The Pocket Protector Offers a New, Pressure-Free Way to Navigate Medicare

The Pocket Protector Offers a New, Pressure-Free Way to Navigate Medicare

Chicago-based platform brings comprehensive plan comparison, personalized guidance and ongoing healthcare support together in one free, carrier-agnostic online experience

 

CHICAGO, IL — With Medicare Open Enrollment approaching, The Pocket Protector, a licensed, independent Medicare comparison service, is offering consumers a new way to research and compare Medicare plans entirely online — and enroll with the help of a licensed advisor — at no cost and without requiring a phone number or a sales call.

Co-founded by Mike Boshardy, a Medicare regulatory attorney with more than ten years in Medicare law and compliance, The Pocket Protector brings plan comparison, personalized guidance, enrollment and ongoing healthcare support together in one platform, giving seniors and their families greater clarity and control as they navigate their Medicare options.

“Open Enrollment puts a lot of pressure on seniors to make an important decision in a short period of time. Most agents are honest — but the way they’re paid shapes which plans you hear about, and nobody has to tell you what was left out,” said Boshardy, co-founder and CEO of The Pocket Protector. “We wanted to give people a way to understand their options with all the available information, and let consumers be in the driver’s seat, instead of receiving endless sales-driven calls that could end up in signing up for a plan that is not right for them or their needs.”

The Pocket Protector allows consumers to compare Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D prescription drug and Medicare Supplement plans side by side, with personalized recommendations based on their doctors, prescriptions and budget — a combination the company believes is the first of its kind. The Pocket Protector’s goal is to help consumers find the right plan for their needs. The company does earn commissions on many plans when a consumer enrolls, but its rankings never change based on what a plan pays — and they include plans that pay it nothing. What makes it different is the engineering underneath. A team of engineers has built the data and comparison technology to create clear, plain-language information that does the work for you automatically so that people can make the right decision for their own health and budget, and free from sales pressure. This allows The Pocket Protector to offer plan information for free and remain carrier-agnostic. According to TPP internal data from August 2026, 1 in 5 plans the platform recommends pay The Pocket Protector no commission at all, and 1 in 4 results from its Medicare Advantage comparison tool recommend keeping the plan the person already has.

The Pocket Protector doesn’t just stop at open enrollment help. Its free app keeps coverage and benefit information in one place and includes tools to help users understand and challenge medical bills.

The platform currently indexes more than 8,000 Medicare plans and thousands of Medigap rates and is licensed in 48 states and Washington, D.C. Consumers also have access to more than 30 free tools covering Medicare deadlines, penalties, provider networks, medical bills and other healthcare decisions, with access to a licensed advisor when they request additional help.

“Technology has opened the door to a very different Medicare experience,” Boshardy said. “Our goal is to give people a level of clarity and control that simply hasn’t been available to them before and to keep helping long after they’ve chosen a plan.”

For more information, visit https://thepocketprotector.com

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