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More than a million plan participants who were in danger of having their pension payments slashed were bailed out in a recent stimulus package. It gave $86 billion to shore up employee pension plans covering retirees at a myriad of companies. AARP fought hard for the measure, says David Certner, AARP’s legislative policy director.
AARP Bulletin in their November 2020 issue (page 22) had an interesting article about more and more couples looking at estate planning now that the coronavirus is making the future outlook bleak. Keep in mind that you can write a will at any time, even if you are sick in the hospital. Most estate planners recommend setting up a living trust, which gives you a lot of flexibility on how your assets are distributed following your death. Experts warn that doing a joint will for a couple is a terrible idea—they aren’t even legal in some states. Leaving more to one child than another almost guarantees that the will could be challenged. Stepchildren aren’t automatically treated as children for legal purposes. There are a lot of moving pieces in an estate plan so consult with your attorney.
AARP has a ton of discounts, including eyeglasses, restaurants and hotels. Now that people are starting to travel again, don’t forget to bring your AARP card. The organization has negotiated cheap rates at Best Western, Choice Hotels, Extra Holidays, Hilton, Motel 6, Radison, Studio 6, and Wyndham as well as a number of independently owned hotels.
This article is the fourth in a series of articles about myself, my past, and how I decided to start a home care agency on the Monterey Peninsula. In the first, I talked about a wonderful experience I had with a bedridden woman who eventually got up, went out and about and even on a tour. It shows that with enough encouragement, a lot can be accomplished.
https://familyinhomecaregiving.com/the-history-of-family-inhome-caregiving-part-1-the-rocking-chair/
In the second part of the series, I wrote about how my colleagues and myself had to come up with interesting activities for the residents to keep their minds and their bodies engaged. Read here about the wheelchair races we held:
https://familyinhomecaregiving.com/the-history-of-family-inhome-caregiving-part-2-the-race-is-on/
In the third, I discussed my prior experiencing working on the Alzheimer’s wing in a skilled nursing home. It can be quite a challenge!
https://familyinhomecaregiving.com/the-history-of-family-inhome-caregiving-part-3-alzheimers/
In my most recent blog, I will talk about my experience doing food service in a large skilled nursing facility, which can be quite a challenge. Working in a skilled nursing home is hard work and a lot of it. Not only are there caregivers, housekeeping and medical staff, but you also have nutrition staff that helps prepare the food and serve the meals to patients in their rooms and in the dining room. I remember one time I was asked to help out in the kitchen because they were low on staff, and it was an eye-opening experience. Not only do you need to know a variety of diets, like low carb, low salt, etc., but you need to know how to combine them and make them taste good as well. They asked me to peel some potatoes (more than two hundred!) and 90 minutes later, I finished. My hands sure hurt (have you ever peeled two hundred potatoes?). After the potatoes, I moved on to cleaning lettuce, and a lot of it! That day they would make meatloaf and fish, and I was surprised at how much meat was used. It was needed because we had around 200 patients in the facility. Mixing all the ingredients was easy, as they had a big professional mixing bowl. Once dinner was made, the employees that delivered the meals to the rooms came in to pick up the preloaded meal carts. Each tray had the room number and name of the patient that the meal was for. This was done so that special diet patients received the correct meal. We also had the patients that came into the dining area to eat their meal with others, a very social time of day. They pre- ordered their meal, so we had them lined up on a metal shelving unit with, again, their name and room number so the correct person received their proper meal. Sometimes the meals were mixed up, so one person would get the fish when they ordered the meatloaf and vice versa, but believe me when I say that the patient would let us know in no uncertain terms when there was a mix up. During that evening I was serving a meal to a person that had mild dementia and she thought she had ordered fish, but the card read meatloaf. There was a big commotion and the floor supervisor and the kitchen supervisor had to come in to calm the patient down and figure out what had happened. It turned out that the person writing the cards out mixed this lady’s order up with another lady in the same room. Once we found that out I went to the other lady (who stayed in her room to eat) to see if she received the correct meal. Well, of course she had not so I received another ear full before I could explain what had happened. Once I brought the correct meal in she was all smiles and happy to see that I personally brought her meal. She had forgotten what had happened just a few minutes earlier. Patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s are extremely difficult to work with. You need a lot of experience to know how to deal with them. It takes patience, kindness, understanding and compassion. I would hope that in today’s world the meal preparation and delivery around Monterey, Carmel, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach and Salinas have new technologies that can make the process easier and make for a great experience for patients. I have seen Park Lane’s restaurant and it is genuinely nice. You can order your food like a regular restaurant so you can have a bigger variety of meals to choose from. Technology has been a friend during this time of Covid-19 and has helped to make some things easier and safer. I hope your next meal is a great meal! Bon Appetit
Many seniors are surprised to find out that their Social Security benefits are taxable, and the bill can be significant. The amount that is taxable for an individual earning $25K to $34K is 50%, while if you make more than $34K then 85% of your benefits are probably taxable. What to do when you don’t want a surprise come April 15 is to fill out Form W-4V with The Social Security Administration requesting an amount to be withheld for taxes. The choices are 7%, 10%, 12% and 22%. These percentages apply to the full income, not the 50% or 85% that is taxable.   Most states, including California, do not tax Social Security income.
