Dear Savvy Senior,

What tips do you recommend to Medicare beneficiaries dealing with hefty medical bills? My husband recently had open heart surgery and is recovering slowly, but the medical bills are coming in fast and furious and they’re putting us in medical debt.

Struggling in Springfield

Dear Struggling,

I’m sorry to hear about your billing struggles, but medical debt has unfortunately become a chronic problem in this country. According to U.S. Census data 19 percent of Americans households carry medical debt, including 10 percent of households headed by someone 65 or older. Even seniors on Medicare can easily get snagged in a web of complicated billing and coverage problems.

To help you slash your medical bills, here are some tips recommended by health care experts that you should try.

Listen my interview with Savvy Senior’s Jim Miller on the One Thing or Another Podcast.

By Jim Miller

Dear Savvy Senior,

What tips do you recommend for long-distance caregivers? I help take care of my stubborn 86-year-old mother who still lives at home about 150 miles from me.

Need Advice

Dear Need,

Providing care and support for an aging parent who lives far away can present a variety challenges that can make the job difficult and stressful. Here are some tips and resources that may help you.

Dear Savvy Senior,

I recently learned about a property-tax relief program for seniors in the county where I live. Apparently, there are hundreds of these programs across the country that many retirees, like me, are eligible for but don’t know about. What can you tell me about this?

Overtaxed Eddie

Dear Eddie,

Great question! Residential property-tax refund and credit programs exist in nearly every state, but unfortunately few people know about them. These programs can help retirees and many other Americans by reducing their property taxes. Here’s what you should know.

By Jim Miller

Dear Savvy Senior,

I’m interested in getting some of the new over-the-counter hearing aids that just became available a few month ago. Can you offer any tips to help me with this?

Straining to Hear

Dear Straining,

The new FDA approved over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids that started rolling out this fall are a real game changer for the roughly 48 million Americans with hearing loss. Adults with impaired hearing can now walk in and buy hearing aids at a pharmacy, big box chain, consumer electronics store or online, without a prescription and without consulting an audiologist.