Workshop

Medicare Decisions and Health Expenses for Retirees

Hosted by Wade Pfau, PhD, CFA, RICP - Founder of Retirement Researcher.

Planning for retirement health expenses is an essential component in a comprehensive retirement income plan. This workshop explores retirement health insurance options and retirement health expenses. The bulk of this discussion will be about Medicare, which is available to most Americans upon reaching age 65. It is by far the most important source of health insurance for retirees, and a number decisions must be made regarding whether to use Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage Plan, whether to use a Medicare Supplement with Original Medicare, and how to obtain prescription drug coverage. We also cover health insurance options for those retiring before reaching Medicare eligibility age, and the rules about using other private insurance after reaching Medicare eligibility. We also discuss ongoing Medicare decisions that can be made annually, how to determine the best plan options for your case, and how to develop a budget for retirement health expenses. We will finish with an action plan for the steps to take to make sure that your health needs will be covered during retirement.

Click Here to Download Slides Health Care Reserves Estimator

Track Your Progress

Use the links on the left to navigate through the various parts of the Workshop. You can track your progress by marking checkboxes on each video page as complete. 

1	Watch Introduction Video
2	Watch Health Insurance Options Prior to Medicare Eligibility Video
3	Watch ABCDs of Medicare Parts A and B Video
4	Watch ABCDs of Medicare Parts C Video
5	Watch ABCDs of Medicare Parts D Video
6	Watch ABCDs of Medicare - Medicare Supplements (Medigap) Video
7	Watch Using the Medicare Plan Finder Video
8	Watch Upon Reaching Medicare Eligibility Age Video
9	Watch Special Enrollment Periods and Late Enrollment Video
10	Watch Annual Open Enrollment Period Options Review Video
11	Watch Budgeting for Retirement Health Care Expenses Video
12	Watch Action Plan for Health Care Video

 

Workshop

Developing a Social Security Claiming Strategy - Updated for 2022

Hosted by Wade Pfau.

For the vast majority of Americans, Social Security benefits serve as the core of a retirement income strategy. As a government-backed, inflation-adjusted monthly income for life, Social Security benefits help to manage longevity risk, inflation risk, and market risk. In addition to retirement worker benefits, Social Security also provides spousal, survivor, and dependent benefits on the worker's earnings record.

It is vital to understand that the Social Security claiming decision should be made independently from when one decides to leave the labor force. Claiming decisions should not be taken lightly. It is possible to gain much from Social Security simply by understanding how the system works.

This workshop will walk you through the steps required to have a firm understanding about Social Security and how to approach claiming benefits for your household. We will discuss how Social Security benefits are calculated and how to factor in issues such a spousal and survivor benefit for couples, dependent benefits, and benefits for divorcees. We will also look at the earnings test, the windfall elimination provision and government pension offset for those spending a portion of their careers outside of the Social Security system, and cases where benefits may be suspended.

We also consider the philosophies about claiming Social Security, including its insurance value to protect for a long-life, breakeven analyses on when delaying benefits will pay off, and the applicability of arguments made in favor of claiming Social Security early. The latter involves a discussion of Social Security's history, and potential reform options related to what may happen as the Social Security trust fund approaches depletion. We will finish by looking at case studies about Social Security claiming using a free open-source online Social Security calculator. The intention for this workshop is to give you the knowledge and confidence to approach the Social Security claiming decision in the manner that can create the most long-term value for your retirement income plan.

Click Here to Download Slides (available soon) Click Here to Download Social Security Benefit Calculator Click Here to Download Slides Explanation of Benefit Calculator

Track Your Progress

Use the links on the left to navigate through the various parts of the Workshop. You can track your progress by marking checkboxes on each video page as complete. 

1	Watch The 6 Step Process for Claiming Social Security
2	Watch Introducing the Social Security Claiming Strategy
3	Watch How to Calculate Social Security Retirement Benefits
4	Watch Practicalities for Different Types of Benefits
5	Watch Framing for Social Security: Insurance or Investment?
6	Watch When Claiming Benefits Early May Make Sense
7	Watch Social Security History and Future
8	Watch Potential Directions for Social Security Reform
9	Watch Fitting Social Security into the Financial Plan
10	Watch Case Studies
11	Watch Q&A Session Video