Social Security & Medicare
Benefit changes, claiming strategies, eligibility rules, Medicare enrollment, Part D updates, and policy changes affecting retirees.
Latest in Social Security & Medicare
High earners pay up to $487 more a month for Medicare, and one dollar over the line can trigger it
Medicare beneficiaries with higher incomes will pay as much as $487 extra per month for Part B coverage in 2026, on top of the standard...
Social Security now checks every SSI applicant’s bank accounts automatically
Every person who applies for Supplemental Security Income now has their bank account data pulled and cross-checked electronically before a single dollar is approved. The...
Up to 5 million people could lose their Medicare Advantage plan for 2027 as insurers keep exiting
Millions of Medicare Advantage enrollees face the prospect of losing their current health plan before 2027 coverage begins. Insurer exits and service-area reductions are already...
Social Security warns senior impersonation-scam reports jumped 25% in a year
Older Americans lost more money to impersonation scams last year than at any point on record, and the volume of complaints is accelerating. The Federal...
Full retirement age is 67 for everyone retiring in 2026, and claiming at 62 locks in a 30% cut for life
Americans born in 1960 or later who turn 62 in 2026 face a full retirement age of 67, and anyone in that group who claims...
A House bill from Larson and Horsford would raise both Social Security and veterans’ checks
Millions of Americans who depend on Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Railroad Retirement, or Veterans Affairs disability and pension payments would receive a temporary $200...
SSI recipients get two payments in July and none in August
Supplemental Security Income recipients will see two deposits hit their accounts in July 2026 and then go the entire month of August without a payment....
Medicare Advantage benefit debit cards must link to real-time eligibility checks starting in 2027
Medicare Advantage enrollees who use plan-issued debit cards for supplemental benefits like over-the-counter products, groceries, or dental services will soon face a new layer of...
Humana is pulling Medicare Advantage plans from 194 counties for 2026, and UnitedHealth and Aetna are cutting too
Roughly 560,000 Medicare Advantage members are losing their current Humana plans for 2026 after the insurer pulled out of 194 counties it deemed unprofitable, according...
New twice-a-year Medicaid eligibility checks start in December, and even people who work could lose coverage
Millions of adults who gained Medicaid coverage through state expansion programs face a new threat to their health insurance starting in December, when states begin...
Both parties warn Social Security’s trust fund will fall short in 2032
The government’s own actuaries now project that Social Security’s main retirement trust fund will only be able to pay full benefits until late 2032, and...
Money the earnings test holds back before full retirement age comes back later as a permanently higher check
Millions of Social Security retirees who keep working before full retirement age see their checks reduced when they earn above annual limits. That money is...
Social Security is ending paper checks this year, and Fifth Third Bank is taking over the Direct Express card
Millions of Social Security recipients who still receive paper checks face a hard deadline: the federal government set September 30, 2025, as the cutoff for...
Medicare now caps your out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,100 a year
Millions of Medicare beneficiaries who rely on prescription drugs will pay no more than $2,100 out of pocket for covered medications in 2026, a $100...
Original Medicare started requiring prior approval for some procedures in six states this year
Medicare beneficiaries in six states now face a new step before receiving certain medical services. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched the...
Who can get their entire $202.90 Medicare Part B premium paid for them? Limited-income seniors who join a Medicare Savings Program
Seniors living on tight budgets will pay $202.90 each month for Medicare Part B in 2026, a cost that can consume a sizable share of...
About 2 million seniors skip $11.4 billion in Medicare Extra Help drug savings
An estimated two million seniors eligible for Medicare’s Extra Help program never apply, collectively forgoing roughly $11.4 billion in annual prescription drug savings. The program,...
Social Security can now withhold half of a monthly check to recover an overpayment unless you request a lower rate within 90 days
Millions of Social Security beneficiaries who receive overpayment notices mailed on or after April 25, 2025, now face a default withholding rate of 50 percent...
Retirees whose income dropped after they stopped working can appeal a high Medicare premium using Form SSA-44
Retirees who left the workforce in 2024 or 2025 are now receiving Medicare premium bills based on their peak earning years, not their current, lower...
One new estimate puts the 2027 Social Security raise as high as 4.7%, the biggest cost-of-living bump in over a decade
Retirees and disabled workers collecting Social Security could see their monthly checks jump by as much as 4.7 percent starting in January 2027, which would...