Social Security.........this really pisses me off!!

[glp]

He is correct

The reason I am here is to drop Plan B.

Back when I turned 65, they told me I should sign up for Plan B, even though I have great Health Insurance through my shop. The big kicker is because of my income bracket, I have to shell out an EXTRA $1200 a quarter. That's another $4800 a year on top of the regular monthly payment.

My insurance carrier has told me I am just throwing money away, as all I need is Plan A, (just to satisfy the government requirements), since I am not "retired" and have insurance.

all you have to do within a certain time limit of turning 65 is to sign up for part A. If you are still employed and on a private health plan, like me too, you do not need to pay for part B...until you fully retire and are no longer covered by private insurance.

On your other point of all the young'ins there..SS has been politically hijacked by the liberal democrats to the point of including lots of people who have never paid anything into the system (another voting block). That's where the reference to entitlement comes from. Hells bells, the only ones who are entitled to anything are the ones who have busted their gonads over a lifetime and paid 7.5% on top of the employers 7.5% to the system. Everyone else is a freeloader, period, and the politicians who have played loose with the system should hang their heads in shame...if they have any. --Greg

 

[tcjones]

[......(. for some reason...unknown to me....the urge to get out and go to work,earn some money to buy a car,house,gun has gone....)
bill larson[/QUOTE]

Your statement reminds me of younger days with 3 kids and a wife. Our tv going south so you want better for the family, the kids and wife don't see you much on the week end until after work.
Same with my dad raising 12 children and no welfare , same with grandpa and 7 children.

 

[JerrySharrett]

Social Security program. The most undermanaged..over fleeced Federal program....ever..period. Having recently(last 60 years or so). Starting with the Great Society of LBJ when he let Lady Bird Johnson usethe Highway Beautification Act of 1968 use this TAXPAYER FUNDED AND TAXPAYER FUNDED to buy shrubbery for the InterstateHighway System.

Later, Poverty Programs have been added as “Entitlement Programs”.

TheSocial Security Trust Fund, with all the extra added is, amazingly, secure till about 2032!,!

That said, if the average Joe and Jane Voter don’t get off their @$$ and vote and hold your ELECTEDS to their sworn oath......

..

 

[retired]

to veterans
you no longer HAVE to get part b and pay for it.
if you are healthy and have va coverage, or other ins,
you are not longer REQUIRED to get part b.
keep your money.
oboma said the va was good medical coverage and
medicare not required.

 

[sdean]

all you have to do within a certain time limit of turning 65 is to sign up for part A. If you are still employed and on a private health plan, like me too, you do not need to pay for part B...until you fully retire and are no longer covered by private i's where the reference to entitlement comes from. ]

Do you need to sign up for the drug plan. 65 this year and starting to try and figure things out

 

[vtmarmot]

The deal with Part A is that you must sign up within a certain time after you turn 65 or it will cost you more down the road. You do not have to sign up for B, C, D or anything else until you no longer have employer-provided insurance. I suggest you get a login ID for SSA.gov. That will give you tons of information on Medicare and it will allow you to check on your Medicare and Social Security benefits and sign up for various plans. Once you do that, you will no longer receive anything in the mail from them. You will have to change your password if you have not logged in for six months or more. You will still get things in the mail from private insurers about Medigap and Medicare Advantage plans (Part C). I am told that these are good ways to go when you need them, but study the differences carefully because they are not all the same. My neighbor has the one from AARP and loves it. AARP is anti-gun however so I will probably choose another.

I intend to stay on my employers plan until they throw me out or wheel me out on a gurney. People who have meaningful work tend to stay healthier and live longer. We have a regular segment on Channel 3 WCAX TV up here called Super Seniors. They all seem to have something meaningful to do in life. You can play some of the segments on WCAX.com. My friend Gary Ely is one of them. He is 80, an ordained pastor at his local church and still manages Caplan's Army Store in St. Johnsbury VT full time. I used to shoot archery with him when I was a kid. You would never guess that he is 80. He has no plans to retire.

 

[JDMock]

I had to go over to the Social Security Office this morning to modify some things concerning my Medicare.

Ok. There are about 100 people in there waiting to talk to a administrator about something.

I think I was the only person on there who was actually old enough to "draw Social Security".

What the heck is going on?

By the way, I just started drawing my full benefits this year at 70, as this is the year I topped out.

Jackie, I share your frustration. In my situation, I retired from teaching after 21 years, but went to work at various jobs to earn Soc. Sec. benefits. After working my required 40 quarters, I applied for soc.sec. benefits and was told that I could not draw what I should because of a"double dipping" law. This law evidently only applies to LA State workers. Instead of drawing $1000 a month, I ended up with $400. It seems that LA does every thing it can to punish its teachers.

