The Complete Idiot's Guide to Social Security & Medicare, 3rd Edition

Good Book

What I read was informative, but may not be what I NEED! I have a problem with getting the correct coverage. I am a cancer patient and have to make sure my medications are all covered.I am on a special program where a lot of my medications are paid for through "patient assistance". I can't have any drug programs with my social security program. If I want to have my prescriptions paid for and furnished by pharmaceuticals.I'll continue to look for better ways to handle my meds.

Social Security and Medicare are ever changing. Keeping up to date is difficult for the professionals and if one only starts thinking about this when approaching age 65 it's very difficult to understand. This books breaks things down into easy to understand concepts and explanations.

Although this book covers a lot of ground and is fairly readable, two misstatements and one key omission may actually lead to some bad decisions:a) The book says there is a 10% tax penalty for withdrawals from a qualified plan (such as 401k) under age 59.5 unless one of a list of exceptions apply..one of which is "leaving a job involuntarily after you reach age 55". But there is no penalty for withdrawals under those circumstances if you leave voluntarily and the rule is that you turn 55 that year (you can retire earlier than your birthday).b) The book says "when you decide on an age for retirement...there is no going back". Actually if you file a "withdrawal of claim" and pay back the benefits you've recieved, you get a fresh start.c) A very important option for married couples: if a dependent (i.e. lower earning) spouse wants to start collecting the spouse benefit but the primary earner wants to defer collecting, that can be done (the primary earner has to "file and suspend" for his benefit). A couple of recent studies have demonstrated that this is oftern the best option.In combination, I think these defects really impair the usefulness of the book.

very good book, up to date, book arrived in great condition. Very happy

For anyone just learning about what Medicare [does not] cover and what Social Security does cover, it's good background training. The specifics, especialy of Medicare, change too often to use this for more than getting an idea of how the what-you-might-call system works. However, knowing that is essential, and you will learn what questions to ask.

I bought this book with the expectation of learning more about medicare than social security as I am already on SSD. There really is not much regarding that subject but I guess if you are in your 50's it would be helpful - not so much if you are in your early 60's.

A book I found helpful for myself in the past and bought a gift for a friend who was looking for those questions when retired!