Help! I’ve Been Told I Have To Return My Deceased Husband’s Last Social Security Check. Is This Really True? Q: My husband passed away on March 31st. I was told that I have to return his entire Social Security pa ...
Author Archives: georgette
Best Ways To Save: May/June 2018
That Drug May Be Cheaper If You Pay Cash Instead of Using Your Drug Plan By Mary Johnson, editor Before filling your next prescription, here’s a tip. Call four pharmacies that you typically deal with and, without ...
Congressional Corner: Let’s Reduce Barriers To Long-Term Care
By Congressman Jim Renacci (OH-16) Over 2 million Ohioans are Medicare beneficiaries and rely not just on coverage for their health care services, but also access to the appropriate health care settings. With nearl ...
Legislative Update: May/June 2018
Surprise! Recent Budget Law Accelerates Closing Of Medicare Part D Doughnut Hole By Jessie Gibbons, Legislative Director In February, after lawmakers allowed two government shutdowns to briefly take effect, Member ...
Benefit Bulletin: May/June 2018
Medicare Therapy Caps: A Long Battle for Patient Access Madison West, Legislative Assistant Mary Katherine was 90 when a stroke left her paralyzed on one side of her body and unable to speak. It was 1996 and at th ...
No Limit To What Medicare Part D Enrollees Could Pay On Prescription Drugs
By Mary Johnson, editor Your Part D drug plan would never tell you this, but the alarming fact is that there is no limit to what you might spend out-of-pocket for your prescriptions drugs in any given year. While t ...
Retiree Expenses Up More Than $119 Month, COLA Up Less Than $45 Month
How well does the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) protect the buying power of Social Security benefits? Not very, according to early online results of TSCL’s 2018 Senior Survey. Retiree household spe ...
How Using The Chained CPI To Calculate COLAs Would Affect Your Benefits
The newly enacted tax legislation calls for adjusting tax brackets and the standard deduction using the more slowly growing Chained consumer price index (CPI). What would switching to the new index for calculating Socia ...
Q & A: April 2018
Q: I understand that I can receive Social Security benefits while I’m still working. I’m 64 but my earnings are pretty modest. I have about $75,000 in savings and the mortgage on my home will be paid off later this ye ...
The Advisor Asks:
Can Healthcare Costs Be Improved By Expanding Medicare? By Mary Johnson, editor, with Carol Bingaman, retired public health and business professional What would you say if you had the opportunity to sit down with 1 ...