Q. I will have Medicare next year in May. I am a working CSR retiree and am currently covered by my employer’s plan (with more than 65 employees), and I still maintain my FEHB through NALC. The employer’s plan has a high deductible ($2,000) this year. Can I drop my employer’s group health plan, take Medicare Part A and B, and use my FEHB as the supplement? Otherwise, I would have 3 insurances if I have to stay on my employer’s insurance. I just don’t understand how to balance all this and it seems as though I will be overinsured…
Author Mike Miles
Mike Miles
Mike Miles is a Certified Financial Planner licensee and principal adviser for Variplan LLC, an independent fiduciary in Vienna, Virginia. Email your financial questions to fedexperts@federaltimes.com and view his blog at money.federaltimes.com.
Q. I just read in Federal Times online that the TSP G Fund might be cut out completely. I am 100 percent invested in it. I have about 6-7 years until I retire. I have $68,000 in it currently. I cannot afford for that to be taken away from me. What happens to my money if Congress gets rid of it? Do I lose all my money?
Q. I have read that the VCP based on my age of 64 could pay as much as 8.8 percent in an annuity. Is that true? Can one elect a survivor benefit? And if so, at what cost/reduction? Who is the company behind the product?
Q. How do I find a financial or retirement planner who is truly familiar with the nuances and quirks of TSP and federal retirement benefits? I hear of people being given bad advice because their advisers didn’t know the rules/options that are unique for federal employees. Can you recommend a few questions that can be used to test someone’s knowledge of federal retirement planning?
Q. An apparent clerical error caused an unauthorized distribution of TSP funds paid directly into my bank account (direct deposit via DFAS payroll). The only option I’ve been given is catch-up contributions to return the funds. I was told I would need to make up the income tax withholding to get all the funds back in. Are there any other options I could pursue?
Q. I am a FERS retiree, and I also draw Social Security disability. My wife is 69 years old and draws Social Security. Does she need to get Medicare Part B? She is under my health insurance under the FEHB; she has been covered since 1989. I am only 57.
Q. When I retired 5 years ago, I transferred all of my savings to the L Fund that was close to my life expectancy. I’ll be required to start withdrawing the RMD in 2018. With all of the uncertainty going on with the stock market, should I move the money I have left to the safe G Fund or stick with the L Fund for the long run?
Q. I am a federal employee and have been eligible to retire for a while, but I wasn’t ready until now. Within nine months I will have retired. I am one that converted way back when from CSRS to FERS. I am 67 and a half years old (already drawing my SSA, which I started at 65 when I reached 100 percent) and will be 68 and a half years old when I retire. Within 2 years after retiring, I will be required to start taking my minimum withdrawals. Several things: I am concerned with the recent money market fluctuations and…
Q. TSP adding the Roth allows for the benefits of having a Roth during the accumulation phase, but the TSP Roth totally limits the benefits of having a Roth during the distribution phase. The Roth TSP is separate investment tool from the traditional TSP but during the distribution phase, TSP does not allow you take advantage of having it. I would think most people would be better off with the ability to select the time most beneficial for them to take distributions from the non-tax Roth as well as the most beneficial time for them to take distributions from the taxable…
Q: I retired under the FERS program. I took the 10 percent reduction in my pension so that my wife would have survivor’s benefits. I heard that if my wife dies according to the list below, my 90 percent reduction would change accordingly. Is this true?