Medicare
Advantage, Supplement (Medigap) and Part D. The right answer starts with your doctors, your drugs and which enrollment window you are in.
Independent agency · Licensed in 7 states
Nearly every coverage decision
is really a deadline.
Medicare has windows that close. ACA Marketplace enrollment has its own. Part D formularies reset every January. Annuities have surrender schedules. Miss the timing and the money is real — so we start there.
- Independent — we compare carriers, never push just one
- No fee to review or compare your options
- Medicare, ACA, supplemental & annuities under one roof
What we help with
Four decisions, and how they connect
Most people arrive with one question. It usually turns out to be attached to two others.
ACA / Marketplace health
Under-65 health coverage with the premium-tax-credit math actually explained — so you see what you would really pay.
Supplemental coverage
Dental, vision and hearing, plus hospital indemnity — the plans that fill the gaps Medicare and health plans quietly leave behind.
Annuities & retirement income
Turning savings into income you cannot outlive — and understanding the surrender schedule before you sign, not after.
Why Benefits Empire
Six commitments you can hold us to
The way we work is the product. These are the standards behind every conversation.
Both columns, every time
Every option comes with its limitations shown at the same size as its benefits. You see what it does not do, not only what it does.
The number before the product
We work out the actual gap first. Sometimes it is smaller than expected, and the honest answer is that no new policy is needed.
Deadlines named out loud
Medicare windows, Medigap's one-time window, annuity surrender schedules — where a decision has a clock on it, you hear about the clock.
Comparisons in writing
Options go side by side on paper: what each covers, what it costs, what it excludes. No verbal-only comparisons.
A review every year
Formularies move, networks shift, rates change. We revisit your plan annually so a choice that fit in 2026 still fits in 2027.
Independent, not captive
We are not tied to a single insurer, so the conversation starts with your situation rather than one company's shelf.
Who we help
Wherever you are on the timeline
The right conversation depends on where you are standing. Four common starting points — and a real person to talk them through with.
Approaching 65
First-time Medicare decisions on a fixed timeline. We map every window before any of them close.
Already on Medicare
An annual check that your plan still fits your medications, doctors and budget for the coming year.
Planning retirement income
Turning savings into income you cannot outlive — and understanding the surrender schedule before you sign.
Filling the gaps
Dental, vision and hearing plus hospital indemnity — supplemental coverage sized to the gaps a health plan actually leaves your household.
Local context
Where you live changes the answer more than people expect
Across northeast Wisconsin — our home service area — roughly seven in ten people on Medicare choose an Advantage plan over Original Medicare. That is among the highest participation in the country, and it is not an accident.
Networks, hospital competition and plan availability differ that much from one county to the next — which is why your county, not your state, is what really shapes the answer.
~73%
Outagamie County, WI in Medicare Advantage — among the nation's highest
~7 in 10
Fox Valley beneficiaries choose Advantage over Original Medicare
Northeast Wisconsin counties
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Outagamie Co, WI | 73.0% |
| Winnebago Co, WI | 71.1% |
| Brown Co, WI | 70.9% |
| Fond du Lac Co, WI | 67.7% |
The Wisconsin difference
If you are shopping Medicare Supplement in Wisconsin, most of what you read online does not apply
Wisconsin is one of only three states — with Massachusetts and Minnesota — where Medicare Supplement policies are not sold under the federal Plan A through Plan N letters. So a national site quoting you a "Plan G" premium is quoting a plan that is not sold here.
Wisconsin
One standardized basic policy, built up with optional riders — plus 25% and 50% cost-sharing variants.
The other states we serve
The federal lettered plans (Plan A through Plan N) — the system used in Florida, Michigan and the rest of the country.
2026 figures
The numbers everyone should know
$202.90 Standard Part B premium, per month up from $185.00 in 2025
$283 Annual Part B deductible up from $257 in 2025
$2,100 Part D out-of-pocket cap a hard ceiling — new since 2025
$0 Cost to review your options with us carriers pay agent compensation
What to expect
On your first call, here is exactly what happens
- A conversation about what you already have and what worries you — not a sales pitch.
- Plain answers to your questions, in language without the jargon.
- Any deadlines that apply to your situation, named and dated.
- Your options side by side in writing, with costs and limitations shown.
- No obligation to buy — 'keep what you have' is a real and common outcome.
- A yearly review offered, because the plans change every year.
How this goes
Three steps, and the third is the one that matters
- 1First
A conversation, not a pitch
We start with what you already have and what you are worried about. If what you have is fine, that is a perfectly good outcome and we will say so.
- 2Then
Options side by side
You see the actual trade-offs in writing — what each option covers, what it costs, and what it does not do. No verbal-only comparisons.
- 3After
A review every year
Plans change annually. Formularies move, networks shift, rates increase. A plan that was right in 2026 may not be in 2027.
Where we work
Two states, one border, two different answers
Licensed in seven states, with northeast Wisconsin as our home base. Wherever you are, the plans available to you are set locally — so where you live matters more than people expect.
Wisconsin — home base
The Fox Valley, Green Bay and the Lakeshore, where Medicare Advantage participation is among the highest in the country. Our home counties: Outagamie, Calumet, Winnebago and Brown.
Six more states
Licensed and serving clients statewide, by phone and video, across Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky and Maine.
Guides & resources
Plain-language answers, sourced and dated
The questions we are asked most, written out in full — every figure sourced and every page dated.
ACA & Health Plans
The 2026 ACA Subsidy Cliff: Why Marketplace Premiums Doubled — and What to Do
The enhanced premium tax credits expired on January 1, 2026, and the average Marketplace enrollee's premium payment more than doubled. Here is exactly what changed, who is hit hardest, and six practical options before you drop coverage.
ACA & Health PlansACA Open Enrollment for 2026: Deadlines, Subsidies and the Metal Tiers Explained
A plain-language, step-by-step guide to enrolling in ACA Marketplace coverage for 2026 — the November 1 to January 15 window, how subsidies work now, and the metal tiers.
ACA & Health PlansLost Your ACA Subsidy in 2026? Six Real Options Before You Go Uninsured
Your Marketplace premium jumped when the enhanced credits expired. Here is an action-first playbook of six real options to work through before you ever consider going uninsured.
The full library
Browse every explainer on Medicare, ACA health plans, supplemental coverage and annuities.
Open the libraryCommon questions
Before you call
Does it cost anything to talk to you?
No. There is no fee to review your situation or compare options. Insurance agents are compensated by the carrier when a policy is placed, and that compensation does not change your premium.
Are you affiliated with Medicare or the government?
No. Benefits Empire is an independent insurance agency. We are not connected with, affiliated with, or endorsed by the federal Medicare program, CMS, or the Social Security Administration. For a complete list of every plan available to you, contact Medicare.gov, call 1-800-MEDICARE, or reach your State Health Insurance Assistance Program.
Which areas do you work in?
We are licensed in seven states — Wisconsin, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky and Maine — and work with clients statewide by phone and video. Our home base is northeast Wisconsin: the Fox Valley, Green Bay and the Lakeshore.
Do you represent every insurance company?
No agent does. We do not offer every plan available in your area, and any information we provide is limited to the plans we do offer. Where a plan we cannot access is clearly the better fit, we will tell you that and point you to Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE.
When is Medicare's annual enrollment window?
October 15, 2026 through December 7, 2026, with changes taking effect January 1, 2027. That window applies to Medicare Advantage and Part D. Medicare Supplement works on entirely different timing — its one guaranteed-acceptance window runs for six months from the day your Part B starts and does not repeat.
Let's find out whether what you have is already right
A review costs nothing and often ends with 'keep what you've got.' That is a real outcome, and it is the honest one more often than you'd think.