Social Security 2-26-26

[00:00:01][Elida Elizondo] My name is Elida and I will be talking today about Social Security benefits.

[00:00:08]Well, thank you very much everybody for joining.

[00:00:10]And, let's get started.

[00:00:12]So as you can see from our first slide, Social Security is going digital.

[00:00:20]So if you have not set up a my Social Security account, we highly, highly encourage you to do it.

[00:00:28]All you need to do is be 18 years of age, have a Social Security number and have an email address.

[00:00:35]And the reason we want to do this because Social Security does provide statements online.

[00:00:40]And we're going to get to that in a little bit.

[00:00:43]But first of all we're going to  talk about retirement benefits.

[00:00:47]So when people think about retirement, they think Social Security.

[00:00:53]And when people think about Social Security, they think about retirement and most of the benefits that Social Security pays out every year, are to retirees.

[00:01:04]So as of December 2024, we paid $102.3 billion per month to 51.8 million retirees.

[00:01:17]Plus, we also paid $2.4 billion a month to those dependents.

[00:01:24]So Social Security pays a lot of benefits to a lot of people.

[00:01:29]So you may be wondering, how do I qualify for these benefits?

[00:01:34]Well, the way you qualify is by paying FICA taxes.

[00:01:40]If you look at your pay stub, you will see the tax, the FICA tax, listed as OASDI or Social Security.

[00:01:50]So the federal tax that's deducted from your paycheck.

[00:01:54]The total FICA tax 15.3% of your gross wages.

[00:02:00]You pay half of that, and your employer pays the other half.

[00:02:04]If you're self-employed, you pay the entire 15.3% of that.

[00:02:10]So there is a limit.

[00:02:11]So in 2026, if you earn more than $184,500, you stop paying the 6.2%, which is the Social Security portion, but you will continue to pay the 1.45%, which is the Medicare portion.

[00:02:31]So you always pay for the Medicare.

[00:02:33]So these FICA taxes is what will fund Social Security retirement, disability, the survival benefit and the Medicare.

[00:02:42]That's why when we say there is no cost to Medicare Part A, it's because you've been paying for it all along.

[00:02:50]So you become eligible for retirement benefits by earning these credits when you pay those taxes.

[00:02:57]Also, to qualify for Social Security requirement, you will need 40 credits.

[00:03:03]So most people will get 40 credits in about ten years of working.

[00:03:08]So in 2026, 1 credit equals $1,890 in earnings, and you can only earn a maximum of 4.

[00:03:17]So this year, if you make at least $7,560, you will have the 4 maximum credits that you need for this year.

[00:03:26]So ten years of working, 4 credits a year, most people will get those 40 credits in ten years.

[00:03:34]Also, to start Social Security, the minimum age is age 62.

[00:03:42]So, once we have those 40 credits, your age 62, and you're filing for benefits, you're probably wondering, "Well, how do you determine what my benefit is going to be?"

[00:03:54]And that's a three step process.

[00:03:56]So the very first thing is a lot of people, they're not sure how we figure this, but, what we do, the very first thing we do is we adjust your wages for inflation.

[00:04:09]So we take those lifelong earnings from the very first stop to the very last stop, and we adjust them for inflation to bring them up to today's dollar amount.

[00:04:20]Step two is we find the average of your highest 35 years.

[00:04:25]Some people think we use the last ten years or the last five years, but we actually use 35 years.

[00:04:32]Once we have those high 35 years we average them and this is called the AIM.

[00:04:38]The average indexed monthly earnings.

[00:04:41]We take that number, we apply a formula, and that brings us to your basic monthly amount that you would receive.

[00:04:51]Now not everybody is going to get that full amount because depending on how old you are, when you draw that benefit, you may get less than 100% of that.

[00:05:02]So depending on when you were born, that will determine your full retirement age.

[00:05:08]So you want to know when your full retirement age is, because the age that you will get that retirement benefit without a reduction.

[00:05:17]So most people we talk to nowadays their full retirement age is 67 because they were born after January 2, 1960.

[00:05:26]But if you were born before that, you can see the chart and your full retirement age is anywhere from 65 years and two months all the way to 67.

