Tip of the Day

Hold off on buying an AARP mini-med plan.

AARP has hired an independent investigator to probe the sales and marketing of mini-medical plans aimed at workers age 50-64, after Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) called the plans misleading, the New York Times reports. AARP will stop marketing and selling the plans until the investigation is complete.

The plans, offered by AARP via UnitedHealthcare, cover about 1 million members, the Times reports. Grassley takes issue with the plans' marketing mainly because they do not provide catastrophic coverage, but give the impression that the plans are comprehensive. "The products may leave consumers seriously in debt if they need intensive medical care," Grassley said, and asked AARP to disclose its profits from the plans.