[ssmith]

Sure Hope so Chloe!

[Sail41]

My wife is 62 and has a bcbs plan a little over $300 a month, not a bad policy with a 2500 deductable. However, it pays for a yearly physical and has reasonable copays. I think for what we pay it's a reasonable choice. I go on medicare this year if it's still there, but have the VA to help. Really blessed!

[natickdan]

Originally Posted by ssmith

Ok, here I am whining. You see I feel those my age in the 50's are getting stuck. It looks most likely like we will never see Medicare (not political just practical-they are going broke quickly) and we can't move to TV because we are too old and no one will hire us...since we need full time work with insurance. We too have paid our bills and our social security all these years and I hear that Mr President wants to raise retirement to 67. I am afraid by the time we reach that age they will have raised it again...they simply can't afford Medicare. (I remember being young when my mom read where the government started using the Medicare and social security money and she said mark my words ...they are taking your money...she was right)

Yes, we have a good Financial Planner and we have options but it is mostly the insurance issue that could break the bank. Has anyone gotten "co-op" insurance (like the Amish have) and or just carried Catastrophic insurance. Does anyone understand them well enough to know the plusses and minuses of these products? Cobra is too expensive. I haven't approached our Financial guy about these options yet.

Wow, what a Debbie Downer I am being this a.m. Sorry for that! We run into people all of the time who have been able to retire early but this is not an option for us-since my hubs employer is a small business and cannot afford early retirement options. We discovered The Villages about 5 years ago which was way way too early. Please don't misunderstand thisis not about politics....we all are in the same boat donkeys and elephants.

"Debbie Downer", no! Like many of us, being "stuck" at our age is more of the norm than we ever expected. For most of us in our mid 50's, the trade-offs of moving to TV can be complex and, I believe, health insurance is a very important factor. I am not familiar with "co-op" insurance, so I can't comment.

For my wife and I, health insurance was a huge factor in both retiring and buying a second home in FL because in MA, pre-existing conditions can not be disqualify you from treatment. Sadly, this is the exception to the rule. For this reason alone, we will keep our residency in MA because my wife's health insurance covers us until we are medicare eligible at age 65. Yes, we are fortunate!

We have a number of friends who are retired or will soon be retired eligible who continue to work because they require health insurance benefits. It's not a political statement, but I believe it's a sad statement for those who have worked a lifetime to obtain some stability in retirement.

Best of luck!

[ssmith]

To Sail 41 ....that policy sounds more reasonable...was the BCBS from Florida or home state?

Thanks for "getting me" NatickDan, you see, if we could, we would be in TV. Hubs has not been able to find work there...sooo we wait and hope and trust. Also it is a bit early....we need to pay our dues before we can retire. My brother's advice was to retire as soon as you can...He has known many who worked to 65 and were dead by 66.

BTW, I have a sister who lives in Ashland MA! They love it there; but her taxes are out of this world. She feels they will have to move when they retire due to the cost of the taxes. At least that is not our issue here

[LI SNOWBIRD]

Originally Posted by chloe52

Have faith in the USA, Im sure we will fix these issues. We always do.

First-- I see this is your first post-- so welcome to TOTV. There are a lot of sages to newbies with great advise here. Anyhow I think you're idea is spot on.

[chloe52]

Thank you, Im amazed how much this town has grown in 12 years. I used to go to little restaurant called "the Mason Jar" next to the hardware store on 441. I guess most of the mom and pop places are gone. To bad it was a wonderful place to go when I would visit the flea market.

[ssmith]

Thanks to all with ideas about getting to TV. I need to copy and paste and save into word to give to hubs so he can check out some of these ideas.