 

[retired]

i think you have this wrong.
part a is automatic no cost.
b use to cost more of you failed to signup right away, but not if you currently have medical coverage. that encludes va benefits.

The deal with Part A is that you must sign up within a certain time after you turn 65 or it will cost you more down the road. You do not have to sign up for B, C, D or anything else until you no longer have employer-provided insurance. I suggest you get a login ID for SSA.gov. That will give you tons of information on Medicare and it will allow you to check on your Medicare and Social Security benefits and sign up for various plans. Once you do that, you will no longer receive anything in the mail from them. You will have to change your password if you have not logged in for six months or more. You will still get things in the mail from private insurers about Medigap and Medicare Advantage plans (Part C). I am told that these are good ways to go when you need them, but study the differences carefully because they are not all the same. My neighbor has the one from AARP and loves it. AARP is anti-gun however so I will probably choose another.

I intend to stay on my employers plan until they throw me out or wheel me out on a gurney. People who have meaningful work tend to stay healthier and live longer. We have a regular segment on Channel 3 WCAX TV up here called Super Seniors. They all seem to have something meaningful to do in life. You can play some of the segments on WCAX.com. My friend Gary Ely is one of them. He is 80, an ordained pastor at his local church and still manages Caplan's Army Store in St. Johnsbury VT full time. I used to shoot archery with him when I was a kid. You would never guess that he is 80. He has no plans to retire.

 

[vtmarmot]

I see that I was misled. I was told with certainty by a number of sources that I had to sign up for part A within my enrollment period or face a penalty when I finally did sign up for it, even though I have employer health insurance and likely will for some years on. Nobody, including my HR department, told me that Part A would be premium free when I finally started taking it if I had worked a sufficient time while paying the Medicare payroll tax. They also didn't tell me that signing up was optional if I planned to continue working, which they knew. A major consequence of my signing up at 65 was that I lost the ability to contribute to a health savings account, which I valued very much.

From the AARP web site: "Warning: Most people enroll in Part A during their initial enrollment period even if they delay Part B. But if you're still working and your employer coverage is a high-deductible plan with a health savings account, be careful. Under IRS rules, you cannot contribute to an HSA in any month that you are enrolled in Medicare (A or B). The same is true if you are receiving any Social Security benefits (retirement, disability or spousal), because then you will be automatically enrolled in Part A as soon as you become eligible for Medicare. In these situations, you can continue to draw on funds already in your account, but you can't add to them. However, if you don’t apply for Social Security benefits, and don’t enroll in any part of Medicare, you can continue contributing to your HSA at work."

Now I'm pissed off too. I wonder if I can un-enroll? This is all too freaking complicated.

 

[jackie schmidt]

When you turn 65 and are enrolled in Medicare, it becomes your primary carrier. Any insurance you have besides that is classed as a supliment.

I have excellent coverage through my shop. The best. But my Insurance Company suggested I get Plan B. By suggesting, I mean they insisted.

This was all before I found out that Plan B would cost me an extra $4800 a year. We finally got our Shop's insurance Carrier to drop their insistence, which caused me to visit the SS office and get on just Plan A.

To James Mock. My Wife is in the same boat as you. Since she is in the Texas State Teacher's Retirement Fund, she only can draw a fraction of what she would have if she was not on the SS she earned before becoming a Teacher at 34. But it's a great retirement plan, she gets about $49,000 a year.


Of course, since we file a joint return, she is giving a lot back, as I am in a rather high tax bracket. But it's the same with the $3700 I draw each month from my Social Security. It gets thrown into the same pot with my personal income, and taxed at the same rate.

The Government gets you coming, and going.

 

[dmort]

The reason I am here is to drop Plan B.

Back when I turned 65, they told me I should sign up for Plan B, even though I have great Health Insurance through my shop. The big kicker is because of my income bracket, I have to shell out an EXTRA $1200 a quarter. That's another $4800 a year on top of the regular monthly payment.

My insurance carrier has told me I am just throwing money away, as all I need is Plan A, (just to satisfy the government requirements), since I am not "retired" and have insurance.

I also did not opt for Plan B. If you have insurance the cost is something people should look at.....

 

[rkittine]

Since I am still working, I also have pretty high Plan B payments, but since my job doesn't provide health insurance, it was my least expensive option for decent coverage and I added Humana Health "F" Supplemental, also expensive, but there is no deductible with that plan and no co-pay. Recently has a pacemaker installed. Between the devise, the travel internet reader, the surgeon and the hospital, the bill was over $60,000. Zero additional cost to me. Before I turned 65 I did have regular health insurance, which was a little less, but did carry with it a deductible and a co-pay. Survived cancer in 2008/9 and only paid $3,600 out of pocket additional of the $375,000, medical costs that year.

Bob

 

[Hunter]

Recently has a pacemaker installed. Between the devise, the travel internet reader, the surgeon and the hospital, the bill was over $60,000. Zero additional cost to me.

