Q: I just read your comment explaining why some individuals had their Medicare Part B Premium go up. This article begs an additional question. I would like to delay drawing my Social Security until age 70. However, I would like to sign up for Medicare Part B when I turn 65 in order to avoid the penalty for delayed sign-up. I understand the way to do this is to have the Medicare Part B premium benefit taken out of my FERS (with CSRS component) pension, which I will begin to draw at age 58. However, if I do this, I…
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For employees, 2010 is a mixed year for benefits. For retirees, it’s pretty much a bust. General Schedule employees received a 2 percent pay increase, with 1.5 percent going to all employees and the remainder being distributed through locality pay. If you want to compare how you made out against employees in other areas, go to the Salaries and Wages page on the Office of Personnel Management Web site. The maximum taxable earnings for Social Security withholding stay at the 2009 level — $106,800. So, if you are a Federal Employees Retirement System or Civil Service Retirement System Offset employee,…
Q. Why is Medicare Part B premiums increasing for retirees who currently have Part B? I thought only “new” enrollees would be paying the higher rate in 2010. A. Most Medicare beneficiaries will not see a Part B monthly premium increase as a result of a “hold harmless” provision in the current law. This allows for 73 percent of beneficiaries to be protected from an increase raising the 2010 Part B monthly premiums. Approximately 27 percent of beneficiaries are not subject to the hold-harmless provision because they are new enrollees during the year (3 percent), they are subject to the…