An investigative reporter unveiled an expose on a chain of nursing homes in California called Country Villa which has 18 nursing homes that have been unlicensed for years. Two of their facilities lost over a dozen of residents due to COVID-19.  The Staye of California requires that nursing home operators be licensed by the California Department of Public Health, which oversees nursing homes. But the Department has allowed the owner to operate with a “pending license†for years. The owner, Shlomo Rechnitz, has acquired 81 nursing homes with 9,000 beds, making him the largest operator in California. “I’m just a little speechless when it comes to this ownership nightmare in California and now it’s gotten to this point,†said Molly Davies, the Los Angeles County long-term care ombudsman. In Monterey, our ombudsman said that they have not had in-person access to assisted living facilities during the pandemic, a situation which is just making things worse.
The November 2020 issue of the Kiplinger Retirement Report had an article on retiring and getting rid of all of that extra junk that you have lying around—while making a profit! For instance, called Decluttr (available on both the Apple iPhone and Google Android) where all you have to do when selling electronics (as well as accessories like video games, DVDs and CDs) is input the make and model. They will email you a price quote that is good for four weeks and a shipping label for mailing the item. No need to send in photos or any information, just wipe all personal data clean and send the equipment in. Another interesting app is The RealReal which will buy designer clothes. You just bag them up and mail them in and they apparently give a decent price for used clothes. If you have things to give away, I recommend the Church Mouse, which is owned by the First United Methodist Church in Pacific Grove. They have always been kind to us and god bless them!
https://butterflychurchpg.wixsite.com/butterflychurch/ministries
Some experts are saying that figuring out what to do in retirement might actually be easier after having had to stay at home most of the time due to the coronavirus. Working from home can provide a sense for “what retirement might look like,†said Dr. Pinchas Cohen, dean of the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California. People are reflecting and reevaluating what important and changing plans accordingly. George Kinder, founder of the Kinder Institute of Life Planning asks his clients three questions to clarify their goals : What would you do if you had all of the time and money in the world? How would you live if you knew you had only five to ten years left? And what would you most regret if you died tomorrow?
https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-covid-19-will-change-aging-and-retirement-11605452401
Join the Alliance on Aging this Friday for a zoom meeting on understanding the basics of Medicare. Experts will discuss Part A, Part B, Part C Advantage Plans, Part D, Supplemental Plans, Penalties, Low Income Assistance Programs and more. The meeting ID is 824 2926 4235 and the passcode is 739283, please see the link below. If you don’t have access to a computer you can call in at 1-866-900-6833. For more information, contact Moncerat Politron at 646-5049.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82429264235?pwd=UTJFdmJDQVBSQWUxWjNNSHpnQmJIdz09#success
With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing a number of Americans to be laid off, many people are taking a close look at 72(t) plans, which allows you to withdraw money without the usual 10% penalty, even if you are below the age of 59.5 years old. Dubbed 72(t) plans, they give you a series of equal payments taken at least annually. The duration of the plan must be at least five years or until the person reaches 59.5 years, whichever is longer. Talk to your tax planner, Monterey County Bank or one of our other local banks about this option. Another possibility which was made as part of the Cares Act is an exemption to coronavirus-related distributions as another exception. If you are interested in this option, act quickly as it’s only available until year end.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/early-ira-withdrawals-can-be-penalty-free-11607004008