# Retiring soon and confused.



## IKE (Dec 1, 2014)

Good morning all........1st post.

I'll be 66 on Monday Jan. 11, 2016 and plan on retiring Friday Jan. 15, 2016......I'll have a little over thirty one years in with the company and have always been 'blue collar'.

1. I applied for my Medicare Part 'A' a month or so ago and have received my card.

2. I'm a veteran but the VA hospital care scares me

3. Have been married to a great gal for over 37 years who turned 62 this past Aug. and who will probably keep working till she's 65 or 66.......she has always been covered under my medical plan at work.

4. We should have right at $300,000.00 total in IRA's, mutual funds, 401K, company profit sharing, savings accounts etc when I retire. 

I'm really confused about all the different plans available.......ie Humana, B, C, D, E, F etc. etc.

Along with part 'A' what do I nned to carry and what are the expected monthly costs ?

Time to head in to work.

Thanks......Ike


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## QuickSilver (Dec 1, 2014)

My belief.... after working with Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans for the last 15 years is to NEVER give up your traditional Medicare in favor of a Medicare Advantage plan.   Those were made as a concession to the Insurance industry.  They operate completely as HMOs and will stipulate which doctor, and which hospital you will be allowed to go to.  No such restriction exist with traditional Medicare.   I have personally had to tell family members that their elderly mother could NOT have her hip repaired at our hospital because she had a Humana plan.  She had to be transferred across town to another hospital at the family's expense.  They were shocked.. BUT mom gave up her Medicare.   I know that these other plans sound very attractive but IMO the savings is not worth the restriction.

You will need to apply for Part B now which will over outpatient services and the premium will be deducted from your SS check.   You will need a Medicare supplement which will pay the deductible in case of hospitalization..  The deductible is now  about $1,200.   It will also cover the 20% of your outpatient costs that Part B does not cover.  I have not yet shopped around for a supplement as I am not using my Medicare as yet.   I'm thinking of one of the Blue Cross plans.. or AARP.   Then of course, there is the Part D drug coverage which I have not looking into at all.   

Another option, which is what my husband and I do...  Since I am working, I carry him on my employee group plan.  Even though I am 66..  He is only 63.  Will your wife be able to get coverage through her employer?


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## rkunsaw (Dec 1, 2014)

You can forget VA benefits. They are only for the lowest income veterans or those with service connected disabilities. I agree with seabreeze that an employee group plan is better if you have that option.


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## QuickSilver (Dec 1, 2014)

Your situation is much like mine.  My spouse is under 65 and I am 66.  Fortunately, I am able to continue working to provide Group Insurance coverage for both of us.  When he hits 65 in two years, I will retire and we will both start our Medicare coverage.  However, I will have to prove to Medicare that I was covered under a group plan from age 65 to when I retire so I will avoid penalty for not taking Part B coverage now.   Hubby will just roll into Medicare A and B.   We will both need supplements

What's nice about working beyond full retirement age is that you can continue working with no earning restrictions AND collect your SS... which will give you some more money to sock away.


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## IKE (Dec 1, 2014)

It looks like I came to the right place for info.......thanks for the replies.

I omitted a little info earlier and this may or may not be pertinent.

1. Our home has been paid off for a couple years.

2. We'll have her car and credit cards paid off by the end of 2015.

3. We for now are pretty healthy.........along with me she has high blood pressure and I have type 2 diabetes (not using insulin at this time) and high cholesterol. Everything is being controlled / managed with oral medications thus far.

Her company insurance came in place a few years back when the govt. mandated that all companies with over 'X' employees must provide insurance. When we compared what she had on my company plan (Blue Cross Blue Shield) vs what he plan was going to be we kept her on mine for the better coverage.

I understand that a person needs to make an sit down / in person appointment with Social Security prior to retiring.......is 90 days enough in advance ? 

Ike


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## QuickSilver (Dec 1, 2014)

IKE said:


> It looks like I came to the right place for info.......thanks for the replies.
> 
> I omitted a little info earlier and this may or may not be pertinent.
> 
> ...




I turn 66 on January 8th...   I went to the SS office 10 days ago.  They won't let you apply sooner than 90 days.   They tried to get me to go to a computer and do the application myself.  I refused..  I wanted to have a SS rep help me with it.  They got pretty nasty and said I would have to wait a long time.. I said "Fine... I'll wait".. I was called to see a human person within 15 minutes.   I had a ton of questions and no way would I have been able to put in the right info by myself online.. so don't let them push you into that..  I suppose making an appointment would ensure they don't give you a hard time.  I didn't have one.. 

Anyway... I will be getting my first check in February.


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## ClassicRockr (Dec 1, 2014)

Hi! First, when a person is a Type 2 Diabetic, insulin is not used......only a prescription med like Metformin. Wife and I are Type 2 and use Metformin daily, but I also take a prescription med called Glipizide each AM also (along with the Metformin. Type 1 Diabetics must use insulin.

I have VA medical as well, but will discontinue using it next year. Since I don't have any "Service-Connected" medical problems AND b/c there are many more Vets in the VA Medical system today than there was years ago, I will start using my Medicare B, Florida Blue (Medicare Supplement) and Humana (Rx) next year. I also found out that the VA and Medicare don't work with each other. Since I'm now paying a monthly premium for Medicare B, Florida Blue and Humana, I see no reason to waste that money and continue using the VA. 

