I retired in April. COBRA was insanely expensive. My employer has an option for retirees younger than 65, it was very expensive, but not as bad as COBRA. ACA was the way to go for me. I'm in Oregon, and as long as I keep my taxable income for the year no more than $86k, I'm paying $36 a month to cover three people! Dental & vision are separate. My total monthly cost for medical, dental and vision for three people is $100 a month.
Great discussion. I retired at 56, took COBRA immediately after separation from my employer for 6 months then transitioned to ACA in 2021. It’s an excellent option. Hope the enhanced subsidies that became law during the COVID era don’t sunset after 2025.
Love these types of conversations James! Non-financial retirement planning so important to retire early. Discussions on planning for long-term care would also be a great topic to have a guest to help us understand if/when to take it.
Timely video. We are getting ready to retire in our late 50s. We are going to go with ACA. With our cash reserves and short term buffer, we plan to pull income in the order of 150 to 300% of the federal poverty level. So insurance will be affordable. In our state we have to be a little above the lower end at 138% of federal poverty level to not get caught in the Medicaid black hole as you mentioned.
Thanks James and Cole. I retired early. stayed on COBRA and now have an ACA plan but have been really confused about the subsidies. This helped me a lot and I look forward to the next session,
Hi James, I've been following your channel for some time. You have been offering your software + academy for some time. I now see that your junior colleague Ari is also launching a product june 1st which is mainly the software. Can I ask what the differences are and why exactly there are 2 different products?
What are some medical insurance options for early retirees who travel internationally? From traveling a month of the year, to traveling majority of the year?
Any PPO insurance plan under ACA will do. We’re advised by our friend who’s insurance agent to get PPO plan since it will cover emergency services when you’re overseas. That being said, you will have to pay by cash first to the hospital and will be reimbursed by the insurance company.
Thanks, James. Good video. In the next one or soon, can you take us through a mock scenario to get ACA estimates? For ex. - Married couple (male 61; female 56) - 18 yo dependent college student) - Income $85,000 (Is this expected income; last 12 months; 2 years)??? - South Carolina resident - etc
Good stuff. It really sounds like ACA is the way to go for most people who may want to retire early. I could retire early, but have no plans to as I enjoy working and like my employer. I wouldn't qualify for any subsidy, but when I did some rudimentary research it didn't look like premium cost for a Silver plan was really that bad? I am curious how broad and good the coverage is relative to my current private plan, but that's a much deeper dive and am not going to invest the time/energy in that research now.
You mentioned around 19:00 that if you are under the ACA threshold and they therefore put you on Medicaid, there would be an ‘asset check’. My understanding was that there is no asset check, only income, if you are under 55. Isn’t this correct?
Hi. Thanks for the great info. You mentioned an ebook that would be available in the video description. I cant seem to find it. Could you share that and a link to MovebHealthcare?? Thanks!!
Good conversation. I think you omitted one key fact, how does MOVE get paid? I believe the customer does not pay but MOVE earns a commission from the Carrier--is this the case? Rich
As a veteran, does signing up for VA and getting in their system affect eligibility for other options like the ACA? I haven’t signed up for the VA yet.
COBRA is 18 months max eligible, unless you are disabled. I planned my retirement to use the 18 months on COBRA which takes me to Medicare eligible. I was a state government employee and my coverage includes all medical, dental, pharmacy, vision and chiropractor and naturopath. I do have health issues, and need continuation of care in the system I know. I did look at ACA, and it actually would cost me more to even get close to the coverage I have. I should mention I have access to a free clinic for all routine medical needs, labs and diagnostic imaging. Which is priceless! Great podcast, health care is a big issue in timing retirement.
Potential 55 retirement, but dont have 10 years of post tax. Sounds like $25k per couple currently for a bronze. Ouch and it will only get worse. By 64, it could be $50k in today's $
What if you live on a 2 state border and your doctors are in the other state ( I live in nh and doctors are in Ma. You have to buy within your state can you get doctors in ma..
I retired in April. COBRA was insanely expensive. My employer has an option for retirees younger than 65, it was very expensive, but not as bad as COBRA. ACA was the way to go for me. I'm in Oregon, and as long as I keep my taxable income for the year no more than $86k, I'm paying $36 a month to cover three people! Dental & vision are separate. My total monthly cost for medical, dental and vision for three people is $100 a month.
