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Tell Governor Christie No Social Security or Medicare Cuts
As budget hawks once again turn up the pressure to balance the federal budget on the backs of the nation’s most vulnerable citizens, activists demanding income security for New Hampshire’s seniors will take their case to New Jersey Gov. Chris…
Social Security piggyback
Social Security is a significant part of life for many Americans. Apart from the wealthy or government pensioners, Social Security can represent a lifeline that keeps many dangling above the poverty line. How high you are above that poverty line…
Steep hospital markups strike blow to uninsured
The bill totaled more than $21,000, and David Rigsby’s creditors were threatening to heap on another $9,000 if he didn’t pay up. Presbyterian Española Hospital had charged the sum for a colonoscopy and hernia repair in 2005. Both procedures took about an hour. Rigsby, a 66-year-old…
Retirement with mortgage loans? Why some keep debt for tax deductions.
As we all know, the one benefit of paying all of that interest on our mortgages is that it generally creates a tax deduction. And if you have been carrying a mortgage for a good portion of your adult life,…
As Medicare Advantage Cuts Loom, Disagreement Over Program’s Stability
The ability of cost savings achieved through healthcare reform efforts to offset the coming cuts to Medicare Advantage is hotly debated at a House Ways and Means health subcommittee meeting. A decade-long, $300 billion hit to Medicare to help fund the…
The Newest ‘Disability’
The Americans with Disabilities Act, passed in 1990, has always had the potential to morph into a legal monster for employers. In 2008 Congress amended and expanded the act substantially, arguing that the Supreme Court’s interpretations of “disability” were too…
Social Security disability benefits, part two
As we covered in last week’s column, if you have met the age and duration of work criteria as they relate to your participation in the Social Security program, and if your disability will prevent you from working for at…
Social Security spent $300 million on computer system that is still on ‘disability’
A $300 million computer system is expected to improve a whole department but it wasn’t easily the case for the Social Security Administration. The disability claims sector is still not as efficient despite the high expense of upgrading the hardware.…
Make most of retirement tax changes
There could be huge opportunities for you to boost your retirement savings next year, when the tax deductions for retirement fund contributions are amended, Jenny Gordon, the head of retail legal support at Alexander Forbes, says. From March 1 next…
Medicare comes with many choices
The spouse is significantly older, and it’s nearing the time he can sign up for Medicare. I know next to nothing about the government health care plan for senior citizens, so I signed us up for a seminar through Leisure…