Retirees, Social security, Medicare

farmerjan

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At present, I have signed up for SS to start in Jan 2019. The lady I talked to at our office, was very nice and although confusing, did a pretty good job of trying to help me through it. First complication, they needed a copy of my birth certificate because the date they had was one day before my actual birthdate. So had to go through the rigamarole to get a copy of my birth certificate from the city clerk. That of course seemed to take forever, even with a priority envelope prepaid, provided to them. So got that to prove who I was when I was born.
When discussing the different amounts according to when I would take it, it seems there is like only about a $6. difference per month for me to wait longer. NO BRAINER..... but the reason I am waiting to Jan2019 is the allowable earned income increases to something over $44,000 from the current 15,000 or so. Since I have made over $15,000 as taxable wages, they would hold my first 2 SS checks and then after the end of the 2018 year, I would get what I was allowed. Since I have never made over the $44,000 new allowable limit, it was just easier to wait 3 months and not have to deal with all the "held back" checks and such. 3 months isn't a big deal, and I will get a "smidgen more". They still hold the first check so to speak... I will get the "january check" the first of february.

I will be starting medicare the first of December as that is the start of our fiscal year at work. I wanted to be sure to get the rest of the health savings match our company did through the end of our 2018 year. Since the dairy industry has gotten so bad in general, and so many farms are skipping tests or going to every other month or every 3, I will be losing my full time status by the first of 2019 so it is going to work out pretty smoothly to start. I am now signed up for Part A & B and have to get the drug plan which I think I will go with F from what our health ins lady at work has suggested. It seems that our insurance at work does not have a "creditable" drug plan so it was pretty much a foregone conclusion to go on Medicare. It is either F or G and she said her husband has F and they paid a total of $187 out of pocket for his knee replacement, rehab, etc and so forth. I've got to do a little more studying on it, but because I will have coverage through work for another month or so, they told me I can sign up without a penalty because I qualify for the open enrollment as well as the enrollment that everyone has when they are turning 65. I should have made a decision by next week, I am just waiting on a call back from an ins provider that I met at a seminar given for seniors, for advise to a couple of questions I had.

It still takes a Philadelphia lawyer to figure it all out.....
 
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B&B Happy goats

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I retired at 62, after doing the math....it didn't matter, had savings and everything paid for, including home. I only have medicare because.....a insurance agent who sold medicare supplement insurance told me (while my ex husband had cancer) that your better off without the supplement because the out of pocket would be less and hospital would write off.....so thats what i do .....medicare, small ss check , husbands diabilty ck...cash and happy goats !
 

Mike CHS

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When I applied for SS it was about 4 months before I had planned to retire. I applied in February and planned to retire in late June. I actually didn't get leave my job until July and I also got my first check in July so toward the end of the year I got a form to fill out since I earned a months more pay than I had previously filled out. My first check was for my full amount and when everything got reconciled the following year everything balanced out. My gross earnings for the almost seven months the year I retired was over $60K and I never took a hit on the following SS amounts so color me confused. The things I read on the SS site basically said it doesn't matter what you make before you start drawing but it's rather what you make above SS payments after you start drawing.
 

Bruce

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Presumably the part one couldn't pay because they had no supplemental insurance. Though as I hear it, they will work you over good and try to come up with a payment plan long before they write it off.
 

greybeard

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Presumably the part one couldn't pay because they had no supplemental insurance. Though as I hear it, they will work you over good and try to come up with a payment plan long before they write it off.

Well, cash talks and hospitals will lower the bill if one walks in with a big wad of benjamins and grants. That is not 'writing' anything off tho.
As far as stiffing anyone, I'm not much in favor of it, especially an outfit that just made me well or saved my life..or one of my family. I don't believe in free rides at all and it don't make a crap to me how much $$, wealth, or assets the place has already gotten or where they got it. I agreed and signed on the dotted line I would pay before I ever laid in their bed and danged if I'm going to go back on my signed name, which is my word.
 

Senile_Texas_Aggie

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Miss @farmerjan (and possibly others),

Before I logged onto BYH I looked on the Social Security website to try to find a policy that is being phased out but certain people born before a certain date are still eligible. (Although I could not find the info on the SSA website, here is a discussion about it at Charles Schwab: https://www.schwab.com/resource-center/insights/content/when-should-you-take-social-security ). My wife and I will be taking advantage of this strategy. Although it is talking about married couples, it may apply to divorcees whose spouses are eligible for SSA benefits. I will continue to look on the SSA website, but you might want to see if you qualify for spousal benefits from your ex-husband and, if so, which would be greater.

Senile Texas Aggie
 

Bruce

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I agreed and signed on the dotted line I would pay before I ever laid in their bed and danged if I'm going to go back on my signed name, which is my word.
Commendable and I generally agree. But if you don't have the hundreds of thousands of $$ that some bills can come to, what then? It isn't like you go to the hospital and say "quit when the bill hits $xx because that is all I have" .

I recently heard that the "lifeline" helicopter rides can run $40K and insurance doesn't always cover it. I doubt if I were in need of same that I would have time to see if my insurance would cover it and if not say "no thanks". In all likelihood even if I knew it didn't I probably wouldn't be in a state to tell them not to pick me up.
 

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