Social Security & Medicare
Benefit changes, claiming strategies, eligibility rules, Medicare enrollment, Part D updates, and policy changes affecting retirees.
Latest in Social Security & Medicare
A widow can claim a Social Security survivor benefit as early as 60, but taking it that soon locks in just 71.5% of the full amount for life
A surviving spouse who files for Social Security survivor benefits at age 60 will collect just 71.5% of the deceased worker’s primary insurance amount, and...
About 2 million seniors who qualify for Medicare’s Extra Help skip roughly $11.4 billion in prescription savings every year
Every year, roughly 2 million seniors who meet the eligibility requirements for Medicare’s Extra Help program never claim the benefit, forgoing an estimated $11.4 billion...
A surviving divorced spouse can still collect Social Security on an ex who has died, as long as the marriage lasted at least 10 years
Americans who divorced after long marriages and later lost a former spouse to death may be sitting on Social Security survivor benefits they do not...
Paper Social Security checks end September 30 for the last mail recipients
Social Security recipients who still receive paper checks in the mail face a hard cutoff. After September 30, the federal government will stop mailing those...
Some SSI recipients will get two payments in the same month this year, a quirk of the calendar rather than a bonus
Millions of people who rely on Supplemental Security Income will see two SSI deposits land in the same calendar month at certain points this year,...
A shared nursing-home room now runs about $9,581 a month, and Medicaid steps in only after a senior’s savings fall below $2,000
Families across the United States face a brutal arithmetic when a parent or spouse needs round-the-clock care. A shared nursing-home room now runs about $9,581...
A retiree who claimed Social Security early can suspend the benefit at full retirement age and let it grow again until 70
Retirees who locked in a reduced Social Security check by claiming before full retirement age still have a second chance to boost that payment. Between...
After a senior dies, Medicaid can bill the estate for nursing-home care it paid, though the family home is sometimes shielded
Families who inherit a parent’s home after years of Medicaid-funded nursing care can face a bill from the state that rivals the property’s value. Federal...
Medicare’s fall enrollment window opens October 15, and ignoring your plan’s change notice can lock you into higher costs for 2027
Millions of people enrolled in Medicare Advantage and Part D drug plans will face automatic cost and coverage changes on January 1, 2027, unless they...
Claim Social Security at 62 and the most it pays is about $2,969 a month; wait until 70 and the ceiling jumps to $5,181
Workers turning 62 in 2026 face a stark financial fork: claim Social Security retirement benefits now and collect a maximum of $2,969 a month, or...
Most denied Medicare Advantage claims are overturned on appeal, yet few seniors file
Three out of four Medicare Advantage denials that seniors actually challenged were reversed by the plans themselves, according to federal audit data, yet the vast...
Two nights in the hospital “under observation” instead of admitted can cost seniors thousands and block Medicare’s nursing-home coverage
Medicare beneficiaries who spend two or more nights in a hospital bed can still be classified as outpatient “observation” patients, a designation that strips them...
Social Security warns of fake benefit-statement emails that carry malware
Millions of Americans who rely on Social Security benefits are facing a new threat in their inboxes. The Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector...
A six-month window at 65 lets you buy any Medigap plan, no health screening
Americans turning 65 get exactly one shot at buying a Medicare supplement plan on their own terms. Federal law grants a six-month open enrollment window...
A lower-earning spouse can claim up to half the higher earner’s Social Security, even with little or no work record of their own
Millions of Americans who spent years out of the paid workforce or earned far less than a spouse stand to collect Social Security benefits equal...
A newly reintroduced Social Security 2100 Act would lift every retiree’s monthly check by 2% and set a higher minimum benefit, but Congress still has to pass it
Every Social Security retiree in the United States would see a 2% bump in monthly benefits under a bill that Rep. John B. Larson, a...
Divorced spouses married at least 10 years can claim up to half an ex’s Social Security, and it never lowers the ex’s own check
Millions of Americans who ended long marriages may be leaving money on the table. A divorced person whose marriage lasted at least 10 years can...
Social Security’s taxable wage cap is projected to reach $190,200 in 2027
Workers earning above $184,500 a year will face a higher Social Security payroll tax ceiling in 2027, with the taxable wage cap projected to climb...
Medicare’s free yearly wellness visit is a check-in, not a full physical
Millions of Medicare Part B beneficiaries qualify for a free annual wellness visit, but the benefit does not include a head-to-toe physical exam. The Centers...
Medicare’s old Part D donut hole is gone, so drug costs no longer spike partway through the year
Millions of Medicare Part D enrollees who once watched their prescription costs jump sharply partway through each year no longer face that mid-year spending cliff....