Q & A
I need information as to how Medicare Part B premiums are paid when the following applies, per CMS.HHS: “If you are not set up on your spouse’s Social Security number with a B or D following the Medicare number.”
Full Question: I need information as to how Medicare Part B premiums are paid when the following applies, per CMS.HHS: “If you are not set up on your spouse’s Social Security number with a B or D following the Medicare number.” My wife’s Medicare Part…
I’m under CSRS Offset, but I have 36 years of substantial earnings under Social Security. Will either pension be reduced?
Answer: Your CSRS annuity will be reduced by the amount of Social Security benefit you earned while a CSRS Offset employee. The amount you receive will be the same. It will just come from two different places: the Office of Personnel…
I have been on disability retirement from the Postal Service since October 1988. I am 56 years old (57 in March) and would like to inquire as to my options to retire under MRA. Also, can I receive a ballpark estimate of how much I would get (monthly/yearly) and all other pertinent information? I believe that I read on the Office of Personnel Management’s Web page that it would be 1 percent of my high-3 income while at the post office, but I am not sure how to do this calculation. If this is an option for me to retire now, what would be the necessary steps to get this accomplished?
Answer: As a rule, there are only three ways that your disability retirement could end: if you were re-employed by the federal government; if you were found to have recovered from your disability; or when you reach age 62. In the…
I have been on disability retirement from the Postal Service since October 1988. I am 56 years old (57 in March) and would like to inquire as to my options to retire under MRA. Also, can I receive a ballpark estimate of how much I would get (monthly/yearly) and all other pertinent information? I believe that I read on the Office of Personnel Management’s Web page that it would be 1 percent of my high-3 income while at the post office, but I am not sure how to do this calculation. If this is an option for me to retire now, what would be the necessary steps to get this accomplished?
Answer: As a rule, there are only three ways that your disability retirement could end: if you were re-employed by the federal government; if you were found to have recovered from your disability; or when you reach age 62. In the…
What are delayed retirement credits?
Answer: You can start Social Security retirement as young as age 62 or wait to a later age. Full retirement age (FRA), sometimes called normal retirement age, is the Social Security Administration term for how old a person must be to receive retirement…
I have been employed with the Postal Service since 1985 with three years of prior service in the D.C. government under CSRS. After 30 years of service, I received a notification informing me that the Postal Service was supposed to change my retirement plan to FERS in 1987 but did not. Now I have been forced to elect either CSRS Offset or FERS. I selected CSRS Offset, which added one year to my retirement date. If I retire at age 56, will my annuity still be the same, or do I have to work until 62 to receive full pay and Social Security benefits?
Answer: CSRS Offset employees receive the same annuity as those who retire under CSRS. However, at age 62 (if they are retired) or when they retire (if it’s after age 62), their CSRS annuity will be reduced by the amount of…
If I obtain an Office of Personnel Management disability annuity, am I eligible to obtain the special retirement supplement until age 62?
Full Question: I am a federal law enforcement officer. I have an accepted workers’ compensation claim, and it appears that I am no longer physically able to perform the duties of my job. I do not appear to be completely disabled,…
I have been enrolled in Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance since 1983 and plan on retiring this year. In 2010, I added life insurance coverage for my spouse. Does the five-year rule apply for eligibility upon my retirement?
Answer: Yes. While you are already eligible to carry your own FEGLI coverage into retirement, the optional insurance you added for your spouse would end if you didn’t have that coverage for five years before you retired. Source: Reg Jones, FederalTimes.com…
I am considering use of a health savings account plan at work. Using one would reduce my taxes but have a secondary result of lowering my earnings for Social Security. Can this reduce my future Social Security retirement amount?
Answer: It potentially could, depending on the amount of money involved and for how long a time. An individual answer partly depends on the person’s work record over many years. Social Security retirement amounts are based on your best 35 years…
Obamacare: when your only income is Social Security
By Linda Riddell – Bangor Daily News Question: My wife has no income but I collect Social Security and that is all the household income. I am 66 and she is 64. We do not have to file a tax return. For…