and other medical services, is optional and has a monthly premium

Part C allows people to enroll in private HMO or PPO Medicare plans (generally with additional benefits; and sometimes at additional cost)

Part D covers prescription drugs, is optional and carries a monthly premium

Note that there may be penalties if you don’t sign up for Parts B and D as soon as you’re eligible. To learn more about your Medicare options, visit the official site, www.medicare.gov, or AARP’s comprehensive overview at www.aarp.org/medicare.

If you retire before age 65, you’ll need coverage to bridge the gap through an individual policy, your spouse’s plan or another group policy. Some retirees are insured through former employers – although such plans are increasingly rare and often become more expensive over time. An insurance broker can help you compare plans; to find one, visit the National Asso-ciation of Health Underwri-ters’ website (www.nahu.org).

— To lower costs, consider purchasing a high-deductible plan. Monthly premiums are often hundreds of dollars cheaper than comparable low-deductible plans and you’re covered for catastrophic illnesses that could otherwise wipe out your savings.

Some people combine a high-deductible plan with a Health Savings Account (HSA) for additional savings. HSAs let you save pretax dollars in an interest-earning account and then withdraw the money, tax-free, to pay for health care expenses. Contributions are tax-deductible, even if you don’t itemize deductions, and unspent balances can be carried forward, year after year. For details on HSAs, visit the Department of the Treasury’s Web site (www.treas.gov/ offices/public-affairs/hsa) or www.hsafinder.com.

— Also consider buying long-term care insurance (LTCI), which covers medical and non-medical services for chronically ill or disabled people who cannot care for themselves, including performing normal tasks like bathing, dressing and taking medications.

Long-term care is expensive. Although Medicare pays for 20 days of skilled nursing care immediately after hospitalization (plus a small portion of the subsequent 80 days), many people require significantly longer care.

Another government program, Medicaid, covers custodial care for low-income, elderly and disabled people, but only at approved nursing homes willing to accept Medicaid – and only after you’ve exhausted most of your assets. See www.cms.hhs.gov for details.

Jason Alderman directs Visa’s financial education programs. Sign up for his free monthly e-Newsletter at www.practicalmoneyskills.com/newsletter.

The Bulverde Farmers Market, located at 20845 Texas Hwy. 46, is open from 3 to 6 p.m. year round. For more information, call Tiffany Bush at (830) 534-7908.

Blue Star Mothers

Blue Star Mothers, a support group for families whose loved ones are serving in all branches of the military, is seeking members. For information, contact Sharon Bryce at (830) 899-4868, or e-mail brycesa@hotmail. com.

Bulverde Lions Club

The Bulverde Lions Club meets at 7:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Thursdays at the Bulverde Community Center. For more information, call Joel Selko at (830) 438-5711.

Bulverde Optimist Club

The Bulverde Optimist Club meets the first and third Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. for a social and 7 p.m. for dinner at 1360 Bulverde Road next to STAGE. For information, call Jeanetta Davis at (830) 980-2419.

Bulverde United Methodist Church

The church will sponsor Breakfast with Santa on Dec. 13 from 8 to 11 a.m. Adults are $4 and children are $3. Breakfast will include pancakes, sausage, juice, coffee and milk. Also included will be Santa’s bookstore, a children’s performance and a silent auction.

Bulverde/Spring Branch Area Chamber of Commerce

The Bulverde chamber meets at 6:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month at the at the chamber offices located at 30450 Cougar Bend. For more information, call (830) 438-4285, or visit www.bulverdechamber. com.

Canyon Lake Rotary Club

The Canyon Lake Rotary Club meets at noon every Thursday at Anchors Landing in Startzville. For information call (830) 964-4744.

Democrats of Comal County

The Democrats of Comal County meet from 7 to 9 p.m. on first Tuesday of each month at the GVTC auditorium, FM 3159 in Smithson Valley. Contact Robbi Boone at president@ democratsofcomalcounty.com, or call (210) 240-6565.

Heritage Museum of the Texas Hill Country

The Heritage Museum of the Texas Hill Country meets the fourth Thursday of each month at 10 a.m. at Tye Preston Memorial Library in Canyon Lake. 

Pilot Club of Canyon Lake

The club will host its annual Wineless Cheese play on Tuesday at the GVTC Auditorium from 2 to 4:30 p.m. This year’s play, “South Spacific,” is a musical comedy and shows what lengths women will go to please their self-centered, sports-fanatic, remote-controlling husbands. The event will include a silent auction and family entertainment. Tickets are $3 and are available at the Canyon Lake Chamber of Commerce and Tye Preston Library. For more information, call (830) 899-7799.

Republican Club of Comal County

The RCCC is a conservative club that accommodates the family by providing junior memberships and giving voting privileges to both men and women. For more information contact Sonja Harris at (830) 228 4846.

Spring Branch/Bulverde Lions Club

The Spring Branch/Bulverde Lions Club meets at 7:30 p.m. on the first and third Wednesday of each month at GVTC, 36101 FM 3159. For information, call Robert Evans, (210) 422-2327, or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

St. Paul Lutheran Church of Bulverde

St. Paul Lutheran Church of Bulverde Youth Group will sponsor a family night of $1 bingo with prizes and free snacks on Saturday from 5 to 8 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, contact John Kublank at (830) 980 2813.

Toastmasters Club

The Col. Jack D. Wallace Toastmasters Club meets every Monday at 7 p.m. at Jet Aviation Engineering Services, 116 Kestrel Drive in Spring Branch. For more information, visit www.jackwallacetm.org, or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Courtesy photo

Special to the Bulverde News

The Webelos in Den 2 of Cub Scout Pack 548 plan to collect non-perishable food and toiletry items during November and then distribute the items locally to help those in need. 

To contribute to this service project, drop off donations at the Bulverde Spring Branch Library through Nov. 25. 

There are six boys in Den 2 and each have one to four years of Cub Scout experience including campouts with the Boys Scouts of America, space derbies, marching in the Bulverde Jubilee Parade, spending the night on the USS Lexington as well as many other life-skills building activities. 

With this service project, the scouts from Pack 548 will be helping others in need as well as earning their Citizenship Badge.

Lovely Lawrence and Coleman Nock were crowned Smithson Valley High School’s homecoming king and queen Friday night.  Photo by Sam Roberts Photography