[00:05:37]So when we do the computation and we figure out what your monthly benefit amount, we will tell you this is the amount that you can get at your full retirement age.

[00:05:48]So let's look at this slide here.

[00:05:50]This is an example of somebody who we will assume that their monthly benefit let's just say is going to be $2,000 a month at full retirement age of 67.

[00:06:02]But as you can see from this chart, this individual can start drawing their benefit as early as age 62.

[00:06:09]But they're not going to get that full retirement age amount.

[00:06:13]So the younger you take it, the smaller the benefit that you will be drawing for a longer period of time.

[00:06:21]So financial experts tell us that you will need between 70 and 80% of your pre-retirement income to live comfortably in retirement.

[00:06:29]So this is something that you need to take into consideration when you are thinking of when you should start receiving your retirement benefit.

[00:06:38]So this individual could start drawing at 62.

[00:06:42]They will start drawing $1,400 and they will continue to draw that amount the rest of their life.

[00:06:48]So some people think I'll start at 62, get the reduced amount, than at my full retirement age, it will increase.

[00:06:56]But that's not the way it works.

[00:06:58]It doesn't increase.

[00:07:00]Because we use 35 years, the only way it's going to increase is if one of those 35 years is replaced by a higher year, then it may increase.

[00:07:10]So if you look at this example, this person could start drawing the full $2,000 at age 67.

[00:07:17]But even if they wait past 67, their amount will continue to increase at the rate of 8% a year.

[00:07:26]So this individual could wait until age 70 and actually draw more than $1,000 more.

[00:07:33]Their age 70 amount would be $2,480.

[00:07:38]So it's very important to take this into consideration when you're thinking of when to start drawing because your monthly amount is going to differ based on the age you start receiving the benefit.

[00:07:49]And it's going to be locked in forever.

[00:07:52]So Social Security not only pays benefits to workers, we also pay benefits to spouses.

[00:08:01]So we're looking at 100% of their benefit at full retirement age.

[00:08:06]But a spouse can only receive up to 50% of the worker's unreduced amount.

[00:08:12]So in the example I just showed you, the worker would receive $2,000 and the spouse would receive $1,000.

[00:08:22]So if they took it before their full retirement age, that amount is going to be reduced.

[00:08:29]And before we pay the spouse that benefit the spouse has to file for their own benefit if they're due a benefit.

[00:08:37]So if they can get more than 50% that they can get on a spouse's record, they will only draw their own.

[00:08:44]So many spouses will never draw a spousal benefit because their benefit is higher.

[00:08:50]When there's a worker that's drawing and a spouse comes on the record, it does not reduce the worker's benefit.

[00:08:56]They are each paid their individual check and it does not affect each other.

[00:09:01]When a spouse has a child under the age of 16 that they are caring for or a child that is disabled, then that benefit is not reduced.

[00:09:12]And again for this benefit, when the couple is still married, even if they're not living together, but if they are still married, the worker has to start drawing before the spouse can draw.

[00:09:25]So that's a little bit different, because when we pay divorced spouses benefit, the worker doesn't have to be drawing, the worker just has to be eligible to draw.

[00:09:37]So for divorced spouses benefit, same thing 50% at full retirement age.

[00:09:44]But for this benefit, the marriage has to have lasted at least ten years before they divorced.

[00:09:51]If it lasted less than ten years, then there is no ex-spouse's benefit.

[00:09:57]But if they were married for at least ten years then they divorced the ex-spouse has to be unmarried.

[00:10:03]The worker could have remarried several times, but the ex-spouse who is drawing on the worker's record has to be single.

[00:10:11]And for this benefit, the worker has to be 62 or older, even if they're not drawing a benefit yet.

[00:10:18]And also for this benefit, before we will pay the ex-spouse a benefit on the worker's record, if they're eligible to get more on their own, then they will only get their own benefit.

[00:10:31]They're not going to be getting the spousal benefit and holding off on getting their own.

[00:10:37]No, they have to take their own.

[00:10:40]Social Security also pays benefits to survivors when a worker passes away.

[00:10:47]So the benefits that we pay are to the children of the worker, the minor children who are under the age of 18, 18-year-olds who are full-time students in high school.

