Retirement Healthcare Cost and Income Planning

Income in retirement can have costs that you may not have fully explored. Incorporate into your financial plan annual cost estimate for routine health care.

A few points to consider:

·        Medicare coverage is on an individual basis so the costs are per person.

·        There is no cost for Medicare Part A if you (or your spouse) have paid the Medicare wage tax for 10 years over the course of your working career.

·        Medicare Part B has a means tested premium. 2017 enrollees in the first Medicare income bracket pay $1,608 per year. [1]

·        Medicare Part D premiums are also means tested. Higher income earners will need to adjust their Part B & D premiums accordingly.

·        Medigap policy costs will vary based on the extent of coverage. The figure used is a national average for the most popular policy (Plan F).

·        The three largest out of pocket costs for routine health care are created by dental, vision, and prescription drug co-payments. Individuals can assess whether their personal costs are lower or higher than the national averages.

This is an estimate of $6,772 per person for a 2017 retiree to build into your financial plan. Most research forecasts annual health care inflation between 5-6%.

This estimate is for routine health care costs. Medicare does not pay for custodial care or Long Term Care. Each financial plan needs to consider custodial care or Long Term care insurance solutions to protect against this need.

Thomas Marino, Financial Advisor

Atrium Financial LLC

[email protected]

www.atriumfinancialLLC.com

Securities offered through Questar Capital Corporation (QCC), Member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory Services offered through Questar Asset Management (QAM), a registered Investment Advisor. Atrium Financial Associates, LLC is independent of QCC and QAM. Internal Doc Number: 791-2017

[1] Detail can be found at www.medicare.gov