Actually, Bernstein only says that we shouldn’t risk losing the money that we can’t afford to lose. Our overriding goal should be not to run out of money and Bernstein recommends a conservative approach to ensuring that we don’t. If we have additional money after meeting this goal then Bernstein is fine with our risking money that we can afford to lose.
One of your rants by any other name is still a rant. Jonathan practically begged you to refrain from making posts like this multiple times up to shortly before he passed. Given you numerous posts, I'm sure he was concerned that HD might devolve into a site dominated by your holier than thou threads such as this one.
Hi Dana, This is one area where I believe the SSA is quite flexible. You can file before or after your life-chaning event (see the section from Form SSA-44 below). If your retirement drops you to a lower IRMAA category for 2025 I believe you will get a refund although it may take several months. If you have had or anticipate having a life-changing event, you can report to us an income reduction that has already occurred or an income reduction that you anticipate occurring this or next year. Use Step 2 to reportreductions that have already occurred, and Step 3 to report reductions you are anticipating occurring. https://www.ssa.gov/forms/ssa-44.pdf
Just to clarify, the living wage of $41.97 in Esssex County, NJ for a couple with a child is for only 1 of the adults working. If both adults are working the living wage is $25.69 for each adult which translates to a household income of $106,870. Childcare expense is the main reason why this is higher than the living wage with only one adult working. The linked page with the living wages also lists typical annual salaries. For lower level jobs the salaries are $40k-$42k which is about 75%-80% of the living wage. Of course, those are averages while the living wage is presumably a minimum.
Exactly. My dermatologist has a five month wait for a routine full body exam. However, when I called to report a suspicious lesion she saw me the next day. Scheduling with my gastroenterologist is similar. I have colonoscopies every three years because I have had benign polyps on three occasions. After moving to our present location, I had to wait 7 months to be seen as a new patient, but had my choice of several available times in the next two weeks after my initial evaluation.
AI can be a great help with research, but it needs to be used appropriately. Given that you mistook a private healthcare's website for the NHS's website you might want to evaluate your sources more thoroughly.
The bigger issue is that you would be well advised to improve your research methods instead of blindly relying on the results of AI queries. Your "research" reminds me of when I was still working as a professor and I had to tell my students that they couldn't cite Wikipedia. I told them that Wikipedia often had a mix of credible factual sources and biased opinions. Thus it was a good starting place, but they needed to use it only to sort the wheat from the chaff.
A major problem with some AI search engines is that they don't distinguish between credible and unreliable sources of information. Given this problem I would never simply rely on AI by itself. Instead, I would look at the sources it cites to see if the information is credible.
Your cite is a private UK healthcare company website that provides services for a fee, including a MRI in one week for 334 pounds. This company clearly has an incentive to paint NHS waiting times in a negative light. Your so-called averages are actually ranges that provide almost no information about what the median wait times are.
Comments
Actually, Bernstein only says that we shouldn’t risk losing the money that we can’t afford to lose. Our overriding goal should be not to run out of money and Bernstein recommends a conservative approach to ensuring that we don’t. If we have additional money after meeting this goal then Bernstein is fine with our risking money that we can afford to lose.
Post: The Conversation: Contrarian Meets Momentum
Link to comment from November 8, 2025
One of your rants by any other name is still a rant. Jonathan practically begged you to refrain from making posts like this multiple times up to shortly before he passed. Given you numerous posts, I'm sure he was concerned that HD might devolve into a site dominated by your holier than thou threads such as this one.
Post: Shopping carts. Please don’t consider this a rant. It is a lamentation.
Link to comment from November 5, 2025
Hi Dana, This is one area where I believe the SSA is quite flexible. You can file before or after your life-chaning event (see the section from Form SSA-44 below). If your retirement drops you to a lower IRMAA category for 2025 I believe you will get a refund although it may take several months. If you have had or anticipate having a life-changing event, you can report to us an income reduction that has already occurred or an income reduction that you anticipate occurring this or next year. Use Step 2 to report reductions that have already occurred, and Step 3 to report reductions you are anticipating occurring. https://www.ssa.gov/forms/ssa-44.pdf
Post: Another IRMAA Question
Link to comment from November 5, 2025
Just to clarify, the living wage of $41.97 in Esssex County, NJ for a couple with a child is for only 1 of the adults working. If both adults are working the living wage is $25.69 for each adult which translates to a household income of $106,870. Childcare expense is the main reason why this is higher than the living wage with only one adult working. The linked page with the living wages also lists typical annual salaries. For lower level jobs the salaries are $40k-$42k which is about 75%-80% of the living wage. Of course, those are averages while the living wage is presumably a minimum.
Post: Let’s think about the minimum wage and what it means for financial security
Link to comment from November 4, 2025
Do you know if the concept of a living wage assumes that someone earning this amount does not recieve any gov't assistance?
Post: Let’s think about the minimum wage and what it means for financial security
Link to comment from November 4, 2025
Exactly. My dermatologist has a five month wait for a routine full body exam. However, when I called to report a suspicious lesion she saw me the next day. Scheduling with my gastroenterologist is similar. I have colonoscopies every three years because I have had benign polyps on three occasions. After moving to our present location, I had to wait 7 months to be seen as a new patient, but had my choice of several available times in the next two weeks after my initial evaluation.
Post: About those US medical costs….
Link to comment from November 3, 2025
AI can be a great help with research, but it needs to be used appropriately. Given that you mistook a private healthcare's website for the NHS's website you might want to evaluate your sources more thoroughly.
Post: About those US medical costs….
Link to comment from November 3, 2025
The bigger issue is that you would be well advised to improve your research methods instead of blindly relying on the results of AI queries. Your "research" reminds me of when I was still working as a professor and I had to tell my students that they couldn't cite Wikipedia. I told them that Wikipedia often had a mix of credible factual sources and biased opinions. Thus it was a good starting place, but they needed to use it only to sort the wheat from the chaff.
Post: About those US medical costs….
Link to comment from November 3, 2025
A major problem with some AI search engines is that they don't distinguish between credible and unreliable sources of information. Given this problem I would never simply rely on AI by itself. Instead, I would look at the sources it cites to see if the information is credible.
Post: About those US medical costs….
Link to comment from November 3, 2025
Your cite is a private UK healthcare company website that provides services for a fee, including a MRI in one week for 334 pounds. This company clearly has an incentive to paint NHS waiting times in a negative light. Your so-called averages are actually ranges that provide almost no information about what the median wait times are.
Post: About those US medical costs….
Link to comment from November 3, 2025