[00:11:00]We also pay disabled children who are over the age of 18 if they have a disability that started before age 22.

[00:11:09]We also pay benefits to a widow or widower or an ex-widow or widower.

[00:11:16]So for this benefit for the surviving spouse benefit, They don't have to be 62 years old to draw this benefit.

[00:11:23]They can start as early as age 60 or even age 50 if they have a disability or at any age if they're caring for a child under the age of 16 or a child that has a disability.

[00:11:36]Now, for the survivor benefit, the survivor can be remarried as long as they remarried after age 60 or if they're disabled after age 50.

[00:11:49]So for this one, they can be remarried, but only if they married after that age.

[00:11:54]Otherwise, they're not due a benefit.

[00:11:56]And sometimes, they are remarried, but then they become a widow or widower from the new spouse, and then they could file on this benefit again.

[00:12:05]So that's a little bit of the difference between a spousal and a surviving benefit.

[00:12:11]So the survivor, your surviving spouse can claim survivor benefits as early as 50 or 60 if they're not disabled, or any age if they have a child that they're caring for.

[00:12:25]But if they start getting this benefit before their full retirement age, they are not going to get 100% of your benefit.

[00:12:32]They're only going to draw 71.5% of your benefit.

[00:12:36]The longer they wait, the higher the benefit goes up, up to 100%.

[00:12:41]So again, the younger they are, the smaller the benefit, but the longer they're going to draw the benefit for.

[00:12:48]So that's something else that, you need to consider when you're applying for these benefits.

[00:12:54]We also pay benefits to the children of the worker who either died, who died, who is retired or is disabled.

[00:13:06]So these are the same benefits that we pay the children when the worker is deceased, disabled or retired.

[00:13:12]Again, the minors under 18, 18 or 19-year-olds, if they're full time students or the adult children who became disabled before age 22.

[00:13:24]Two other benefits that we have, we have that lump sum tax payment of $255.

[00:13:30]And it's been $255 since I started with Social Security 30 years ago.

[00:13:36]So, this benefit is only paid to a surviving spouse.

[00:13:40]It's not paid to an ex-spouse, if there is no surviving spouse, we will pay the minor children or the disabled adult children $255 and we will divide it up among the children.

[00:13:52]We don't pay that to adult children unless they're disabled adult children.

[00:13:56]Another benefit that you may or may not have heard of.

[00:14:00]It's very, very rare.

[00:14:02]In all the years I've been with Social Security, I have taken one of these claims.

[00:14:07]This is the parents' benefit So this is for a parent who is at least age 62 or older who was receiving at least one-half support from their child, and the child has to wait.

[00:14:20]This is for a parent who does not have their own Social Security or their own is less than what they could get from their child who was supporting them.

[00:14:29]So for this we would look at the parent being on the child's tax return as a dependent and if that child was supporting that parent and providing at least one-half support and that parent doesn't have their own benefit that's higher, they may be eligible for a benefit on the record of that child who passed away.

[00:14:51]So, this is very rare, but it is there for somebody who would qualify.

[00:14:57]Another rare benefit is the benefit from a grandparent's record.

[00:15:02]So nowadays we see a lot of grandparents who are raising their grandchildren.

[00:15:07]But the children don't always qualify on that grandparent's earnings record.

[00:15:12]So in order for a grandchild to qualify, on the grandparent's earnings record, that child has to have been a dependent grandchild or step-grandchild.

[00:15:22]And, the natural parents of that child have to either both be deceased or both have a disability.

[00:15:30]So in that case, if they are both deceased or both have a disability and the grandparents were providing at least one-half support to those grandkids, they may be eligible for benefits on the grandparent's record when the grandparent either passes away or retires, or if the grandparent has legally adopted the grandchildren, then they count it as regular children and they could always draw a benefit.

[00:15:57]So, we have information on our website about these benefits in more detail.

[00:16:03]So the difference between the benefits when the spouse or the worker is living, and when the worker is deceased are first of all, when the worker is living, the spouse has to be 62 to draw.

