The Notch that..The earliest age at which people can retire is age 6But that's about the worst age to retire. When people retire prior to "full" retirement age, their benefits are reduced, by as much as 30% depending on age. Full retirement age is the age at which retirees qualify for full, un-reduced benefits. That age varies, depending on when you were born, and people need to take action to confirm their full retirement age. Waiting until age 70 allows retirees to maximize their benefit by taking advantage of a delayed retirement credit of 8% per year..The purpose of this update each week is to give our supporters like you information about issues that are important to seniors, but that do not make the headlines. They are usually issues we are working on to ensure our elected officials keep faith with the commitments that were made to each of us during our lifetimes of work, especially concerning Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid..In January, one-third of all Medicare beneficiaries could see a Part B premium increase of 22 percent the highest increase in 27 years. Do you believe Congress should take action like it did last year to prevent the dramatic increase?.Another concern about congressional inaction on the debt ceiling is the potential for cuts to programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. In recent debates, Social Security benefits have been used as a bargaining chip and have been held hostage to the debt limit increase. Some retirees have felt the sting of unexpected benefit cuts. In 2015, following the passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act, millions of seniors, already eligible for Social Security benefits, learned that an important claiming method called "file and suspend" a particularly important protection for women who tend to have lower benefits than men would no longer be an option to them..Nearly twenty new initiatives were revealed at Monday's conference. In his speech, President Obama announced one that will encourage workers to save more for retirement by helping states create new workplace-based savings opportunities. Currently, around one-third of all employees do not have access to a workplace retirement plan. The initiative announced on Monday will "provide a clear path forward for states to create retirement savings programs" by the end of this year, President Obama said..On Thursday, Senate lawmakers passed legislation to suspend the debt ceiling until next spring, fund the government through December 8th, and provide .25 billion in relief to victims of Hurricane Harvey. At the time of writing this week's legislative update, the House had not yet voted on the legislation, but it is expected to pass with bipartisan support by the end of Friday afternoon..Some seniors may also experience income tax hikes this year particularly those who rely on investment income. Taxpayers with total incomes greater than 0,000 for individuals or 0,000 for joint filers will face a new 3.8 percent surtax on investment income. The Senior Citizens League fears that this new tax will disproportionately affect seniors at a time when they are struggling to keep up with rising costs. According to the Tax Foundation, reliance on investment income tends to increase with age, and 36 percent of taxpayers with dividend income and 38 percent with capital gains income are seniors..Attention deficit disorder is not just a condition affecting kids - it's often triggered by aging. When I was younger, my mother used to discover her eyeglasses in the fridge, but not too long ago I found mine there. Recently I attended a "Science of Willpower" workshop offered by our local Osher School of Lifelong Learning in Charlottesville, Virginia. There, I learned about the new epidemic of "age activated attention disorder" and received some good advice for helping us "hold that thought." Here's how the condition is described:
