Social Security & Medicare
Benefit changes, claiming strategies, eligibility rules, Medicare enrollment, Part D updates, and policy changes affecting retirees.
Latest in Social Security & Medicare
Divorced spouses married at least ten years can claim up to half an ex’s Social Security, and it never reduces the ex’s own check
Divorced Americans who were married for at least a decade can collect up to 50 percent of a former spouse’s Social Security retirement benefit, and...
Medicare Advantage plans are expected to trim dental, vision and drug perks in 2027
Millions of Medicare Advantage enrollees could lose dental cleanings, vision exams, and prescription drug extras starting in 2027 after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid...
When a Medicare Advantage plan drops you for 2027, you get a guaranteed right to buy any Medigap policy
Beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans that will not renew for 2027 hold a federal right to purchase any Medigap policy sold in their state,...
Rising Medicare premiums will eat more than a quarter of next year’s Social Security raise
Retirees counting on a 2.8 percent Social Security cost-of-living adjustment in January 2026 will find that a $17.90 monthly jump in the standard Medicare Part...
Social Security’s earnings limit rises to $24,480 in 2026 for those who claim before full retirement age
Workers who collect Social Security before full retirement age and keep earning a paycheck will be able to take home slightly more in 2026 before...
The $200-a-month emergency Social Security boost ended July 1 with no renewal
Millions of Social Security recipients lost $200 a month in emergency payments when the benefit boost expired on July 1, and Congress has not renewed...
Social Security now blocks 70,000 fraudulent direct-deposit changes a year with new ID checks
The Social Security Administration has started requiring identity verification before approving any change to a beneficiary’s direct-deposit account, a policy shift driven by an inspector...
Who still pays federal income tax on Social Security? Retirees whose combined income tops limits frozen since 1984
Millions of retirees still owe federal income tax on their Social Security benefits because the dollar thresholds that trigger that tax have not changed since...
High earners can pay up to $649 a month for Medicare Part B, more than triple the standard premium
Retirees with higher incomes will pay as much as $649.20 per month for Medicare Part B in 2026, more than triple the standard monthly premium...
A Senate bill would raise Social Security checks, but Congress still must act
Millions of Social Security beneficiaries learned on October 24 that their 2026 cost-of-living adjustment will be 2.8 percent, translating to roughly $56 more per month...
Fewer seniors are choosing Medicare Advantage for the first time since 2010
For the first time since 2010, fewer new Medicare beneficiaries are selecting Medicare Advantage plans when they first become eligible. Data from the Centers for...
Medicare’s Part B premium is projected to reach $209.50 a month in 2027
Medicare beneficiaries will pay $209.50 per month for Part B coverage in 2027 if federal projections hold, a $6.60 jump from the $202.90 premium locked...
Medicare’s 2027 plan-change notices arrive by September 30, and ignoring yours can lock you into a worse plan
Millions of Medicare Advantage and Part D enrollees face a hard deadline this fall: their plans must send a written notice of every cost and...
VA disability pay rose 2.8% this year, adding about $107 a month at a 100% rating
Veterans rated at 100 percent disability will see their monthly compensation climb by about $107 starting December 1, 2025, when a 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment...
Nineteen major hospital systems, including Mayo Clinic, have left Medicare Advantage this year
Nineteen major hospital systems across the United States, including Mayo Clinic, have walked away from Medicare Advantage contracts this year, forcing millions of seniors to...
Social Security’s retirement trust fund is now projected to run short in late 2032 and then pay just 78% of benefits
Roughly 73 million Americans who depend on Social Security retirement checks face an automatic benefit cut of about one-fifth unless Congress acts within the next...
Go 63 days without drug coverage after 65 and Medicare adds a lifelong Part D penalty
Anyone turning 65 who lets prescription drug coverage lapse for 63 consecutive days or longer faces a permanent surcharge on Medicare Part D premiums. The...
Medicare’s negotiated price for Ozempic and Wegovy falls to $274 a month in 2027, down from about $959
Medicare beneficiaries who rely on Ozempic or Wegovy will pay sharply less starting in 2027, after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services locked in...
Earn above $23,400 before full retirement age and Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 over
Americans who claim Social Security before full retirement age and keep working face a hard dollar threshold in 2025: every dollar of earnings above $23,400...
A new bill would change how Social Security’s yearly raise is set to better track seniors’ costs
Millions of Social Security recipients received a 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment for 2026, but a bipartisan group of lawmakers argues that annual raise still shortchanges...