[00:16:16]When the worker is deceased, they can be 50 if they're disabled or otherwise 60 or any age if they have a young child.

[00:16:25]The most that a living spouse will get is 50% of the full retirement amount.

[00:16:31]When there's a surviving spouse, they can get anywhere from 71.5%, if they take it at 60, all the way to 100% if they wait until their full retirement age.

[00:16:44]So the computations are a little bit different for both of these benefits.

[00:16:49]And some people will qualify for both at the same time.

[00:16:53]So for example, we do have retirees who are also widows or widowers.

[00:16:59]In this case, you may want to take the survivor benefit first because you can draw it earlier and then let your own increase until age 70, because, remember, your own benefit will continue to grow until age 70.

[00:17:16]But the survivor benefit will only increase up to the full retirement age.

[00:17:21]So if you want to know what you could get as a widow or a widower, contact us and we would be able to give you that information.

[00:17:28]We would also be able to give you the numbers and tell you what would be more beneficial for your situation.

[00:17:36]Just make sure that you tell us that you are a survivor, so that we can give you those numbers and help you decide what's best for you.

[00:17:46]Another of the popular questions that people want to know is, "Can I work if I am receiving Social Security benefits?"

[00:17:53]And the answer is yes, you can work, but there are limits.

[00:17:57]When we look at the limit of what you can earn, we're only looking at income from wages or net income from self-employment.

[00:18:06]We're not looking at your pension.

[00:18:08]We're not looking at anything else other than earnings.

[00:18:12]So, if you are under full retirement age, this year the limit is $24,480 a year.

[00:18:22]When we say a year, we're looking from January to December.

[00:18:27]If you go over that limit, we will withhold $1 for every $2 that you go over the limit.

[00:18:34]A lot of times the person will retire, and they've already earned over the $24,480.

[00:18:41]The very first year that you start drawing benefits, we can also use the monthly amount.

[00:18:47]The monthly amount is the $24,480 divided by 12, which this year would be $2,040 a month.

[00:18:54]That means if I'm retiring in July and I've already gone over the limit for the year, that means starting in August, which is the first month that I, or starting in July, which is the first month that I'm going to be drawing, I have to stay under $2,040.

[00:19:10]Gross, it's not net it's gross.

[00:19:14]If I go over by even $1 for when we're using the monthly then I'm not due a check for that month.

[00:19:21]If I stay under the $2,040, then I'm due a check.

[00:19:25]So for the monthly, we go by month eligibility; for the yearly, we look at the entire year and do the one for every $2 limit.

[00:19:35]The year that you turn full retirement age, this year, the amount increased to $65,160 a year.

[00:19:44]Again, January through December looking at only wages and looking at gross amount.

[00:19:51]If you go over that amount, you will owe us $1 for every $3 that you go over the limit.

[00:19:58]So we only count through the month of your full retirement age.

[00:20:02]So my birthday is in July, the year I turn age 67.

[00:20:07]I only have to stay under this limit January through June.

[00:20:11]Starting with July, there is no limit and I can earn as much as I want and nobody cares.

[00:20:18]As you can see, there's no limit and I don't even have to report to Social Security that I'm working.

[00:20:24]If I'm under full retirement age, I definitely need to report that I'm working and I need to change my estimate if I'm going to earn more or less than I thought I would.

[00:20:33]Our website has a good retirement earnings calculator that you can plug in the amount that you think you will earn, and it will tell you how many checks we will have to hold back every year to keep you from being overpaid.

[00:20:49]And people will always ask, "Okay, so I'm working.

[00:20:52]I'm drawing my Social Security.

[00:20:54]Am I going to be taxed on my Social Security benefits?"

[00:20:58]And the answer is probably yes.

[00:21:00]So if you file a tax return as an individual and you have combined income of more than $25,000, or if you file a joint return and have combined income of over $32,000, you're going to be paying some type of taxes on your Social Security.

[00:21:21]And any questions about taxation, you can contact the IRS or if you want to withhold federal taxes, we will do that.

[00:21:32]Hold back a certain percentage that you would like and the percentages are 7%, 10%, 12%, and 22%.

[00:21:40]You can call us and do this over the phone, or you can go on to my Social Security account and set up your own withholding.