Out of curiosity, how much did M'care approve?

 

[glp]

James

Jackie, I share your frustration. In my situation, I retired from teaching after 21 years, but went to work at various jobs to earn Soc. Sec. benefits. After working my required 40 quarters, I applied for soc.sec. benefits and was told that I could not draw what I should because of a"double dipping" law. This law evidently only applies to LA State workers. Instead of drawing $1000 a month, I ended up with $400. It seems that LA does every thing it can to punish its teachers.

don't consider yourself preyed upon by the double dipping laws....same goes for Maine State retirement covered workers who also earned enough quarters to qualify for SS. Same s--t here too.

 

[glp]

Well,

When you turn 65 and are enrolled in Medicare, it becomes your primary carrier. Any insurance you have besides that is classed as a supliment.

I have excellent coverage through my shop. The best. But my Insurance Company suggested I get Plan B. By suggesting, I mean they insisted.

This was all before I found out that Plan B would cost me an extra $4800 a year. We finally got our Shop's insurance Carrier to drop their insistence, which caused me to visit the SS office and get on just Plan A.

To James Mock. My Wife is in the same boat as you. Since she is in the Texas State Teacher's Retirement Fund, she only can draw a fraction of what she would have if she was not on the SS she earned before becoming a Teacher at 34. But it's a great retirement plan, she gets about $49,000 a year.


Of course, since we file a joint return, she is giving a lot back, as I am in a rather high tax bracket. But it's the same with the $3700 I draw each month from my Social Security. It gets thrown into the same pot with my personal income, and taxed at the same rate.

The Government gets you coming, and going.

I would ask your insurance company for a refund for misleading information, or worse trying to sleaze out of the primary responsibility to cover you for part B medical coverage. If they refuse contact the Texas Department of Insurance and file a complaint.

http://www.tdi.texas.gov/consumer/complfrm.html

I think Paul is correct that you have to sign up for Part A

Greg

 

[rkittine]

As is usually the case, Medicare provided their allowance for each item: Hospital Room and costs, Surgeon, Anestisiologist , Devise and Remote Reader. Of the total of just over $60,000, I believe they allowed $39,000 or I should say 80% of that number, but all the providers were medicare providers and accepted what they paid. The other 20% was paid by my "F" Plan Supplement. I do have to say that I am seeing the exact same group of doctors that I was seeing prior to switching to medicare. They all accepted it and there are here in Manhattan.

Bob

 

[JerrySharrett]

Get thus through your head boys and girls. The traditional Public Law as was defined in 1937 defined is not an EARNED benefit, nor is it an ENTITLEMENT. If you worked as all should have you PAID into that system, I started paying into Social Security in 1955 when I worked as a surveyor at the Virginia Highway Department as a summer job while attending Virginia Tech. Later, as an employee of Eastman Kodak and for 39 more years at Kodak I PAID into that system. (Can't remember if I PAID Social Security in the years I was in the US Army.)

BUT, for those many years I PAID money into that system, good or bad as it was and is. Do I regret that little pittance they GIVE me each month ,,,,,,,,,,,,HELL NO!!!!!!!

Do I regret how the ELECTED officials, we elected, have stolen from that pool of money,,,,,HELL YES!!!!!


HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



..

 

[Bob Brushingham]

My son rented a house to a eighteen year old girl who had a baby out of wedlock. New York state paid for every thing.Soon after the boy friend moves in. He started the whole thing. Now it's a state funded bordello.

 

[rkittine]

Happy New Year

I too paid into Social Security since 1962 and starting in 1969, paid the max amount each year until just recently when I semi-retired. I do not feel guilty getting some of it back now even though I know it is actually money coming from those currently paying in that are younger than me.

Also paid the Medicare Supplement when it was initiated and do not feel bad about having Medicare, which I pay dearly for as since I am still working, I do not qualify for the entrance level amount per month. I currently pay over $360.00 month, plus $292 a month for my supplement, plus $17.00 for RX supplement plus $16.50 per month for Part D.

Still less then the private insurance I was buying which had a deductible and co-pay, both of which I no longer have, at least for the moment.

Bob

 

[Nor Cal Mikie]

Do I regret how the ELECTED officials, we elected, have stolen from that pool of money,,,,,HELL YES!!!!!

The worst part?? It ain't never gunna change!!
The politicians hate the fact that there's $$ just sitting in a pool so, they take it out, leave an IOU, put it the general fund so they can piss it away. Then they have the balls to say "Social Security" is going to run out of money??

If the politicians had to have the same medical coverage as WE the "tax payers" DO, you know damn well it would be MUCH different story. I guess we should be glad we've got anything?? AND, Social Security IS NOT an entitlement. WE paid for it!!