It can (ok, is) hard finding a medical plan to go with (supplement) Medicare B, but after a lot of online research and comparing, we chose Florida Blue. After getting that, we had to find a good Rx Plan. Again, done some researching and comparing and came up with Humana Rx Drug Plan for me. I only take a few prescriptions (BP, Cholesterol, Diabetic and Allergy) and they aren't expensive.   

My wife is on Medicare A (hospitalization), but has full medical from her job. I have Vision and Dental with her insurance. 

And, btw, QS helped us out a LOT in giving info on the Advantage Plans and *NOT* to get one. Again, THANK YOU, QS!


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## Satisfying Retirement (Dec 1, 2014)

Hi, confused!

I assume the Humana plans you are referring to are the Part B Medicare supplemental plans. The different letters refer to the different levels of coverage provided above what Medicare pays (which is generally 80%). The "higher" the letter the more that the plan covers and the higher the monthly premium. For example, I have an "F" plan from United Healthcare (through AARP) that costs me $147 a month. It covers everything that Medicare doesn't, including the yearly deductible. You should review which each lettered plan covers and decide which fits your budget and projected health needs. The good news is you can change to a different supplemental plan every year during the open enrollment period of Oct.15-December 7th if the one you picked doesn't seem to be the best fit for you.

It is also important to note that Medicare and the supplemental policy only covers you, not your spouse. After you leave work she will have to get her own coverage until she qualifies for Medicare on her own (unless your company provides for retired workers' spouse coverage).

You should also consider a Part D policy for prescription drug coverage if you take a fair number of non-generic, brand-name drugs. This is sold separately by private companies. I have a Humana RX policy through AARP.

I wrote a blog post about this subject. If you are interested click over to: http://satisfyingretirement.blogspot.com/2013/11/my-medicare-decisions-are-only-few.html


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## Mrs. Robinson (Dec 1, 2014)

Actually,Insulin IS used for Type 2 diabetics when Metformin no longer controls it. I am living proof of that..


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## ClassicRockr (Dec 1, 2014)

Had to delete my previous reply due to reading up on Type 2 needing to use insulin. 



Mrs. Robinson said:


> Actually,Insulin IS used for Type 2 diabetics when Metformin no longer controls it. I am living proof of that..


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## jujube (Dec 1, 2014)

As pissed as I am at Medicare right now, I'd never give up my Medicare *supplement* plan for an *advantage* plan.  I have both supplement and drug plans with Blue Cross right now.  I'm going to keep Blue Cross for the supplement and probably switch over to Humana for the drug plan.


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## Mrs. Robinson (Dec 1, 2014)

Hubby has Anthem/Blue Cross for his supplement and Humana for his drug plan. He will pay a total of $137.00 a month for the two in 2015.


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## IKE (Dec 1, 2014)

I had no idea what an 'advantage plan' was till you folks enlightened me and I very well may have enrolled in one.....thank you for your help.


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## rkunsaw (Dec 2, 2014)

Advantage plans are a rebirth of the old HMOs. You must use certain drs. and hospitals that are in the plans "network". You must get pre approval before going to a specialist or getting certain tests or procedures. They can be a lot cheaper than other plans but I don't like them.


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## Ken N Tx (Dec 2, 2014)

A helpful tip that I used: I called my wife's doctor's office (I do not have a Doc) and asked to speak to the girl that handles the insurance claims. I told her what plans I was looking into and she informed me of the ones that she and the patients had the most problems with..


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## QuickSilver (Dec 2, 2014)

Ken N Tx said:


> A helpful tip that I used: I called my wife's doctor's office (I do not have a Doc) and asked to speak to the girl that handles the insurance claims. I told her what plans I was looking into and she informed me of the ones that she and the patients had the most problems with..



Good idea!


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## Vala (Dec 7, 2014)

I have medicare both A and B and my supplement is Blue Cross and Blue Shield F.  That pays for medical care in other countries.  Except for premiums I pay nothing not even deductibles.  We were very lucky, before my husband retired his company union got medical coverage for spouses under 65.   I was worried I would have to get a job to pay for that.  At my husband's retirement seminars the insurance man said there are 3 ways you can lose your life savings.  Being under insured, being sued and have forgotten what the 3rd way was, probably investing unwisely.  He told us about  an umbrella policy to protect us from law suits.   It was very cheap, $98. a year when we started out, depends on how many vehicles you have.  It is now $138. a year and worth every penny of that.   If you are ever sued, their lawyers will represent you.  If you lose you don't have to pay  anything up to a million dollars.


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## Butterfly (Dec 9, 2014)

I am on a medicare advantage plan and I LOVE it.  It is tied to the largest hospital system here, and almost all of the docs here accept the plan.  I had two hips replaced in 2013 and paid almost nothing out of pocket, AND I had the best orthopedic surgeon in the area (for hips and knees) do it in the best hospital.

  I guess if you were in an area where plan didn't cover a lot of the docs, it wouldn't be much good to have the advantage plan, but here, for me, it is perfect.  I can choose any doctor I want, as long as they accept my medicare senior plan.  Almost everyone around here does.  So, no problem at all.  Saves me a fortune and I dont pay anything extra for it.  Good Rx coverage, too.  

With some of the supplements, you have to be sure your  medical provider accepts the supplement, no?  So what's the difference, except the whole buncha money I'm not spending for the supplement.


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