[00:21:48]But we can do that for the federal tax.

[00:21:52]So now let's talk about Medicare.

[00:21:54]So Medicare is the federal insurance program.

[00:21:57]Most people get this when they are turning 65.

[00:22:01]The amount of the premium for the Part A you've been paying through the FICA taxes, if you have the 40 quarters, there is no charge for the premium for the Part A.

[00:22:12]Part A covers inpatient hospital visits.

[00:22:16]Part B is the medical.

[00:22:17]So, that's going to cover your doctor visits or any outpatient hospital bills.

[00:22:24]So the premium for Part B is $202.90 a month.

[00:22:29]If you are receiving Social Security benefits, we will take this premium from your check every month before we send it out to you.

[00:22:38]So it's billed automatically if you're getting a benefit.

[00:22:41]If you're already receiving retirement and you're turning 65, we will send out the Medicare part a couple months, maybe 3 or 4 months before your 65th birthday.

[00:22:52]If you want the Medicare, you just keep it.

[00:22:55]Some people will only take the Part A because either they're still working and covered, and don't want to pay the double premium, or their spouse is still working and they're covered under the Group Health Plan.

[00:23:07]In that case, if you get the card, you can choose to take the Part A and not take the Part B.

[00:23:14]And you can do that by returning that card and saying on the card that you don't want the Part B.

[00:23:19]And that's fine, because you'll be able to get the Part B later without a penalty.

[00:23:24]If you are turning 65 and you are still working, you may think, "Well, I don't need to file for Medicare."

[00:23:31]I'm still working. I still have insurance.

[00:23:33]But you want to take at least the Part A because it's free. You've already been paying for it your entire life.

[00:23:39]So take at least the Part A.

[00:23:41]Some people will take the Medicare A and B and not draw a retirement benefit.

[00:23:46]You can do that too.

[00:23:48]In that case we will bill you quarterly.

[00:23:50]So monthly if you are on benefits, quarterly if you are not on benefits.

[00:23:57]So like I said, most people will get the Medicare when they turn 65.

[00:24:03]But individuals who are retired or disabled will get the Medicare after being on Social Security disability for 24 months.

[00:24:12]Also people with ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease, or end-stage renal kidney failure will get the Medicare.

[00:24:20]So those individuals don't have to be 65.

[00:24:23]They can get the Medicare when they're diagnosed with that.

[00:24:27]So when you're turning 65, you get an initial enrollment period, which consists of seven months: Three months before your 65th birthday, the month you turn 65, and three months after your 65th birthday.

[00:24:44]You should enroll during... you can enroll during any of those seven months.

[00:24:49]If you want the Medicare to start the month that you turn 65, you must enroll in one of the beginning three months before your 65th birthday.

[00:25:00]If you wait until the month that you're turning 65 or any of the months after, then your Medicare coverage will start the next month.

[00:25:09]So if I enroll the month I turn 65, my Medicare will start the month after I turn 65.

[00:25:16]Again, if you don't want the Medicare because you're working or covered under somebody else's Group Health Plan, we will give you a special enrollment period.

[00:25:26]The special enrollment period consists of eight months after the coverage and through the employer.

[00:25:33]So once you are stopping work or you're no longer going to be covered under a spouse who's retiring, you have eight months to enroll in Medicare without a penalty.

[00:25:45]So you contact us and we'll send out some forms.

[00:25:48]Or you can go on our website and enroll in Part B.

[00:25:52]If you want no lapse in coverage, make sure that you contact us either when you're still covered under the Group Health Plan or the month after.

[00:26:01]Because if you contact us at any of the other months you can still enroll, you have eight months to do it without penalty.

[00:26:08]But then your Medicare is going to start the following month.

[00:26:13]So if you did not enroll in the initial period and you did not enroll in the special, or you missed the special enrollment, then every year we open it up to the general enrollment period.

[00:26:26]That's January 1st through March 31st.

[00:26:29]And anybody can enroll.

[00:26:31]Coverage begins the month after you enroll.

[00:26:36]So if you're one of the individuals who took the Part A and later want the Part B, the forms are available on our website.

