Title: OPM Application for Court-Ordered Benefits for Former Spouse
Saturday, January 27, 2024
OPM Application for Court-Ordered Benefits for Former Spouse (PDF)
Friday, January 26, 2024
Surprise! If You're a Medicare Enrollee, You May Have to Pay for These Expenses on Your Own.
Title: Surprise! If You're a Medicare Enrollee, You May Have to Pay for These Expenses on Your Own.
Article Snip: "...Medicare provides health coverage to millions of seniors today. But even with that coverage, retirees commonly have to reach into their wallets to cover expenses that Medicare won't pay for. Here are a few items that fall into that category. ..."
Reference: www.fool.comThursday, January 25, 2024
93-year-old athlete’s workouts reveal 4 secrets to maintaining longevity
Title: 93-year-old athlete’s workouts reveal 4 secrets to maintaining longevity
Wednesday, January 24, 2024
What Are Your Options if You Haven't Saved Enough When You Retire?
Title: What Are Your Options if You Haven't Saved Enough When You Retire?
Article Snip: "...It's not an uncommon situation at all: Retirement is getting closer, and you're starting to worry that you haven't saved enough. Retiring without enough income or resources is a frightening prospect, and you're scared. Indeed, according to the 2023 Retirement Confidence Survey, 33% of respondents have less than $25,000 in savings and investments (excluding the value of a primary home). ..."
Reference:www.fool.comAmerica is hitting "peak 65" in 2024 as record number of boomers reach retirement age. Here's what to know.
Article Snip: "...2024 will be a record-breaking year for retirement in the U.S., with an average of 11,000 Americans a day expected to celebrate their 65th birthday from now until December. Approximately 4.1 million Americans are poised to turn 65 this year and every year through 2027, according to a report from the Alliance for Lifetime Income. Dubbed by experts as "peak 65" or the "silver tsunami," the figure represents the largest surge of retirement-age Americans in history...."
Reference: www.cbsnews.comTuesday, January 23, 2024
The Biden Years | The US may have tiptoed around a recession last year, but it won't be so lucky in 2024
Article Snip: "...careful look at the labor market now will suggest that hiring has just ground to a halt...The problem is that the Fed badly misread how long high inflation would linger...In December, the core inflation print notched an annual 3.2% increase. "They've never missed in that direction by that magnitude ..."
Reference: www.businessinsider.comTuesday, January 16, 2024
Trump urges unity, Dems stoke racism and divide
Article Snip: "The 77-year-old Trump recorded the biggest margin of victory in the modern history of the Iowa GOP caucus ...“I want to congratulate Ron and Nikki...“I think they both actually did very well. I really do. I think they both did very well.” ...“I really think this is time now for everybody in our country to come together. We want to come together — "
Reference: nypost.comSunday, January 14, 2024
I’m 80 and my single daughter is bullying me into childcare
Title: I’m 80 and my single daughter is bullying me into childcare
Article Snip: "Now is the time to say ‘No!’ It will feel frightening, but you must do it anyway and, with time, you will feel more confident...Last year I had to stay at her house for three weeks while she did a course. As time went on it became clear that her course would mean she would be away on far more occasions. We sold our house in Spain so that we could be on hand even more. I found this sale stressful and my health deteriorated during that time. The completion date was to be on a day when she wanted me to be with our grandson. I told her I would have to be in Spain and she was extremely nasty, bullying me into changing the day to suit her. We had to change the documents and rush everything. We then had to dash up by car to look after my grandson. ...we've created now is a generation of kids where adolescence is the new childhood, where they're coddled and they're over parented and they're over protected." ...psychologist says hyper-vigilant parents are projecting their worries onto their children, leading to new generations with serious mental health issues. "Children are not fragile," said Dr. Simon Sherry."
Reference: www.theguardian.comMore Reading: Coddled kids end-up incapable, anxious, and depressed: Halifax psychologist
Wednesday, January 10, 2024
Trump to take the stage in Iowa for Fox News town hall
Title: Trump to take the stage in Iowa for Fox News town hall
Article Snip: "...town hall will air at 9 p.m. ET...Former President Trump is expected to take the stage Wednesday for a live town hall from Iowa, where he will take questions on the leading issues facing voters in the Hawkeye State and across the nation. ..."
Reference: www.foxnews.comAPWU | Watching Your Wallet in 2024
Title: APWU | Watching Your Wallet in 2024
Article Snip: "The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) is a federal agency created to ensure consumers are treated fairly. ...The CFPB is working to save households billions of dollars a year by reducing exploitative junk fees charged by banks and financial companies. ...Find answers to your money questions"
Reference: apwu.orgWhat's Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap)?
All Medigap policies are standardized. This means, they offer the same basic benefits no matter where you live or which insurance company you buy the policy from.
Title: What's Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap)?
