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Old 10-17-2015, 08:23 AM   #41
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But I remember the high inflation of 35 years ago and do not want that back.
Yeah. But you had to love the 15% CD rates!
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Old 10-17-2015, 09:30 AM   #42
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Yeah. But you had to love the 15% CD rates!
And I had almost zero in them at that time, raising family, buying home(with 11.9% mortgage rate and lucky it was not higher at the time)( I never paid less than 8% on my mortgages, 1973 thru 1989).Now I have not had a mortgage for about 25 years.
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Old 10-17-2015, 12:33 PM   #43
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To make matters worse, we just got notice that our prescription insurance is going up ~30%, or $112/month next year. Sez who there's no inflation? Liars!
But think of what you are saving in gasoline costs.
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Old 10-17-2015, 12:38 PM   #44
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...So, tempting though it may be, don't murder your spouse or ex if you're planning on taking spousal benefits.
I beg to differ... I would advise don't get convicted of murdering your spouse or ex if you're planning on taking spousal benefits.
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Old 10-17-2015, 12:42 PM   #45
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Looks like I'll be in the 30 percent of Medicare beneficiaries who will be on the hook for a premium increase to help pay for the increasing cost. I'm glad to see the ACA is reducing medical cost so much. And thanks to the wisdom of our lawmakers, I get to help pay the premium increases for the other 70% while they get a free ride. Add insult to injury, I have basically have no choice. Well since I didn't have any choice to pay SS and Medicare taxes all my working years, then why should I have a choice now that I'm retired.

Is this a great country or what.
Is it correct that you could avoid the increase by starting to draw SS before 2016?

I'm not saying that a $50 a month increase in Medicare premiums would be a good reason to start SS before you planned, but certainly a factor to consider and might be a tipping point if you planned to start benefits in the near future anyway.
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Old 10-17-2015, 03:13 PM   #46
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Gas prices may be down but grocery prices certainly are not.
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Old 10-17-2015, 03:24 PM   #47
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Gas prices may be down but grocery prices certainly are not.
You live in a tiny town with one grocery store so there's no competition. They can charge whatever they want. I go to Walmart one mile away and save 10-20% off the every day prices at the local supermarket.
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Old 10-17-2015, 06:09 PM   #48
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You live in a tiny town with one grocery store so there's no competition. They can charge whatever they want. I go to Walmart one mile away and save 10-20% off the every day prices at the local supermarket.
I make a monthly trip to Walmart but it is a 150 mile round trip. The basics that I buy locally like bread and milk keep going up.
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Old 10-18-2015, 06:46 AM   #49
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The comments make me wonder - If things like grocery prices are up when gasoline is down (delivery/transport costs), what will the price of groceries be when/if gasoline prices go back up?
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Old 10-18-2015, 07:26 AM   #50
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I live in a competitive grocery market. Multiple grocery chains, including smaller specialty markets, such as Sprouts and Trader Joe's, as well as Walmart and Target. Red bell peppers used to be three for $1.00 on sale. Now they are $0.88 each on sale. Lettuce is $1.69 regular price this season, used to be $0.99. Frozen vegetables that could be snagged for $1.00 at Target last year are $1.82 on sale. Sugar, flour, other baking supplies are all up 20 percent in the last year or so. Eggs, thanks to the California cage law, went from $1.99 to $4.99. Halloween candy, which was a loss leader last year, is not cheap this year.

Boneless, skinless chicken and from what I see pork are still at or close to last year's prices. Meat prices are like oil prices, they vary with supply. Potatoes on sale are priced the same as last year.

Overall, my grocery bills are about 15 to 20 percent higher than last year. And I don't see them coming down anytime soon.

ETA: I just signed up for Social Security that will start next year. Guess I will use the money to stock up on food. That might be followed by guns and ammo, if prices get completely out of control!
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Old 10-18-2015, 08:15 AM   #51
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The comments make me wonder - If things like grocery prices are up when gasoline is down (delivery/transport costs), what will the price of groceries be when/if gasoline prices go back up?
My guess is they will go up, a lot. And of course the government and most people will blame the oil companies for that too.
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Old 10-18-2015, 09:13 AM   #52
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Gas prices may be down but grocery prices certainly are not.
That's for sure. Grocery prices here have gone way up.