[00:26:44]Here is the link. The CMS-40B is the one that you fill out saying you want the Medicare.

[00:26:50]The CMS-L564 is filled out by your employer saying and verifying that yes, you were covered under your own insurance, or a spouse's insurance who was working.

[00:27:00]Many times we get people calling us, asking questions about Medicare.

[00:27:05]And you keep in mind that the only thing that Medicare, that Social Security does with Medicare, is we enroll you and we collect the premium.

[00:27:14]If you have questions about what's covered, what's not covered, why something was denied or you want to appeal something, you need to reach out to Medicare directly.

[00:27:24]Medicare.gov or 1-800-Medicare.

[00:27:28]Now most individuals this year will pay a premium of the $202.90.

[00:27:34]But if you're a high earner and you have earned as an individual, your modified adjusted gross income from two years ago was $109,000 or higher, or as a married couple, you file jointly and you're modified adjusted gross income was $137,000 or higher, then you might be paying a little bit more each month.

[00:27:58]If you receive a letter telling you that you will be paying more because of your modified adjusted gross income, read the letter. Because the letter will tell you that if you have a life changing event like you were married, you became... your spouse died, you stopped working, you reduced your hours, there's seven life changing events.

[00:28:21]If you have any of the life changing events, you should fill out form SSA-44, because you can ask us to use a more recent tax year.

[00:28:30]Because the one we use is two years prior.

[00:28:33]So people that are paying a high, a higher premium in 2026, it's because they're 2024 modified adjusted gross income from their income taxes was over these limits.

[00:28:46]So read the letters.

[00:28:48]All the information is on there.

[00:28:52]And I know all this information about Medicare is very complicated.

[00:28:57]So Wisconsin has Medicare counselors that will work one on one with you.

[00:29:03]They're very good at what they do.

[00:29:04]They're experts, they're unbiased, and they will never try to steer you towards one plan or another.

[00:29:11]They're great helping you enroll.

[00:29:13]They're helping you disenroll, helping you pick a Medicare Advantage plan.

[00:29:18]They're excellent, at the jobs that they do.

[00:29:21]And the most important thing is don't call the ads that you see on TV.

[00:29:27]Those are trying to steer you towards their plan.

[00:29:30]Call the Wisconsin SHIP, they're paid for by the government, and they will just give you the facts, and you will decide what's best for you.

[00:29:37]They'll never try to steer you one way or another.

[00:29:41]So all these benefits that we talked about today, the easiest way to do it, to apply is on our website SocialSecurity.gov or ssa.gov.

[00:29:53]Make sure that you're going to the gov website and not the.com, because you will end up somewhere else.

[00:29:59]We also have an 800 number that's available 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

[00:30:03]Monday through Friday, or you can call to schedule an appointment, to either do this application on the phone or in the office if that's what you prefer.

[00:30:14]If you have not gone to our website, this is what our website looks like now.

[00:30:19]And as you can see again, we're asking you to go digital and do things online first.

[00:30:26]If you do not have a my Social Security account, we again encourage everybody to do it.

[00:30:32]Set up your account.

[00:30:34]We even have videos that will walk you through the process of setting up these accounts, either through the login.gov platform or the ID.me. Very easy.

[00:30:46]Step-by-step instructions are included on our website. The reason we want you to set up these accounts is because the statements that we used to send out in the mail, we only send them out to individuals who are 60 or older, who do not have an online account.

[00:31:04]Everybody else, you want to go to the website and pull up your account.

[00:31:08]One thing that young people need to be doing is looking at, where we have the earnings record.

[00:31:16]The reason you want to look at that, because all the earnings are posted on here every year.

[00:31:21]So last year earnings for 2025 should be on here by the middle of the year.

[00:31:27]So you want to make sure that what is shown on your W-2 form matches what's going on the statement.

[00:31:33]Many times people don't realize that their earnings are not posting correctly until it comes time for retirement.

[00:31:41]Or some people don't realize that somebody else is working under their Social Security number until the IRS contacts them and tells them you forgot to report these wages. Come to find out that those aren't your wages but somebody else was using your Social Security number.

