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Open Season Precautions – Fraud Alert

Posted on Thursday, 24th October 2019 by Dennis Damp

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Many of us don’t necessarily think twice about security surrounding our health care; instead, we want care to be easy and affordable. Recently, new fraud and scam warnings have surfaced surrounding the Medicare program, particularly during open season, which began on October 15. Those ‘scammers’ are seeking critical insurance data and financial information along with […]

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Health Care Premiums Rising – What Else is New!

Posted on Friday, 4th October 2019 by Dennis Damp

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Our government reports that inflation is low yet every time we turn around prices are increasing.  I often ponder why our COLAs are so low most years when we know from firsthand experience that the costs of almost everything is going through the roof. We purchased a new car in 2016, a luxury model at […]

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2020 COLA and the 2019 Health Care Open Season

Posted on Sunday, 15th September 2019 by Dennis Damp

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We can look forward to a COLA increase for 2020 of between 1.6% to 1.8%, a significant decrease from last year’s 2.8%. The Social Security Administration estimated a 1.8% increase and the July issue of Kiplinger magazine suggested it may be lower at 1.6% based on their projections. The Social Security Act specifies a formula […]

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Returning to Work – Rehired Annuitants

Posted on Sunday, 1st September 2019 by Dennis Damp

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I often receive questions from retirees desiring to return to work and from agency HR departments interested in hiring former federal employees.  Agency recruiters are trying whatever they can to fill critical positions.  With an unemployment rate of 3.7% the country is at full employment. One of the ways to fill critical positions is to […]

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Should I Defer Social Security Until Age 70?

Posted on Saturday, 10th August 2019 by Dennis Damp

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Many think why wait, I don’t know if I’ll live to 70! Others simply need their benefit at 62 just to make ends meet. For those who are healthy and have several decades of retirement to look forward to, and have sufficient income to see them through those early retirement years, it makes sense to […]

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Protecting your Assets with Fixed Income Investments

Posted on Sunday, 28th July 2019 by Dennis Damp

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Those approaching retirement and retirees often move to more conservative investments to avoid losing what they worked a lifetime to accumulate.  Many federal retirees live on fixed income from their annuity, Social Security, and Thrift Savings Accounts.  We only have a finite time on this earth and the older we get the less time we […]

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Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)

Posted on Sunday, 21st July 2019 by Shawn McCoy

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I would like to welcome Shawn McCoy, President and Founder of Federal Employee Benefits Advocates, LLC (FEBA) an educational and training company, to our guest forum.  Mr. McCoy is an expert on Federal employee benefits and has spoken to over 19,000 Federal employees over the last 10 years.  This is his first of many artilces […]

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A Marriage of Convenience – Medicare & FEHB

Posted on Thursday, 11th July 2019 by Dennis Damp

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Updated 11/11/2024 Many approaching 65 ask, “Why shouldn’t I simply sign up for Medicare A and B and cancel my FEHB plan?” They believe at first glance that Medicare A and B duplicate what our Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) plans provide. I reply to this question many times throughout the year and refer those […]

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