Work & Retirement

If you're updating your estate plans — or just starting to create a plan — you may be confused by some of the terms. For example, what's the difference between a will and a trust? If you have a large or complicated estate, do you need to create a trust? Or does a will do the job? Read about these common terms and how they can affect your estate planning. ...

Sooner is definitely better when it comes to identifying and reporting problems with your earnings record. As time passes, you may no longer have easy access to past tax documents, and some employers may no longer exist or be able to provide past payroll information. ...

Unless you already have Medicare, you may not know exactly what it is or what it covers. We get it; why understand something that doesn't affect you? But now may be a good time to learn about this health insurance program to find out how to best utilize your benefits when you need them. ...

 

 

Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for nearly 69 million Americans will increase 1.6 percent in 2020, the Social Security Administration announced recently.

The 1.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits payable to more than 63 million Social Security beneficiaries in January 2020.  Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 31, 2019.  (Note: some people receive both Social Security and SSI benefits).  The Social Security Act ties the annual COLA to the increase in the Consumer Price Index as determined by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Some other adjustments that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages.  Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $137,700 from $132,900.

Social Security and SSI beneficiaries are normally notified by mail in early December about their new benefit amount.  Most people who receive Social Security payments will be able to view their COLA notice online through their my Social Security account.  People may create or access their my Social Security account online at socialsecurity.gov/myaccount.

Information about Medicare changes for 2020, when announced, will be available at medicare.gov.  For Social Security beneficiaries receiving Medicare, Social Security will not be able to compute their new benefit amount until after the Medicare premium amounts for 2020 are announced.  Final 2020 benefit amounts will be communicated to beneficiaries in December through the mailed COLA notice and my Social Security’s Message Center.

The Social Security Act provides for how the COLA is calculated.  To read more, please visit socialsecurity.gov/cola.

 

 

 

 

This press release was produced and disseminated at U.S. taxpayer expense.

 

 

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Social Security - what to get, when to get it, can be confusing for many of us. Brandon P. Smith, public affairs specialist for the Social Security Administration Cleveland office. He'll be writing columns and answering your questions about Social Security. ...

Here's what one of Northeast Ohio's keeping of special things says about his job: “Being able to preserve these historic structures that tell the story of the development of this region and honor the craftsmanship of those who built up this area through the historic structures is just super interesting to me. The history of architecture in the region, seeing how it’s changed over time and to be able to see how folks built and utilized these buildings is just fascinating. I think it’s really important that we are able to reflect on our past to see what the path forward should be.” ...

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