Retirement & Taxes
Long-term financial planning, retirement accounts, government benefits, tax law, and IRS rules. Covers the intersection of policy and personal finance that affects how people save, invest, and plan ahead.
Latest in Retirement & Taxes
Social Security will no longer let you switch your direct deposit by phone, a fraud block you now clear online or in person.
The Social Security Administration cut off the simplest way millions of beneficiaries once changed where their monthly payments land. Before April 14, 2025, a phone...
A 10-year fixed annuity now pays as much as 7.65%.
Retirees hunting for guaranteed income can now find 10-year fixed annuity quotes advertising rates as high as 7.65 percent, a figure that would have seemed...
Fairview Health will stop taking UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage on January 1, 2027, forcing patients to switch plans or go out of network
Seniors who rely on Fairview Health facilities and carry UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage coverage face a hard deadline: starting January 1, 2027, Fairview will no longer...
Social Security can now take half your monthly check to recover an overpayment, starting automatically after 90 days unless you object.
Millions of Social Security recipients who owe money to the federal government now face losing half their monthly benefit check to repayment, up from 10...
Social Security will halve in-person office visits, pushing seniors to phone lines and the web.
Millions of Americans who depend on Social Security field offices for help with benefits, replacement cards, and identity verification lost the option to walk in...
Companies are mailing retirees lump-sum pension buyout offers with 30-to-60-day windows.
Retirees across the country are receiving letters from former employers offering a one-time lump sum to replace their monthly pension checks, and the clock to...
$2,400 is Medicare’s new out-of-pocket drug cap for 2027, up from $2,100 this year.
Medicare enrollees who spend the most on prescription drugs will face a higher ceiling next year. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services set the...
Medicare locked in telehealth-from-home coverage through 2027, plus hospital-at-home care through 2030.
Medicare beneficiaries who rely on virtual doctor visits from home now have a firm deadline on the calendar: December 31, 2027. That date marks the...
Social Security is expanding a tool that scans applicants’ bank accounts to catch overpayments early.
Starting May 4, 2026, every person approved for Supplemental Security Income will have their bank accounts checked through an automated federal verification system before payments...
Skip Medicare drug coverage when first eligible and a 1%-a-month penalty can stick to your premium for life.
Medicare beneficiaries who skip Part D prescription drug coverage when they first become eligible face a permanent surcharge of 1% per month for every month...
The IRS grace period is over, so many heirs must take yearly withdrawals from an inherited IRA or risk a 25% penalty.
Heirs who inherited individual retirement accounts after 2019 and skipped annual withdrawals during the IRS transition period now owe those distributions starting in 2025, or...
Original Medicare still won’t cover routine dental, vision, or hearing care, a costly gap for retirees.
Millions of retirees enrolled in Original Medicare still pay the full cost of routine dental cleanings, eye exams for glasses, and hearing aids out of...
Medicare Advantage plans may cut dental, vision, gym and grocery perks in 2027.
Millions of Medicare Advantage enrollees who rely on dental coverage, vision exams, gym memberships, or grocery allowances could see those extras shrink or disappear when...
$35 is the most Medicare enrollees pay for a month of insulin in 2027.
Medicare beneficiaries who rely on insulin will pay no more than $35 for a one-month supply of any covered insulin product in 2027, the same...
You can appeal a high Medicare surcharge after retiring, divorcing, or losing a spouse, using one SSA form.
Medicare beneficiaries who retire, divorce, or lose a spouse often see their premiums jump based on income they no longer earn. The Social Security Administration...
A spouse who never worked can still collect up to half of the other’s Social Security.
Millions of Americans who spent years outside the paid workforce, whether raising children, managing a household, or caring for aging parents, can still qualify for...
$190,200 of wages is projected to face Social Security tax in 2027, up $5,700 from this year.
Workers earning up to $190,200 will owe Social Security payroll tax on every dollar of that income in 2027, a $5,700 jump from the $184,500...
Who qualifies for the new $6,000 senior tax deduction? You must be 65, and it shrinks once income tops $75,000.
Americans age 65 and older gained a new federal tax break worth up to $6,000 per person, but the benefit shrinks for single filers earning...
Working retirees can earn about $25,200 in 2027 before Social Security withholds any benefits.
Retirees who keep working in 2027 will face a familiar squeeze: earn too much from a part-time or consulting job, and the Social Security Administration...
$274 a month is Medicare’s new 2027 price for Ozempic and Wegovy, a 71% cut that saves seniors an estimated $685 million.
Medicare beneficiaries who rely on Ozempic or Wegovy will pay no more than $274 a month for those drugs starting Jan. 1, 2027, after the...