Latest News
Medicare Still Needs Reform — Soon
Despite the recent news that the Medicare Part A trust fund is projected to remain solvent for four more years than previously projected, it is important to understand that Medicare’s financial status still calls for immediate reforms. Some proponents of the Affordable Care…
5 Ways to Protect Your Credit
Sometimes it feels like the only stories in the news these days are about data breaches. Just this week alone, the Identity Theft Resource Center has reported a whopping 480 breach cases, a 21.5 percent increase over the same period…
Plan For Special Education Substitutes Draws Concerns
Dozens of Baltimore classrooms could be staffed by long-term substitutes when school begins, a plan drawing concern particularly because special-education students — who often struggle the most academically — could be the largest group affected. System leaders and local advocates are…
Heavy pot use in teen years may predict later-life disability
A long-term study of Swedish men finds that those who smoked marijuana at age 18, especially the heaviest users, were more likely to end up on the nation’s disability rolls by age 59. It’s unclear whether the pot use in adolescence…
Retirement Advice: Getting Better, But Still Deficient
You probably just heard that 36% of Americans haven’t saved a penny for retirement, according to a new Bankrate.com survey. (And 26% of 50- to 64-year-olds haven’t put away any money for it either.) I suspect that they — and, frankly, most of…
New Sites Added To Autism Treatment Network
Two more medical centers will soon join a national network designed to provide a one-stop shop for autism care. New sites in Missouri and California will be added to Autism Speaks’ Autism Treatment Network in September, bringing the total number of…
The Top 10 Social Security Myths
If I had the space, I probably could write a column called “The Top 100 Social Security Myths.” I see examples of them almost every day in the emails I get from my readers. Alas, I’ll barely have room to…
Today’s Policy Agenda: Medicare Advantage May Be Worth It
At the Upshot, Austin Frakt discusses whether or not Medicare Advantage is a good use of taxpayer money. Medicare Advantage, a private managed-care alternative, costs 6 percent more than traditional Medicare, and the amount of seniors who choose Medicare Advantage plans has nearly…
Give yourself a birthday gift, check your Social Security statement
It used to be that a few months before each birthday, you would get a statement from the Social Security Administration telling you your estimated benefit if you elected to take it early, at 62; at your full retirement age…
How to pick the perfect retirement location
When Don and Dot Thomas were in their late 50s, they took a class on preparing for retirement. They lived in Elm Grove, Wis., at the time, and decided that they were going to move south after Don retired from…