# Forced Retirement - Help with Insurance



## Papa Charlie (Oct 14, 2021)

Well my company is forcing me to take retirement earlier than I had planned, about a year. I am concerned about the Medicare, I am 65 but the wife who hasn't worked for 30 years is only 63. I assume that I will have to find some health care for her until she gets to 65. Anyone have any experience with this and can share some information?

Thanks
Patrick


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## hotrats (Oct 14, 2021)

Congratulations on the retirement, even if forced. Best job ever! Sorry, but no help regarding the insurance...


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## woodchucker (Oct 14, 2021)

I am going through that myself now. I'm about to turn 64. I am paying for Cobra for myself, as it was way less than the Federal plan. As for how to handle your wife, I haven't a clue. You could divorce her and have her get the federal plan at a reduced cost, since she was not a bread winner and then remarry after. But I suspect that's not in the cards.

For the most informative way, I would ask your HR people, what options you have. They should be able to help, or tell you who to contact about it. Maybe you can pick up cobra just for her.  I'm assuming you are a Boeing employee.


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## Papa Charlie (Oct 14, 2021)

Yes, Boeing. Thanks


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## Nogoingback (Oct 14, 2021)

I went through the same thing 3 years ago and had to buy insurance for my wife and my son.  My wife turns 65 next February.
I had great insurance at work, so it was a bit of a shock when I saw what we would have to pay out of pocket after retirement.

If you have decent insurance at work, you can sign her up for COBRA, which allows you to continue with the
same insurance for 18 months, though not at the same cost.  That's what we did since the insurance at work was good and
she knew she needed major surgery (knee replacement) not long after I retired.  The cost of COBRA was quite a bit higher than
what I payed while working, but it was still a better deal than what I was able to find elsewhere.  After 18 months you will have
to find other insurance.  The COBRA also covered my son.

Since you're in Washington, have a look at this site.  I believe this is where I started looking.


			https://www.wahealthplanfinder.org/HBEWeb/Annon_ViewIndividualPlans?request_locale=en
		


Somewhere, I found a list of all the health insurance policies available in my county. (Coverage and availability does vary from
county to county within the state.)  If I remember right, there were about 30 policies available.  I made a list of all of them,
sorted by up front cost, which was annual premiums + deductibles.
One thing that jumped out right away was that the least expensive policies in terms of premiums always had higher deductibles,
and usually higher over all costs.  I suppose that makes some sense: the insurance companies want their money upfront, but it
means that the folks who can't afford the higher premiums pay more in the end if they get sick. However, the most expensive
policies didn't necessarily have the best coverage.  The devil is in the details, so once you have the list in front of you need to
look at the details of what coverages those policies provide.  I wound up picking a policy that was somewhere in the middle
cost wise, but that had good coverage. The policy we chose also had monthly premiums that were close to what we were paying
under COBRA, though the deductible was higher.  The cost of all this was shocking, frankly.  Folks with lower incomes will need
to sign up for Obama-care, which I can't tell you about since we didn't qualify.
Don't forget about dental coverage as well: some policies won't cover it.

I don't know if you've looked into Medicare yet, but start here:





						Your Medicare coverage choices | Medicare
					

Learn about the 2 main ways to get your Medicare coverage — Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C).




					www.medicare.gov
				




Basically, you'll need Medicare parts A and B and a supplement which can either be a Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C),
or Supplemental (Medigap) policy.  Part D, which you'll need covers drugs.
All this isn't free, but the cost is much less than what you'll pay for your wife.  I also have to say that if you have all of this
stuff, Medicare is a good deal.  I've had some significant health issues in the last year and the cost has been high, but after
paying a small deductible, the cost has been almost zero.

What I've said here covers the basics.   This stuff is complicated and you'll need to pay attention to the details.  Be sure to
give yourself enough time to research this  before  you retire: you don't want to make a rushed decision at the last minute.


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## JPMacG (Oct 14, 2021)

As Nogoingback suggested, if your wife is not working and has little other income, she may be able to get a good deal from the ACA (Obamacare).   You can start here: https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/affordable-care-act/


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## RJSakowski (Oct 14, 2021)

My wife retired when I did but still has 3 years to go for Medicare.  She got her insurance through the ACA exchange but our income is too high for any subsidies so we pay the full load.  She has a high deductible policy with an HSA.  The premiums for her are $7K/yr. and nothing from insurance until she hits $7,200 out of pocket.  The on;ly benefit is that she gets reduced prices on medical and drug costs and a free annual physical.

I have a Cadillac supplemental  policy that costs me about $3K/yr but so far, in 8 years, I haven't paid a dime out of pocket.  U bought the cheapest part D insurance available as, at the time, I had no prescription drugs.  It cost me about $200/yr.


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## rabler (Oct 14, 2021)

No advice on insurance.  Sorry life has thrown a monkey wrench into your plans.  Hopefully it doesn't make a total mess of your retirement.


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## matthewsx (Oct 14, 2021)

Hopefully you will find a good solution, the ACA might not work if your employer pays you too much to qualify. 

One thing I can tell you though is about COBRA, you can buy it retroactively. It's the only insurance I've ever heard of where you can do that but it makes sense if you think about it. Very few people who just lost a job are in a position to shell out $$$$ for insurance, so the way the law is written you can purchase COBRA insurance AFTER you incur a medical expense. They never tell you that for obvious reasons but if you don't believe me look it up for yourself.






						COBRA Continuation Coverage Questions and Answers | CMS
					

This page contains questions and answers regarding the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986 (COBRA) and public sector/non-federal governmental health plans




					www.cms.gov
				




See number 14....