Article Snip: "...Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) is extra insurance you can buy from a private health insurance company to help pay your share of out-of-pocket costs in Original Medicare. Generally, you must have Original Medicare – Part A (Hospital Insurance) and Part B (Medical Insurance) – to buy a Medigap policy. ... Get Medigap basics and Learn what Medigap covers, how it works, and general costs."
Reference: www.medicare.govMonday, January 8, 2024
Your Tax Dollars at Work ...for immigrants | Living the American Dream
Title: Overview of Immigrant Eligibility for Federal Programs
Article Snip: "...Last revised MARCH 2023*
This table provides an overview of immigrant eligibility for the major federal public assistance programs. The programs listed in the table are the following:
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Emergency Medicaid (includes labor and delivery)
Full-Scope Medicaid
Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Medicare “Premium-Free” Part A (hospitalization) (Eligibility based on work history.)
Premium “Buy-in” Medicare
HUD Public Housing and Section 8 Programs
Title XX Block Grants
Social Security
Other Federal Public Benefits Subject to Welfare Law’s Restrictions
Benefits Exempt from Welfare Law’s Restrictions
Some states provide assistance to immigrants who are not eligible for federally funded services...."
2024 Tax Filing Guide: Key Changes and Mistakes To Avoid
Title: 2024 Tax Filing Guide: Key Changes and Mistakes To Avoid
Article Snip: "...Each year with tax filing season comes changes and updates. Being aware of these changes is important as you begin your year-end tax planning and gathering information for the preparation of your 2023 tax return. Here’s a look at how certain tax thresholds, deductions and credits will shift for the 2023 tax year: There are seven federal tax brackets, and they will remain the same as 2022 — 10%, 12%, 22%..."
Reference: www.thestreet.comThe Income Gap Jeopardizing Retirement for Millions
Title: The Income Gap Jeopardizing Retirement for Millions
Article Snip: "...the inequities between the very bottom and the top of income distribution,” said Jack Chapel, the lead author of the study, an economist and doctoral candidate... “We wanted to look at the middle class, where people are struggling.”
Drawing on data from the national Health and Retirement Study between 1994 and 2018, the researchers found “a bifurcation” among Americans in their mid-50s, he said.
In effect, they now divide into two middle classes: the ..."
Here’s What It’s Like to Retire on Almost Nothing but Social Security
Title: Here’s What It’s Like to Retire on Almost Nothing but Social Security
Article Snip: "Four retirees with limited incomes open up about how they make it..."
Reference: www.wsj.comSunday, January 7, 2024
92-year-old sets world record with trek across Grand Canyon
Title: 92-year-old sets world record with trek across Grand Canyon
Article Snip: "...Alfredo Aliaga Burdio, 92, set a Guinness World Record when he made a 24-mile hike across the Grand Canyon last October. ...Burdio's takeaway from the hike is that it is never too late to try something, even at old age.
"I began living a healthy lifestyle really at age 76," he said."
Saturday, January 6, 2024
1099-R | When will i get my 2023 1099-R from OPM to file my taxes?
1099-R | When will i get my 2023 1099-R from OPM to file my taxes?
Article Excerpt: "Watch the mail in late January for your 1099R. OPM will mail your 1099R in the last week of January, using the address they have on file for you as of the second week of December. If you have not received your 1099R by the first week of February, they may not have your current address. Sign in to Services Online or call us at 1-888-767-6738 to update your mailing address. Your 1099Rs will be available online on Services Online by January 31. You can print the current year and two previous years’ 1099Rs on Services Online, using these instructions. ..."Resource: OPM via Federal Retiree
Wednesday, January 3, 2024
Writing About Your Life: A Journey into the Past | Paperback
Title: Writing About Your Life: A Journey into the Past | Paperback
Monday, January 1, 2024
Federal Retirement: How to register for a LOGIN.gov account through services online
Title: How to register for a LOGIN.gov account
Article Snip: The public’s one account for government. Use one account and password for secure, private access to participating government agencies. You must have a LOGIN.gov account to login for OPM Services Online for OPM pension actions. You can use the same username and password to access any agency that partners with Login.gov. This streamlines your process and eliminates the need to remember multiple usernames and passwords.
Login.gov is used to secure your account when you apply for:
Federal jobs (USAJOBS - Office of Personnel Management)
Global Entry (Trusted Traveler Programs - Department of Homeland Security)
Small business loans and disaster assistance (Small Business Administration)
And more…
"" Reference: YouTube
Friday, December 29, 2023
Equal COLA Act Needed as Federal Retirees Continue to Get Different COLA Rates
Title: Equal COLA Act Needed as Federal Retirees Continue to Get Different COLA Rates
Article Snip: "Social Security beneficiaries and Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) retirees are expected to receive a 3.2% COLA for 2024, while Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) retirees, those hired in 1984 or later, will only see a diet COLA of 2.2%.
That’s because of the way COLA is calculated for FERS.
Under current law, the COLAs for Social Security, CSRS, and FERS are all calculated based on the rate of inflation as measured by..."
Reference: www.afge.org