Tomorrow I go thru 2018-2022 data for watch list.

NY Times sharable article Here

Another matter some may not be aware of. In addition to your Medicare Part D plan through a private carrier, if your income is above a certain threshold there is a Medicare Part D IRMAA. This varies from $12.90 to $81.00 per month and deducted from your monthly social security check. It doesn’t pay anything for drugs etc. like your private Part D plan, simply a surcharge based on income.

Wow. That is a sneaky way to take another $ 81.00 from you.
I was not expecting much from SSA but was hoping it would at least cover the Medicare premiums but now that u added a surcharge, i have to be prepared for out of pocket.
I can see a claw back based on income coming for SS payments.
I think the smarter ones have most of their wealth in Roth IRAs.

Charlie Munger, Mr Buffet's "moral compass," passed away this afternoon. Wise, witty, humane and unfiltered, we will not see his like again.
He was, in many ways, what I wish the very wealthy all were: decent people largely unaffected by their wealth. I cannot for the life of me understand why the mere fact that your bank account is followed by six more zeros than mine meant that you needed to live in a house the size of a small museum or that you should no longer notice the lives and dreams of those around you.
I will miss him, though not a millionth as much as Mr Buffett shortly will.

Another matter some may not be aware of. In addition to your Medicare Part D plan through a private carrier, if your income is above a certain threshold there is a Medicare Part D IRMAA. This varies from $12.90 to $81.00 per month and deducted from your monthly social security check. It doesn’t pay anything for drugs etc. like your private Part D plan, simply a surcharge based on income.

I sure hope this absolutely essential article is widely accessible
https://messaging-custom-newsletters.nytimes.com/dynamic/render?campaign_id=116&emc=edit_pk_20231128&first_send=0&instance_id=108789&nl=paul-krugman&paid_regi=2&productCode=PK&regi_id=22268089&segment_id=151171&te=1&user_id=83d45440ead1d14c2a89a1e7221337d1&uri=nyt://newsletter/16d4082b-477e-50ee-bfbe-1a3332e673c5

85% of cost is the cap, irrespective of whether @junkster makes $1m or $1b per year, which should alleviate his concern that his premiums are going to keep getting worse as his income keeps rising - in other words the income effect has a cap.
I have a question on part D. Is it mandatory, similar to Part B?

Thanks Yogi. Excellent chart / post. A few years ago I thought nothing of having 10 K sitting at the credit union earning near 0. Cash rates were so low it didn’t much matter and I felt good supporting the local CU. But like most everybody now I’d guess, that cash has migrated to mm funds. So it goes,

Thanks Mike for your thoughts re LCR. That’s about what I’ve gathered as well from couple hours looking at it. Yes, returns since LCR opened are similar.
I had overlooked your comment re robo. (Got it now.)
Adding to my earlier comments … 3 stocks count as 10% of portfolio combined. Than 10% in cash. 8 assorted funds make up the rest. (KISS)
Anybody else own LCR?

Charlie Bilello has this chart for m-mkt fund assets at X/Twitter. A lot of these came from banks.

Given the fungibility of MM AUM and commercial bank deposits, I think bank deposits should be part of the analysis / conversation.

Just saw a Bloomy headline indicating $1T moved from banks to money market mutual funds. If any one has subscription, feel free to post details like how the migration may have impacted bank liquidity, profitability, and solvency. On the flip side, fund companies are minting money with their high ER on MM funds.

Not brand new (January 2020) - But would appreciate any takes on LCR from Leuthold. The Professor mentions a cousin LCORX in his November commentary. Both funds have “gold” ratings at M*. The ETF is a little less expensive at .85% (waiver in effect) than LCORX. But .85% still seems high to me for a ETF. The objectives appear similar. However, from what I can tell LCR invests in other ETFs, while LCORX owns stocks / other assets directly.
Probably won’t buy either. Sticking with a 10 component allocation model I’ve used for a number of months now and like. So would need to toss another holding out to make room for anything new.

Medicare is subsidized for all eligible participants. It isn't based on any inflation index. Medicare looks at its estimated expenses and then devises several IRMAA tiers annually with varying levels of income and subsidies. For Part B, participants pay 25% (basic, no IRMAA), 35% (1st IRMAA), 50%, 65%, 80%, 85% (max IRMAA) of the total program costs. I am not aware of any Medicare premium caps beyond this determination by Medicare.
For 2024, for joint filers,
Part B basic is $174.70/mo, and max with IRMAA is $594.00/mo,
Part D basic is by the plan, plus IRMAA, max IRMAA is $81.00.
The Finance Buff also has estimated for 2025, but SSA/Medicare will announce those only in November 2024.
www.ssa.gov/benefits/medicare/medicare-premiums.html
https://thefinancebuff.com/medicare-irmaa-income-brackets.html

I had to go to Google to know what IRMAA is. I guess it means if you are subject to the adjustment, you are more well-off than most people. Appears the government dole is structured so the money goes to the ones who most need it. Hard to argue with that when Medicare is under so much financial pressure.

What is IRMAA?
The Medicare income-related monthly adjustment amount, or IRMAA, is a surcharge on Medicare premiums for Medicare Part B (medical insurance) and Part D prescription drug plans. It applies only to Medicare beneficiaries who have a modified adjusted gross income above $97,000 ($103,000 in 2024) for an individual return and $194,000 ($206,000 in 2024) for a joint return. If your earnings are below this threshold, IRMAA doesn't apply to you.

Hear

"...It's a song about ALICE, remember?" LOL. My insurance agent brought me the brake fluid in person. THAT is some kinda insurance agent!
Not subject to IRMAA here. Although I dunno if I agree that the tax system is aimed at assisting those most in need. The highest tax bracket re: the 1040 form is capped artificially LOW, both for individuals and corporations; and we all know that corporations don't pay taxes because they just include that cost in the price of whatever they're selling to the rest of us.

It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I bought a government agency bond, AA+ rating, at 6.25%, 10 year duration. Callable - yes. Will it last 10 years? Most probably not, But I'll take the rate as long as they want to give it.

I had to go to Google to know what IRMAA is. I guess it means if you are subject to the adjustment, you are more well-off than most people. Appears the government dole is structured so the money goes to the ones who most need it. Hard to argue with that when Medicare is under so much financial pressure.

What is IRMAA?
The Medicare income-related monthly adjustment amount, or IRMAA, is a surcharge on Medicare premiums for Medicare Part B (medical insurance) and Part D prescription drug plans. It applies only to Medicare beneficiaries who have a modified adjusted gross income above $97,000 ($103,000 in 2024) for an individual return and $194,000 ($206,000 in 2024) for a joint return. If your earnings are below this threshold, IRMAA doesn't apply to you.

Medicare wasn't up big. So, IRMAA? It's painful the 1st year it hits, then one gets used to it. For couples, it's 2x ITMAA.

Yes, IRMAA. Still a bummer. It will only get worse as I get older because of my increasing RMDs.

Thank you for contributing towards deficit reduction!
I think there is a cap on Medicare premiums. The current cap is less than $600 per month if I recall correctly. I would think you may already be close to the cap if your premiums went up by nearly $300.
Additional income may not be meaningfully punitive.

Medicare wasn't up big. So, IRMAA? It's painful the 1st year it hits, then one gets used to it. For couples, it's 2x ITMAA.

Yes, IRMAA. Still a bummer. It will only get worse as I get older because of my increasing RMDs.

Medicare wasn't up big. So, IRMAA? It's painful the 1st year it hits, then one gets used to it. For couples, it's 2x IRMAA.