This might not be an advantage if your wife has ongoing medical issues, but if all she needs are routine checkups it might be better to pay cash for those while you wait out your COBRA period. I can't really give you advice here but it's worth educating yourself, my wife and I paid insurance out of pocket from her former employer after a layoff and it was $1800/mo. Later, when I changed jobs and had a period of time between coverage I did the research on COBRA and decided we could pay for it retroactively if needed. 

Good luck, I'm jealous because I've got a little more than 9 years before I can retire and it's just because of medical insurance....

JOhn


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## JPMacG (Oct 14, 2021)

One other thought .... I worked for your company's main competitor - the other major aerospace company.  My wife is 2 years younger and was able to get insurance through them for a discounted rate after I retired and went on medicare.  You might check with your former employer - they may offer benefits that you do not know about.

Also, welcome to retirement!  I have no regrets.  Occasionally I miss the good times at work, but then I remember all the bad times.


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## Karl_T (Oct 14, 2021)

I was in you exact shoes a couple years ago. IF your adjusted gross income (line 34 IIRC) is over about 70K Obama care is out and you are FUBAR.  At least that was our situation.  My wife has type 1 diabetes and the total costs were well over 20K a year.

I was self employed, so i dropped my business reducing our AGR to below $35K. Now Obama care kicked in and costs were reasonable.

ANYWAY, consult with a good tax man and you may save a ton.


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## WCraig (Oct 15, 2021)

I know I'm not helping the OP...but am I ever glad I live in Canada.  I was self-employed and retired a couple of years ago.  Last year, a colonoscopy detected a tumour.  Confirmed by a CT scan.  Surgery 10 days later.  Chemo for 4 months.  Another CT, MRI and then a PET scan finally showing everything clear.  My biggest cash expense?  Parking at the hospital (C$18 per day).  

The Canadian medical system is not perfect but at least I wasn't facing bankruptcy as well as cancer.

Craig


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## DiscoDan (Oct 15, 2021)

I am a group insurance consultant by day. A company we place clients with (WEX) has their own marketplace that we recommend for an alternative to a company's COBRA coverage and it gives you more options, not just what the employer offers. It is available to anyone, so check it out.









						Marketplace by WEX
					

Welcome to marketplace by WEX! We are excited to offer you affordable options for individual insurance coverage.  Through our marketplace you will have access to a wide array of products, including, but not limited to: Medical Dental Ancillary And much more There are many affordable insurance...




					marketplace.wexhealth.com


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## Richard King 2 (Oct 15, 2021)

When I started to collect my SS I was 66 and Medicare and went to the local SS office and my wife went with to watch on how to do it when she retired. She was 64 and still working.  So she had health insurance through her employer..  As I was interviewed by the SS  guy he said to her do you want to collect your spousal benefit from his account?   We both were surprised.   He explained not many apply for the spouse benefit, so no one knows about it..   I collected around $1700.00 a month and she got a monthly check of around $700.00.   She waited until she was 70 to sign up for her SS and when she did they stopped her spouse benefit.   They did say that if she died before me then I would be able to collect her SS as she had paid in more then me over the years and my lower check would be stopped.  She always made more money then me as she was in IT.  I was self employed and my income was cyclic.   When she turned 66 she started to Medicare and stopped her work insurance and we bought a supplemental policy that costs around $200.00 a month extra per person (that was less then what she was paying through work.  We called our insurance broker who does our home owners and car insurance and they had a agent that reviewed our medicine and found us the best company.  I was talking to a young man yesterday about Boeing as he lives out there.  He scrapes machines in Maintenance where he now works,   He said another friend works at Boeing and that fellow said they would hire him in Maintenance.  He said no way as many of his friends get laid off when they get slow.  

One more thing is the SS guy told me they would pay a lump sum on my first check up front and that would lower my monthly payment.  It was about $100.00 less.   I think I got a check for about $5000.00 and the next month I got 1700.00  I have them direct deposit into my checking account.  I could go on more about I believe I paid in a lot more over the years then I will ever collect before I die.....It's like gambling,,,, you win some, you loose some and I suspect the House (government) wins on more people then looses.


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## JRaut (Oct 15, 2021)

Richard King 2 said:


> I could go on more about I believe I paid in a lot more over the years then I will ever collect before I die.....It's like gambling,,,, you win some, you loose some and I suspect the House (government) wins on more people then looses.


Not to dive into politics. But after a quick google, it's pretty clear that government typically pays out *more* in SS benefits than it collects in SS taxes, regardless of how much you/spouse earned over your lifetime. Often by a lot.

The plot below is from a (dated) 2013 article, and was prepared for folks who 'recently' retired in 2010. I'm sure updated plots could be easily constructed if you were so interested in the numbers rather than generalities.


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## Tipton1965 (Oct 17, 2021)

My sister just retired and was really concerned about health care insurance especially since she was covered all these years working for the state.  Her husband owns an HVAC business and was always covered by my sisters insurance.  I told my sister to divorce her husband and just live together so you each show smaller yearly incomes and then use the healthcare marketplace. When you're older you get punished for being married.


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## RJSakowski (Oct 17, 2021)

I retired 7 years ago at age 70.  So far, I have received 75% more in SSA benefits than my lifetime contributions.  The life expectancy for someone my age is 92 and based on that, I stand to receive another 350% over what I paid in.  My wife is 14 yrs. my junior and has a life expectancy of of 96.  In five yrs, she could start drawing spousal benefits on my account and after my passing,survivor's benefits.so she could be drawing for 29 yrs.  The total payback could well be over 1,000-% of what I contributed.


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## woodchucker (Oct 17, 2021)

so remember , when SS was conceived, the goal was interest would cover your investment, and you would get the investment and the interest back.
that was the goal.

that's not what happened.


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