ArcaMax

Dear Toni,

I am retiring in February when I turn 65 and will need to enroll in Medicare Parts A and B with a Medicare Supplement and a Part D prescription drug plan.

My husband, James, is 72 and has heart issues, so he enrolled in Medicare A and B when he turned 65 and remained on my company benefits to have his heart surgery. He is taking ...Read more

My columns are usually focused on one theme or topic. But every once in a while, I like to just dig into my email inbox and pull out random questions. Here are six for today.

Q: I was married to my ex for 23 years. Of course, I worked all of those years. But I also worked and paid into Social Security for about 10 years before we were married. ...Read more

Toni:

I never should have listened to my brother who bragged about how his Medicare Advantage plan was a great way to save money and not have to spend so much on my Medicare supplement plan’s premium. I discovered that the eye doctor who was to perform surgery on my right eye in early January is not in this plan. I should have called his ...Read more

Every once in a while, I will use a word or phrase -- with the most innocent of intentions -- that nevertheless ends up driving some people nuts. Well, if not "nuts," it at least makes them irate enough to send me an email voicing their anger with my language choices. I've saved some up, and here they are today.

Q: It really gets my goat when ...Read more

Toni,

I have Original Medicare with a Supplement and in October, I was taken by ambulance to the emergency room for heart issues. I was surprised when I signed a hospital form stating that I was “under observation,” as the doctor decided whether to admit me as an inpatient or send me home. I was lucky that he sent me home.

During this ...Read more

I have always been amazed by the number of people who think Social Security is unique to the United States. Or if not truly unique, they figure that maybe a couple of those "socialist" countries such as Sweden and Denmark might have social insurance programs in place, but surely not too many other places. As someone once said to me following a ...Read more

ATLANTA -- A few days after Thanksgiving, in his second year as executive chef at Meals on Wheels Atlanta, Chris Kelly received a thank you letter and phone call from a woman who had received one of his carefully prepared turkey dinners.

Meals on Wheels Atlanta is a nonprofit organization funded primarily by private, foundation and corporate ...Read more

ATLANTA -- A few days after Thanksgiving, in his second year as executive chef at Meals on Wheels Atlanta, Chris Kelly received a thank you letter and phone call from a woman who had received one of his carefully prepared turkey dinners.

Meals on Wheels Atlanta is a nonprofit organization funded primarily by private, foundation and corporate ...Read more

Toni:

In 2022, the Toni Says Medicare team enrolled me in Medicare with Medicare Supplement and Medicare Part D plan including my prescriptions that had copay only. When I looked online at Medicare.gov, I noticed that the diabetic insulin I take will no longer be covered for 2025. This change will cost $391 monthly out-of-pocket. And Ozempic,...Read more

I'm dusting off an old Thanksgiving-themed column I ran many years ago. I thought that now would be a good time to remind people what Social Security is all about.

I'm going to suggest that we Americans give thanks for the Social Security program. I know lots of people like to think that the "good old days" (before Social Security) were, well, ...Read more