Author: Crystal Oculee

So the Obamacare business mandates are postponed! That’s the BIG BREAKING NEWS so far this week! The bottom line is that the original reporting requirements are too complex for business owners to be able to accomplish everything in the time allotted, so the mandate deadline is being extended by another year! Here is what Mark J. Mazur, assistant secretary for tax policy, wrote in a post on the website of the Treasury Department!

“We recognize that the vast majority of businesses that will need to do this reporting already provide health insurance to their workers, and we want to make sure it is easy for others to do so. We have listened to your feedback. And we are taking action.”

Now don’t get me wrong, I know this is an interesting step all by itself, but it begs a bigger question: Is this a sign of things to come with the Healthcare Reform Act, or is this just one of those inevitable hiccups? Whether you are pro Obamacare or against it, is not the issue – pretty much everyone knows that there is a healthcare crisis in the U.S. that needs to be addressed in a thoughtful and intelligent way. And what is a BIG CONCERN of mine is if Obamacare and its implementation will actually provide the needed solution for all the unfortunate people, especially those in their late 50’s and early 60’s (this includes many of my clients) who have been laid off during the last few years. Especially those that haven’t reached 65 yet, and don’t qualify for Medicare, and on top of that don’t have a working spouse who can obtain benefits for them through an employer.

And this is what really gets me; this particular segment of the population, laid off workers in their late 50’s to early 60’s, are hit especially hard. Many of them have worked hard to diligently set money aside for their retirement, and now they are out of work, don’t have access to the usually cheaper group health insurance plans, they’re more likely to have age-related health problems, and so they end up burning through a lot of their savings paying their individual monthly premiums, and all their deductibles – JUST BECAUSE THERE IS STILL NO TRULY FUNCTIONING SOLUTION FOR THEM!!!

And if this latest development is the sign of things to come, if the entire Healthcare Reform Act is going to go through hiccups like this all the time, what are seniors who are not yet eligible for Medicare to do? Think about it… Paying $800 – $900 per MONTH in premiums, add some co-pays for prescription medication, add co-pays for doctor’s visits, and over just a couple of years, this adds up to tens of thousands of dollars!! And on top of that, they can’t even find decent jobs anymore because companies (not openly of course) don’t like to hire people near retirement. What, are they supposed to do during retirement…? Survive on Social Security alone and eat cat food? Honestly, I think it’s a disgrace that Washington didn’t make healthcare solutions for this group of people a priority. What can we do for them NOW so that they can retain as much of their savings as possible to stay self-sufficient in retirement!? When is the big news on that, ADMISTRATION!?

I know we all have loved ones that are going through this and sometimes it makes me so angry that we are basically powerless to help them! So many are taking money out of their retirement funds just to pay for healthcare…Money they’ll definitely need in retirement! Well, what happens when they retire!? Is social security going to cover what they had to spend down, is the government? Of course not!

So my advice is to SAVE, SAVE, SAVE, as much money as you can while you are working, and then SAVE some more. Because no one but YOU cares or can take of you except yourself!

Big news of the week was the nightmare of the BIG HACK ATTACK! Dun Dun Duuuun! It was actually quite scary, a few government officials and celebrities were hacked and had their personal and confidential financial information posted online! Can you imagine; their social security numbers, credit reports, personal addresses… all posted online for everyone to see! Some of the targeted people were Mel Gibson, Kim Kardashian, Sarah Palin, Hillary Clinton, and Joe Biden!

But the reason I am writing about this, is because in their situation, this was all quickly taken down. Now imagine if that was you or me!!! Do we have the same connections that they have? Of course not! So we would have been exposed for anyone to steal our identity, and no one would rush to help us out! So in the spirit of this, I highly suggest that if you don’t have some sort of credit protection like Life Lock, Identity Force, or ProtectMyID, for example, you might want to get yourself covered, because without the celebrity status, your exposure can cost you a lot more than just embarrassment!

I must say though, it would have been interesting to see how much credit card debt Hillary and Sarah have on those credit card reports, wouldn’t it? We all know what Kim Kardashian does, but let’s face it, she is not the best example of someone who budgets carefully, so who really cares! But Hillary and Sarah… would love to have seen how naughty or nice they really are when it comes to their finances. Let’s not forget, how you do anything is how you do everything, so seeing how a politician spends their own money would also tell us how they would spend taxpayer money!

Oh well! I guess let’s instead focus on our own spending habits this week! Remember, before buying something, always ask yourself if you really need it. Ask yourself if you genuinely want it. And if you do want it, then do you like it or do you LOVE it? If you stop for a moment to be honest with yourself when shopping, you’re guaranteed to make smarter decisions and save yourself some money! Remember, it’s not just about how much you make, but how much you save!