Social Security and You from Creators Syndicate

I Never Thought You'd Ask! for 05/23/2012

Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

I've been either working for the Social Security Administration or writing a column about Social Security issues for about 40 years now. And I would have bet money that in all that time, I've been asked every question in the book. In fact, I don't recall getting a question in the past 15 years or so that I haven't been asked a dozen, if not hundreds, of times before. And now this week, I've had ...

Updated: Wed May 23, 2012

Medicare Enrollment for 05/16/2012

Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Regular readers of this column know that I don't like to get into Medicare issues. I retired in 2005 following a 32 year career with the Social Security Administration.

And despite what many people think, Medicare is not run by SSA. It is managed by a federal agency called the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. But the problem is that CMMS does not have any field offices. On th ...

Updated: Wed May 16, 2012

Gambling with Social Security for 05/09/2012

Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

I find it rather curious that baby boomers, many of whom, in their youth, decried the accumulation of wealth and the materialism of their parents, are the first generation in history to regard Social Security not as the safety net it was intended to be but rather as a pot of gravy to pour over their already meaty investment portfolios.

I'm not saying this is a bad thing. In fact, it is j ...

Updated: Wed May 09, 2012

Bureaucracy Inaction for 05/02/2012

Wed, 02 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Q: I want to apply for Social Security benefits on my ex-husband's record. I called Social Security to ask how to do this. The lady on the phone told me they can't even talk to me until I have original copies of the marriage certificate and divorce papers. I have the divorce papers but don't have the marriage records. When I called the office of the county where we were married, the people ther ...

Updated: Wed May 02, 2012

Reform, Yes ... Panic, No! for 04/25/2012

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

I was all set to submit a column to my editor with reactions to the fact sheet I recently offered my readers called "When to Take Your Social Security Benefits." But then I woke up this morning to this headline in my morning paper: "Social Security Drain is Gaining Momentum." It was yet another news report predicting the demise of our nation's bedrock retirement insurance pr ...

Updated: Wed Apr 25, 2012

Benefits for Little Ones Cause Big Stink for 04/18/2012

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Sometimes I am just blown away by the reaction I get to a column. I write what I think is the most innocuous and non-controversial answer to someone's question about Social Security benefits — and then, out of the blue, my email inbox is flooded with letters. Some of them have an inquisitive "this can't possibly be true" tone, while others are downright angry.

The most re ...

Updated: Wed Apr 18, 2012

When to Take Your Social Security -- A New Fact Sheet for 04/11/2012

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Well, dear readers: do you want the good news ... or the bad news? Let me get the bad news out of the way first. I've been working on a new fact sheet for my readers (that's actually the good news - but more about that in a minute); and as part of my research, I've discovered that I haven't been completely clear in some past columns when explaining the coordination between taking reduced benefi ...

Updated: Wed Apr 11, 2012

More SSI Clarification for 04/04/2012

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Q: I read your article explaining that SSI is not a Social Security benefit and is not paid for out of Social Security taxes. But I'm still confused. What is the difference between Social Security disability and SSI disability? And how are they different from regular Social Security?

A. I'm always puzzled when people differentiate between Social Security disability benefits and "reg ...

Updated: Wed Apr 04, 2012

Maximum Payout Impacts Benefits to a Retiree's Family for 03/28/2012

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Q: I am 67 years old. I took my Social Security at age 66. I have a 17-year-old son, a 14-year-old daughter and a 57-year-old wife. All three of them are getting benefits as dependents on my account. The Social Security office told me that my kids will keep getting checks until age 19. And my wife will get Social Security until the youngest one turns 19. But by then, she will be 62, so she will ...

Updated: Wed Mar 28, 2012

The 'Notch' Won't Go Away for 03/21/2012

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Q: You recently wrote a column in which you called the "notch" a hoax and a scam. I want you to know that you are wrong. At one time, there were millions of us who were cheated out of Social Security benefits that were rightfully ours. There aren't so many of us left, because the government is willing to let us slowly die off without ever compensating us. But there still are enough of ...