[00:31:58]And most of the time it's because a digit was transposed.

[00:32:03]But you never know.

[00:32:04]So you want to check this and make sure that only your wages are posting and make sure that they are posting correctly.

[00:32:11]Because these are the years that we are going to use to determine your monthly benefit amount when you reach full 62.

[00:32:18]Also, on the left hand side, you're going to see an estimate of what you could receive at every age from 62 through age 70. So go on here, look at the amount you could receive and use that for planning.

[00:32:34]You will also see what your survivors would get if you should happen to pass away and then included with the statement are some fact sheets.

[00:32:44]So depending on your age, there's going to be a fact sheet that's included, that's going to give you more information for somebody that's near your age.

[00:32:53]So all the information that I've talked about today, you can get, go on our website and most of these transactions you'll be able to do online.

[00:33:02]Otherwise, call and schedule an appointment with our 800 number if you need to come in.

[00:33:09]And one last thing I just want to talk to you about are the government imposter scams.

[00:33:14]So we've been hearing about these scams over and over and over and we've been warning people.

[00:33:20]But last year we had a total of 332,000 imposter scams that were reported. And these were only the ones that were reported to the office of the Inspector General.

[00:33:33]There was a total reported loss of $738 million.

[00:33:39]So as you can see, people are still falling for these calls where people are saying, "We're calling from Social Security."

[00:33:47]"We're calling from the IRS."

[00:33:48]We're calling from all these different offices.

[00:33:51]And it's people that are not really Social Security employees.

[00:33:56]So, I invite you all to join us on March 5th.

[00:34:02]Next month is our annual  National Slam the Scam Day, and we are having a webinar.

[00:34:09]Register to attend our webinar.

[00:34:11]And we're going to be talking about all these different ways that you can identify these emails and these text messages, what to do if you fall victim, what you should do, what you shouldn't do, how to protect your identity.

[00:34:24]A lot of great information.

[00:34:26]This is free to anybody, anywhere.

[00:34:28]So feel free to share this with anybody that would like to join for that webinar.

[00:34:33]And I am going to share this PowerPoint with you also. So if you are on social media, we encourage you to follow us on Facebook, at LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.

[00:34:48]And then the information I talked to you about today is current as of today.

[00:34:54]But to stay up to date, please visit ssa.gov for the most up to date information on all our programs.

[00:35:03]And now if you have any questions I am happy to answer them.

[00:35:08]I know that was a lot of information.

[00:35:12][Emily Lockwood] And quick, nice job.

[00:35:14]Yeah.

[00:35:15]Thank you for being here again.

[00:35:18]Do you want to just kind of scan the chat quickly, Elida, and see if there... [Elida Elizondo] Yeah, that's what I'm doing.

[00:35:24]Okay. Let's see here.

[00:35:28]Let's see here. Where is... [ineligible] Is there a phone number where I can speak directly to Social Security?

[00:35:36]There isn't a direct number, but you can call our 800 number.

[00:35:41]Some of our offices... you can also go on our office locator on our website, type in the zip code, and you may get an office that lists their local number.

[00:35:53]But I should tell you that we are now answering the calls in our area.

[00:35:58]So, you may call the local number and it may go to the local office, but if there's not somebody there to answer it, it may go to another office.

[00:36:08]Will we get a copy?

[00:36:09]Yes, you will get a copy of all this.

[00:36:12]Will there be benefits for dependent children when I retire.

[00:36:19]I think we talked about the benefits to dependent children. There are benefits if the child is minor under the age of 18.

[00:36:27]We also have the child in care benefit.

[00:36:30]So that's for a parent caring for the child under the age of 16 or a disabled child, they can get it at any age.

[00:36:42]You should apply... we ask you to apply about 3 to 4 months before you turn 62.

[00:36:47]And most of the time it's much quicker.

[00:36:50]It goes very quick when you apply.

[00:36:52]But those cases where there might be a discrepancy in the earnings, where we need to make corrections, there might be a question about something that we need to get more verification on.

[00:37:04]So four months is usually what we say.

[00:37:07]Four months before you plan to start getting benefits, go ahead and start the process online.

