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Archive for the ‘Health Insurance’ Category

Not that we want to come over allpessimistic, but this recession has been going on for a long time now andthere’s no real sign it’s going to come to an end anytime soon. Looking around,the property market is still in deep trouble. Foreclosures were slowed by therobo-signing problem, but banks are picking up the pace again. The unemploymentrate is stuck in the 9.5% area nationally. Locally, of course, it can be farworse, particularly among the young and the older workers. So what do you do ifthe worst happens and your job is suddenly on the line? Well, the first part ofthe answer is you negotiate to stay in work. Even though you may have to worklonger hours or take a cut, this is better than no money coming in. Other thanthat? Well, it all comes down to how careful you’ve been with your money.

Looking back, some of the moralists havedrawn on nature for models of how best to live. Some animals are reallyindustrious during the summer. This is the time of plenty but they run aroundlike there’s no tomorrow, collecting food and burying it or putting itsomewhere safe for the hard times during the winter. Others sit around gettingfat and, when the food runs out, they starve and die. Well, it’s the same withus humans. If you not only stay within your budgets, but save while the boomyears give you plenty, you’re well set-up when hardship comes. But if youborrowed heavily and never paid down your debts, you’re in trouble when the paychecks stop.

The big question should you be given apink slip is what happens to your health coverage. During all these happy yearsof security, there’s been no need to worry about the world of privateinsurance. Now, suddenly, you’re negotiating the final package of severancepay. If you’re lucky, your employer may offer some help in finding somewherenew to work and, while all this is going on, you need to research theConsolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (better known as COBRA). Read the rest of this entry »

The world is often a confusing place and nowhere is the confusion likely to be so complete as in the tax system. Here we have the best brains in the Government taking on the best brains in the private sector. The Government wants the maximum tax take. The private sector wants to arrange things so that no one with money ever has to pay any tax. Somewhere in the middle the two world-views collide and, usually, some tax is paid. Anyway, when President Obama signed the healthcare reform bill into law, some of the largest employers in the US let out a collective sigh of pain. As an example, Caterpillar is the world’s largest manufacturer of excavators and bulldozers. The day after the President’s signature, Caterpillar announced it was taking a charge of $100 million to earnings over an expected loss of tax benefits. A number of other influential corporations have also made allowances in their accounts. The reason is that the healthcare reform ended a tax break given to cover the cost of supplying drugs to early retirees. Read the rest of this entry »