Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
Nearly three million Medicare Advantage enrollees could have their current plan discontinued or materially changed for the 2026 contract year, based on estimates that pair CMS plan crosswalk files with CMS enrollment data. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized payment updates for the coming contract year, and insurers are also updating…
The Social Security Administration released its 2025 Annual Trustees Report on June 18, projecting that the retirement and survivors trust fund will be exhausted by 2033 and the combined Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance reserves will run out by 2034. Under the report’s most pessimistic economic assumptions, that combined depletion date accelerates to…
The Social Security Administration announced plans to restore a 100% default withholding rate on overpayments, a policy shift that could erase an entire monthly benefit check for some retirees. For a beneficiary receiving $2,000 a month, even the agency’s more moderate 50% recovery rate would cut that payment to $1,000, while a lesser withholding percentage…
On March 7, 2025, the Social Security Administration quietly announced a policy change that could halt monthly benefit checks entirely for recipients flagged with overpayments. The agency said it would raise the default withholding rate on overpaid Title II benefits to 100%, meaning affected retirees and disabled beneficiaries would receive nothing until their debts were…
The Social Security Administration has completed a massive wave of retroactive payments to more than 3.1 million people, distributing $17 billion in back pay tied to the repeal of two provisions that had reduced benefits for public sector workers for decades. The payments, which cover the period from January 2024 through June 2025, arrived ahead…
A growing body of research suggests that the retirement wave among older corporate leaders will shift remote work policies in ways that rival the early pandemic surge. As baby boomer executives step down from corner offices over the next decade, their younger replacements are far more likely to let employees work from home. The connection…
For workers approaching retirement with a traditional pension, few decisions carry as much long-term financial weight as the choice between a lump-sum payout and a monthly annuity. One option delivers a large check upfront, while the other guarantees income for life. The stakes are high because, once a retiree accepts the first payment under either…
Washington state lawmakers have redirected billions of dollars from public pension surpluses toward climate and general fund priorities while simultaneously enacting what critics call the largest package of tax and fee increases in state history. The combination of pension fund sweeps and new levies on capital gains, services, property, and potentially high earners amounts to…
For millions of retired Americans, the monthly Social Security deposit is the single largest source of income, and healthcare costs are claiming an ever-growing share of it. In 2026, the combination of rising Medicare premiums, deductibles, and supplemental out-of-pocket expenses will consume roughly one-third of the average retiree’s benefit check, a squeeze that leaves less…
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has put a number on the retirement crisis that few Americans want to hear: roughly $2 million. That figure, which Fink described as the amount workers will likely need to retire comfortably, sits far above what most U.S. households have actually saved. Federal Reserve data confirms the scale of the gap,…