[00:37:17]Yeah. So I was on my own... [Emily Lockwood] Elida, would you... the number I have for Social Security, the phone number, is 800-772-1213. Yeah. I'm going to post that.

[00:37:32][Elida Elizondo] Yes. And that's open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

[00:37:36]But being in Wisconsin Central Time, I have called that number at eight and there's somebody somewhere answering it still, and you get through a lot quicker if you call later in the day, later in the month, later in the week.

[00:37:49]So I've called the 800 number like 8:00 my time and I got through in five minutes. So.... "I'm still working until 67, I recently acquired Medicare Part A, do I have to notify that I won't be getting..." You only have to notify Social Security that you don't want the Part B, if you're one of the individuals that automatically receive the A and B, then you want to return that part, and say I don't want the B.

[00:38:18]Otherwise, if you only apply for A, we already know that you don't have Part B.

[00:38:28]Oh yes. The other question is about those, the account, the ones with the high deductible, What do they call those? Medicare.

[00:38:41]Are they the HSA accounts?

[00:38:44]Health Savings Accounts?

[00:38:47]I don't know the name of it, but yes, if you are contributing to one of those accounts, where they have the high deductible plan insurance you cannot have the Medicare,  and that's an IRS rule.

[00:39:00]And you should also know that you can't have A or B Medicare.

[00:39:05]And with the Medicare, the Part A is retroactive six months from when you file, if you are past age 65.

[00:39:16]So, if you file three months past 65, we're going to go back for Part A for when you turn age 65.

[00:39:22]If you file eight months past 65, we're going to go back six months to when you turn 65. So keep that in mind.

[00:39:30]Yeah. Those HSA accounts.

[00:39:34]You ask the questions and answers... Yes. We talk about banked sick leave conversion.

[00:39:46]I think.... Yeah, I think there are a couple of questions for ETF as well.

[00:39:52]Yeah. I think the bank for the Part B premium, are they talking about somebody who is retired but is still considered an employee because they have bank time?

[00:40:07]I'm not sure if that's what they mean.

[00:40:09]But for the the special enrollment period you should know that you must be an active employee.

[00:40:16]If you're on any other insurance as a retiree or a COBRA, that does not count as insurance.

[00:40:25]You have to be an active employee to get the special enrollment period and enroll without a premium.

[00:40:34]Medicare, Medicare Part D, The thing with Medicare Part D is when you are applying for Medicare, you're going to get the regular original Medicare, A and B, you will have the option of enrolling in one of the  Medicare Advantage plans.

[00:40:51]Those Medicare Advantage plans, a lot of them already have a Part B within there.

[00:40:57]The thing you need to know about the Medicare Advantage plan is that yes, they cover more.

[00:41:03]Yes, they give you the Part D, which is already included, but then you're limited to where you can get your services from.

[00:41:10]You have to stay within that network.

[00:41:12]And that's why you should contact the SHIP, the SHIP people, because they will tell you which plans are best for your situation, for the medication that you take, for the doctors that you see, they're the ones that will be able to walk you through that process.

[00:41:27]Otherwise, the regular Medicare, if you take the original Medicare A and B, you should probably get a gap insurance, because Medicare only pays 80% of your approved costs and then you would want to get the Part B, but those are private plans that you're going to be signing up for.

[00:41:44]So again, I highly encourage you guys to reach out to SHIP.

[00:41:48]They are the experts on that.

[00:41:50]Could you create two different accounts under one email?

[00:41:55]I am told that you can create two different accounts under one email, but I have never done that.

[00:42:03]I would say it's probably a better idea to just get two emails. Add a number on to the other email and create two.

[00:42:11]One thing that I will tell you that, we've been hearing a lot is if you have trouble logging into an account with Login.gov, try the ID.me.

[00:42:22]We are seeing a lot more success with the ID.me platform, and we're not sure why that is, but we're seeing that people who have been having issues with the Login.gov have been able to do it with the ID.me.

[00:42:36]A couple months before I'm gonna... [Emily Lockwood] I'm going to go ahead and stop recording Elida.

[00:42:42]Because I just wanted to make sure we had Part D in there.

[00:42:44]So thank you very much.