Great discussion. I retired at 56, took COBRA immediately after separation from my employer for 6 months then transitioned to ACA in 2021. It’s an excellent option. Hope the enhanced subsidies that became law during the COVID era don’t sunset after 2025.
Love these types of conversations James! Non-financial retirement planning so important to retire early. Discussions on planning for long-term care would also be a great topic to have a guest to help us understand if/when to take it.
Timely video. We are getting ready to retire in our late 50s. We are going to go with ACA. With our cash reserves and short term buffer, we plan to pull income in the order of 150 to 300% of the federal poverty level. So insurance will be affordable. In our state we have to be a little above the lower end at 138% of federal poverty level to not get caught in the Medicaid black hole as you mentioned.
Thanks James and Cole. I retired early. stayed on COBRA and now have an ACA plan but have been really confused about the subsidies. This helped me a lot and I look forward to the next session,
Thanks James, this was very helpful and I look forward to next week's video!
Thank you James and Cole. Great explanation of options available to early retirees.
Retired at 59.25 after 36 years with the same company and very fortunate to have retiree benefit.
Hi James, I've been following your channel for some time. You have been offering your software + academy for some time. I now see that your junior colleague Ari is also launching a product june 1st which is mainly the software. Can I ask what the differences are and why exactly there are 2 different products?
Where is the link to the ebook mentioned @ 27:42, I don’t see it in the description as stated?
What are some medical insurance options for early retirees who travel internationally? From traveling a month of the year, to traveling majority of the year?
Any PPO insurance plan under ACA will do. We’re advised by our friend who’s insurance agent to get PPO plan since it will cover emergency services when you’re overseas. That being said, you will have to pay by cash first to the hospital and will be reimbursed by the insurance company.
Thanks, James. Good video. In the next one or soon, can you take us through a mock scenario to get ACA estimates? For ex.
- Married couple (male 61; female 56)
- 18 yo dependent college student)
- Income $85,000 (Is this expected income; last 12 months; 2 years)???
- South Carolina resident
- etc
You can go to healthcare.gov and do this anytime. That's how I found out ahead of needing coverage how much it would cost me.
Move to Colombia? Dollar is strong and you can get into Colombia's medical plan with certain visas. Colombia has very good medical services.😊
Good stuff. It really sounds like ACA is the way to go for most people who may want to retire early. I could retire early, but have no plans to as I enjoy working and like my employer. I wouldn't qualify for any subsidy, but when I did some rudimentary research it didn't look like premium cost for a Silver plan was really that bad? I am curious how broad and good the coverage is relative to my current private plan, but that's a much deeper dive and am not going to invest the time/energy in that research now.
You mentioned around 19:00 that if you are under the ACA threshold and they therefore put you on Medicaid, there would be an ‘asset check’. My understanding was that there is no asset check, only income, if you are under 55. Isn’t this correct?
Hi. Thanks for the great info. You mentioned an ebook that would be available in the video description. I cant seem to find it. Could you share that and a link to MovebHealthcare?? Thanks!!
Good conversation. I think you omitted one key fact, how does MOVE get paid? I believe the customer does not pay but MOVE earns a commission from the Carrier--is this the case? Rich
As a veteran, does signing up for VA and getting in their system affect eligibility for other options like the ACA? I haven’t signed up for the VA yet.
COBRA is 18 months max eligible, unless you are disabled. I planned my retirement to use the 18 months on COBRA which takes me to Medicare eligible. I was a state government employee and my coverage includes all medical, dental, pharmacy, vision and chiropractor and naturopath. I do have health issues, and need continuation of care in the system I know. I did look at ACA, and it actually would cost me more to even get close to the coverage I have. I should mention I have access to a free clinic for all routine medical needs, labs and diagnostic imaging. Which is priceless! Great podcast, health care is a big issue in timing retirement.
great material
Potential 55 retirement, but dont have 10 years of post tax. Sounds like $25k per couple currently for a bronze. Ouch and it will only get worse. By 64, it could be $50k in today's $
What if you live on a 2 state border and your doctors are in the other state ( I live in nh and doctors are in Ma. You have to buy within your state can you get doctors in ma..
I’ll probably look up Cole’s company when it’s time but you have to ditch the “double-click” jargon. 😂