Have You Heard of HIPAA?

Have you heard of HIPAA?  Most people are familiar with the acronym.  The problem is most people don’t know what HIPAA means.  HIPAA stands for “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.”  The federal law was enacted in 1996 after the famous Terri Schiavo right to die case in Florida. (Schiavo v. Schindler) Terri Schiavo was in a vegetative state due to a cardiac arrest she suffered in 1990.  She like many people don’t know that HIPAA law states that if you do not have a written health care power of attorney to direct your care your spouse nor anyone else can make health care decisions for you if you are not capable of doing so.  Many people are unaware of the consequences of not having a designated person to direct your medical care if you are incapacitated.  The HIPAA law was written so specific that even married couples cannot direct their spouse’s medical decisions for them unless they are designated to do so via a written Health Care Power of Attorney.  Most Financial Professionals don’t take the time to talk to their clients about the consequences of not having a Health Care Power of Attorney.  The financial and emotional burden of not having this important document could significantly derail your financial goals permanently.  At Flott Financial Strategies we talk about all the intangible decisions you need to make.  We don’t just focus on money and goals. We focus holistically on all the decisions you will need to incorporate into your whole plan.

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Cleaning Out Your Financial Junk Drawer

Many people have junk drawers at home.  They continually stuff random items in the drawer and quickly lose track of what they put in the drawer over time.  This is the same for most people with their financial situation.  They buy random items over time to protect, preserve and invest in their future and all too often they set them aside never to look at them again.  Usually a spouse or partner will ask. “Honey do we have one of these in the drawer?” The typical answer is “I don’t know.”  They put items in their financial junk drawer and then forget about them until something life changing happens. By the time that happens the product they bought is usually outdated, obsolete or ineffective. Don’t let this happen to you.  Flott Financial Strategies can help you clean up your financial drunk drawer.   We can help organize and update your financial junk drawer so you will feel competent about your financial future.

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Who Likes Cookies?

You’ve heard the term over and over on television commercials, “Cookie Cutter Portfolios”.  Most of the time the term is used in a negative connotation. Well most people I know love cookies and with the right recipe those “Cookie Cutter Portfolios” can benefit people who want to keep investing simple.  Many people abide by the “KISS” (Keep it Simple Simon) rule. Life is busy and people are busy, so keeping up with complex investments is not high on their priority list.  If you go into a restaurant and the menu is filled with tons of options, it can ultimately be too overwhelming to decide on what you want, and you will leave unsatisfied.  The same goes with investing.  If you don’t have a good handle on it eventually you will become disengaged and exit stage right.  Many people think that the more exotic they get with their investments the better their investments will perform.  In most cases, the more simplified your investing is the more engaged you will be.  So, don’t be fooled by the flash in the pan shiny new things.  Take the opposite approach and make investing easy and remember cookies made with a cookie cutter make people happy every day!

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