April 06, 2009 04:47 PM ET | Michelle Andrews
As the automakers search for ways to cut costs, one of the areas that are likely to take a hit is retiree healthcare benefits. This was once a perk that many workers took for granted, along with their gold watches, but the number of employers offering retiree health benefits has been declining steadily for decades. Twenty years ago, 66 percent of companies provided retiree health benefits, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. By 2007, that percentage had fallen by half.
Today, the only thing that's certain about retiree health benefits is that they're likely to change. If you have or anticipate getting health insurance through an employer when you retire, those benefits may be reduced or eliminated, if current trends continue. And the Medicare program itself may change. President Obama's budget proposed requiring wealthy seniors to pay more for drug coverage under Medicare Part D, for example, and there has been talk of allowing people as young as 55 to buy into the Medicare program.
You can't control what changes may occur. What you can do is evaluate your own options and take steps to get the best healthcare possible once you retire.....
10 Ways to Get and Keep Healthcare Benefits in Retirement - On Health and Money (usnews.com)
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