Social Security & Medicare
Benefit changes, claiming strategies, eligibility rules, Medicare enrollment, Part D updates, and policy changes affecting retirees.
Latest in Social Security & Medicare
Original Medicare covers no routine dental, vision or hearing care
Millions of Americans enrolled in Original Medicare have no federal coverage for routine dental cleanings, eye exams, hearing aids, or dentures. Federal statute explicitly bars...
Ads promising a big “Medicare flex card” are a scam; ignore them
Federal regulators are telling Medicare beneficiaries to stop clicking on ads that promise a loaded “flex card” for groceries, gas, or household bills. The Federal...
Some states let Medicare enrollees switch Medigap yearly with no health questions
Medicare beneficiaries in most states face medical underwriting if they try to switch Medigap plans after their initial enrollment window closes. But a growing number...
$2,000 remains the SSI savings cap, frozen since 1989
Millions of Americans who rely on Supplemental Security Income face a savings ceiling that has not budged since January 1, 1989. The federal resource limit...
Remarrying at 60 or later never cuts a widow’s Social Security survivor benefits
Widows and widowers who remarry at 60 or older keep every dollar of their Social Security survivor benefits, a protection written into federal law since...
Claim Social Security after full retirement age and you can request up to six months of benefits as a lump sum
Retirees who wait past full retirement age to claim Social Security can request a lump sum covering up to six months of back benefits, but...
Scammers can reroute your Social Security deposit online, and locking your my Social Security account blocks them in about two minutes
Scammers redirected Social Security payments away from thousands of beneficiaries by exploiting weak identity checks on the agency’s 800-number telephone line, according to a September...
Working before full retirement age, Social Security holds back $1 for every $2 you earn over $24,480 this year
Americans who collect Social Security before reaching full retirement age and continue earning a paycheck in 2026 face a direct hit to their monthly benefits....
Waiting past full retirement age to claim Social Security adds 8% to your check every year until 70
Retirees who delay their Social Security claim past full retirement age stand to collect 8 percent more per year on every monthly check, a credit...
Survivors of veterans who died from service-connected causes get a tax-free benefit topping $1,650 a month
Surviving spouses and dependents of veterans whose deaths resulted from service-connected causes currently receive a monthly Dependency and Indemnity Compensation payment that is tax-free and...
Retirees whose 2025 income topped about $111,000 will owe Medicare’s high-income surcharge in 2027
Retirees who earned modified adjusted gross income above roughly $111,000 in 2025 will see higher Medicare Part B and Part D premiums starting in January...
$310 is Medicare’s projected 2027 Part B deductible, up about $27 from this year
Medicare beneficiaries face a projected Part B annual deductible of about $310 in 2027, roughly $27 more than the $283 deductible set for 2026. That...
Social Security’s raise tracks workers’ costs, not retirees’, shortchanging seniors again in 2027
Roughly 70 million Social Security beneficiaries will receive their 2027 cost-of-living adjustment based on a price index designed for urban wage earners and clerical workers,...
2 million seniors miss $11.4 billion in Medicare Extra Help drug savings yearly
Every year, millions of low-income Medicare beneficiaries who qualify for prescription drug savings never receive them. The federal program known as Extra Help, or the...
A spouse who never worked can still claim up to half the other’s Social Security at full retirement age
Millions of Americans who spent years outside the paid workforce, whether raising children, managing a household, or caring for family members, can still collect Social...
Medicare charges a hospital deductible topping $1,600 each time you’re admitted in 2026
Medicare beneficiaries who need hospital care in 2026 will pay $1,736 out of pocket each time a new benefit period begins, a $60 increase over...
Hospitals keep dropping Medicare Advantage plans over payment fights, and some seniors will need new doctors in 2027
Seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans across the country face a growing risk of losing access to their current hospitals and doctors as contract disputes...
A surviving spouse can collect 100% of a late husband or wife’s Social Security by waiting until survivor full retirement age
Widows and widowers who file for Social Security survivor benefits at age 60 lock in payments worth just 71.5% of what their late spouse earned....
Medicare’s 2027 plan-change notices arrive by September 30, and ignoring yours can lock you into a worse plan
Every person enrolled in a Medicare Advantage or Part D prescription drug plan will receive a document this fall that spells out exactly how their...
Medicare’s free yearly wellness visit is not the full physical many expect
Millions of Medicare beneficiaries schedule their free Annual Wellness Visit each year expecting a head-to-toe physical exam. What they receive instead is a structured preventive-planning...