Updated: Wed Mar 21, 2012

Agency Checkup Nothing To Fear for 03/14/2012

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Q: I am a certified public accountant. One of my clients, who signed up for his Social Security about a year ago, just got a letter from Social Security's "Office of Quality Assurance." The people there want to redo his claim for benefits. And they are asking him to bring in his military discharge papers (he was in the Army 40 years ago), his W-2 records for the past 10 years and othe ...

Updated: Wed Mar 14, 2012

This Florida Doctor Is a Quack for 03/07/2012

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Sometimes, I really feel as if I should just give up. In fact, if it were not for the encouraging emails I get from many of my readers telling me to "hang in there" and "keep up the good fight," I probably would have stopped addressing bogus emails that spread lies and misinformation about Social Security a long time ago.

It's so darn frustrating for a number of reaso ...

Updated: Wed Mar 07, 2012

SSI Is Not Social Security for 02/29/2012

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Near the end of last year, around the holidays, I wrote a column that addressed what I called the 12 Myths of Social Security. It was supposed to be a takeoff on the "12 Days of Christmas" — get it?

Anyway, earlier this year, I wrote another column addressing what I said was an even bigger misconception about Social Security benefits (that I hadn't included in the list of ...

Updated: Wed Feb 29, 2012

Business Owner Gets Lucky for 02/22/2012

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Q: My wife and I own a dry cleaning business. I am about to turn 62 and want to start my Social Security. So we plan to put the business in my wife's name. I will draw a small salary — about $14,000, just enough to stay under the Social Security earnings limit. The rest of the business income will go under my wife's name to help build up her Social Security account. A friend told me that ...

Updated: Wed Feb 22, 2012

What's Best for Mom in a Mom-and-Pop Business? for 02/15/2012

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Q: My wife and I are in our 30s. We're partners in a business that nets us about $80,000 per year. What's the best way to report our income on our tax returns to maximize our Social Security benefits?

A: Even though you're asking about your future Social Security benefits, I don't like giving tax advice because I'm definitely not a tax expert. So your question really should be directed t ...

Updated: Wed Feb 15, 2012

Bleeding Hearts and Bootstraps for 02/08/2012

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Q: I was surprised by the woman who wrote to you and said that people living on a small amount of Social Security were just lazy. Let me share my story to help this callous woman understand why people like me don't get very much from Social Security.

Believe me, I am not lazy. I worked for quite a few years before I married my husband. Shortly after we were married, I withdrew a ...

Updated: Wed Feb 08, 2012

Don't Base Critical Decisions on Prophets of Doom for 02/01/2012

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Q: I'm about to turn 66. I want to put off starting my Social Security until age 70 because if I do, I'll get an extra $600 or so per month in a delayed retirement bonus added to by Social Security checks. But my husband said I should take my Social Security now because he doesn't think Social Security will even be there in another four years. So should I take it now or wait until age 70?

< ...

Updated: Wed Feb 01, 2012

Geezers and Floozies for 01/25/2012

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Q: I'm part of a group of old geezers who gets together every week at the local coffee place. Social Security is a frequent topic of conversation. At our last meeting, the subject of benefits for divorcees came up.

One of our geezers was married to his first wife for 16 years and to his second wife for 30 years. His first wife remarried, but she is now divorced from that guy after 20 yea ...

Updated: Wed Jan 25, 2012

Social Security's Most Misunderstood Rule for 01/18/2012

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Regular readers of my column know that over the years, I've dealt with many misunderstandings that people have about their Social Security benefits. In fact, I just wrote a column a couple of weeks ago that dealt with many of these misconceptions. But I can tell from the hundreds of emails I've received as a result of that column that there is one issue people get wrong more than any other.

...

Updated: Wed Jan 18, 2012

Brand New Year, Same Old Garbage for 01/11/2012

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

If anyone thought the new year would bring about a refreshing wave of truth and honesty on the Internet, well, then he is about as gullible as the people who believe the latest bit of trash that's floating around out there in cyberspace.

I'd guess about fifty of my readers sent me the following message and asked me to comment on it. Here is what the message says:

"This is an ...

Updated: Wed Jan 11, 2012