By Peter Sullivan, The Hill – Feb 19, 2016

The Obama administration announced on Friday a proposed payment increase to insurers of 1.35 percent on average in 2017 under the Medicare Advantage program.

The modest increase is a contrast to several recent years when the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a cut to average payments.

The announcement of the Medicare Advantage payments is a subject of intense lobbying from insurers and is also watched closely by lawmakers in both parties who oppose cuts to a program in which many of their constituents are enrolled.

By Maira Diaz, Palm Beach Post – Feb 18, 2016

It’s that time of year again: time to start preparing to file your taxes. If you receive Social Security benefits, one of the documents you will need when filing your federal income tax return is your Social Security Benefit Statement (Form SSA-1099).

Your Social Security benefits may be taxable. This includes monthly retirement, survivor, and disability benefits. About one-third of people receiving Social Security benefits must pay taxes on some of these benefits, depending on the amount of their taxable income. This usually happens only if you have other substantial income — such as wages, self-employment, interest, dividends, and other taxable income that must be reported on your tax return — in addition to your Social Security benefits. You will never have to pay taxes on more than 85 percent of your Social Security benefits, based on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rules.

Jane Banfield, TelCo member, February 17th, 2016

The NRLN has been our guardian angel for many years.  The Team has kept us all up to date on legislation or potential legislation and regulations that may harm our future retirement.  In the earlier years our interests were concentrated on Pensions.  In 2006, the Pension Protection Act was passed which offered us additional protection along with ERISA.   Even now, The NRLN is working with the PBGC to ensure that funding is maintained and regulatory loopholes are closed.

As we aged and changed so did our interests.  We now are looking for improved services and pricing for Medicare and Prescription Drugs.  There are currently 15 Bills in the Senate and 11 Bills in the House that would provide assistance.  Unfortunately, Congress is not going to do it on their own so they need us to promote our interests and we need the assistance of NRLN to keep it organized ad attend meetings with us and on our behalf.  The list is attached and if the BOD agrees, I think we should post it on the website and tell our members to ask their Congressional Members to consider supporting any one of them.  The one that are supported will stand and the others will disappear or be folded in if there is enough interest.

During our last meeting in Feb, our guest speaker from the House Ways and Means told us how difficult it is –in an election year—to get anything accomplished—This was only confirmed by my meeting with Sen. Kaine from Va.  He sponsors a bill S31 for Medicare Negotiation and sees it as an uphill battle and a lot of work that needs to be done by both parties to get some movement.  I keep in touch with his Legislative Aide and ask how we can help.

Fox News – Feb 17. 2016

Should retirement planning include strategies for being active in social groups? Perhaps yes, researchers say.

Losing membership in social groups during the retirement transition may be tied to lower quality of life and higher risk of death over the next six years, according to a new study of older adults in England.

“As people reach the end of their working lives, they are typically exposed to a lot of advice about how to plan their finances, medical care, and physical exercise in order to have a long and healthy retirement,” said lead author Niklas K. Steffens of The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia.

By Michael Kitces; MarketWatch ~ Feb 16, 2016

Earlier this month, President Obama released the details of his fiscal 2017 budget proposals. And included amongst the details in the “Treasury Greenbook” is a new rule that would eliminate the ability to do so-called “backdoor Roth” contributions in 2017 and beyond.

For those who aren’t familiar, the “backdoor Roth” is a tactic for those who wish to make a contribution to a Roth IRA, but cannot due to the income limits for Roth contributions. Instead, the individual makes a contribution to a traditional IRA — which anyone can do as long as they have earned income from wages or self-employment — and then convert the IRA to a Roth.

By Ken Moraif; MarketWatch ~ Feb 16, 2016

People today retire far differently than they did in the past. Let’s look back 30 years and see just what has changed:

In 1985, retirees relied on Social Security for 65% of their income. People could almost live on their Social Security benefits alone. Not so today, when Social Security accounts for just 27% of retirement income.

By  Robert Hackett; Fortune ~ Feb 16, 2016

A tip to secure your tax return.

The simple answer: File as early as possible.

One of the most common ways that identity thieves attempt to steal people’s tax refunds is by using pilfered social security numbers to file fraudulent returns. Criminals obtain this personal information by hacking other websites for data, or purchasing the numbers on black markets online.

To stop thieves from succeeding, simply file first. Don’t give the fraudsters an opportunity to beat you to the punch; the earlier you file, the less of a chance you have of becoming the next victim.

By Lisa Rapaport; Reuters ~ Feb 15, 2016

(Reuters Health) – Many family caregivers in the U.S. provide unpaid medical aid and other services to loved ones at the expense of their own financial, physical and mental health, a study suggests.

Nationwide, an estimated 14.7 million family caregivers assist 7.7 million older adults who live in the community rather than in institutions like nursing homes. These family members often help with daily activities like eating, bathing and dressing. Many also provide medical support such as scheduling physician checkups, managing medications, cleaning wounds and giving injections.

By Lisa Kiplinger; USA TODAY ~ Feb 13, 2016

The market bounced back heartily Friday, but after five straight days of losses and the worst start to a year ever, no one could blame investors — especially retirees — for being queasy. While people years away from retirement may be seeing buying opportunities, those already out of the workforce, or nearly there, have a lot more on the line.

They need to take a breath, and possibly call their financial adviser for a little pep talk, says Dave Littell, retirement income program co-director at The American College of Financial Services, Bryn Mawr, Pa. Here’s more advice from Littell on handling market turmoil.

By Debra McCurdy & Reed Smith; JD Supra ~  Feb 12, 2016

The Obama Administration’s proposed fiscal year (FY) 2017 budget, released on February 9, 2016, includes a number of legislative proposals that would revise Medicare and Medicaid policies to achieve budget savings and make other program reforms.  The largest pool of Medicare savings would result from various Medicare prescription drug proposals, including the following (all savings over the 10-year period of FYs 2017-2026):