What amazes us, is that none of the menu prices at our favorite mom'n'pop restaurants have gone up yet. I know they probably buy their food from different sources than just the grocery store down the street, but still. The portion sizes haven't decreased, either. One restaurant did go out of business. I don't know how long the others can survive but so far, so good.
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Old 10-18-2015, 11:49 AM   #53
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Its all in the details 1982.... My individual healthcare plan of $5k deductible for previous 5 years ranged from $72-$88 a month. This year because of Obamacare it went from $88 to almost $300 for a $6500 deductible. So my Obamacare inflation was triple digit inflation! And from what I read next year from local newspaper the Act is ready to kick me hard in the privates again. BTW- 1982 was a good year!


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Yes. The devil is in the individual details. They can say all they want but I have seen mass inflation in my health care because it is an individual policy and I don't qualify for a subsidy. So, for all cheering please know some of us are not.

Mulligan, just got my Anthem letter for 2016. To keep my 2015 level Bronze plan for 2016, my monthly premium went up @28%. (from $454 to $579) They outlined other changes to my coverage.
1. My coinsurance went from 15% to 35% (same plan)
2. Deductible of $6,000 stayed the same
3. Max out of pocket went from $6,350 to $6550 (same plan)
I went to the doctor only twice last year and that was unavoidable, for much needed antibiotics.

For those like me, ACA has had the opposite affect. I don't go to the doctor unless I have to. Paying monthly premiums buys me absolutely nothing, no care at all, Unless or until I have a catastrophic condition (knock on wood).

One additional change which doesn't affect me but will affect families is that Anthem (perhaps other insurers as well), states: It takes satisfying at least two or more of the individual deductibles to satisfy the Family Deductible. Apparently, they had situations where one member satisfied the Family Deductible and they were on the hook for all other family members or they found a way to get more dollars….because they could.

I will be shopping around again. Don't know what else I will be able to find in my state as my state. Plus this was already a BRONZE plan!!!
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Old 10-18-2015, 12:04 PM   #54
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The comments make me wonder - If things like grocery prices are up when gasoline is down (delivery/transport costs), what will the price of groceries be when/if gasoline prices go back up?
When fuel prices go up the stores raise prices to cover costs. But when the fuel price goes down there is never an associated lowering of prices for food.
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Old 10-18-2015, 12:06 PM   #55
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Yes. The devil is in the individual details. They can say all they want but I have seen mass inflation in my health care because it is an individual policy and I don't qualify for a subsidy. So, for all cheering please know some of us are not.



Mulligan, just got my Anthem letter for 2016. To keep my 2015 level Bronze plan for 2016, my monthly premium went up @28%. (from $454 to $579) They outlined other changes to my coverage.

1. My coinsurance went from 15% to 35% (same plan)

2. Deductible of $6,000 stayed the same

3. Max out of pocket went from $6,350 to $6550 (same plan)

I went to the doctor only twice last year and that was unavoidable, for much needed antibiotics.



For those like me, ACA has had the opposite affect. I don't go to the doctor unless I have to. Paying monthly premiums buys me absolutely nothing, no care at all, Unless or until I have a catastrophic condition (knock on wood).



One additional change which doesn't affect me but will affect families is that Anthem (perhaps other insurers as well), states: It takes satisfying at least two or more of the individual deductibles to satisfy the Family Deductible. Apparently, they had situations where one member satisfied the Family Deductible and they were on the hook for all other family members or they found a way to get more dollars….because they could.



I will be shopping around again. Don't know what else I will be able to find in my state as my state. Plus this was already a BRONZE plan!!!

I hear ya Sheehs. At your price including deductible you are in effect paying $13,000 before you get a penny of insurance assistance. Really in effect the policy is a subsidy for others. I haven't consumed $13k of medical use including my delivery charges at birth. I never go either. I have reverted back to the 1970s mentality... "I got a baseball sized knot growing on my head, I guess I better go to the doctor and check it out."
I don't think mine will be that high. But if it cost that much at my age ,51, I just wouldn't pay for it, and they could pound sand as I wouldn't pay the penalty either. If I was age 60 or higher I would pay it, complain, and run out the clock until Medicare.


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Old 10-18-2015, 01:09 PM   #56
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I don't know how they measure health care, because prices between insurers and providers are secret and providers have many different prices. Also not clear is how they factor in the transfer of cost from employer to employee via higher deductibles.

Here's a link to the BLS table with detail broken out by item. The biggest driver of inflation right now is rent. It's also pretty clear that manufactured goods are still falling while services, such as health care and insurance, are rising more than overall CPI. Given our typical profile here inflation is indeed hitting us more that average. Table 7. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): U.S. city average, by expenditure category, 12-month analysis table
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Old 10-18-2015, 01:55 PM   #57
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Originally Posted by sheehs1 View Post

Mulligan, just got my Anthem letter for 2016. To keep my 2015 level Bronze plan for 2016, my monthly premium went up @28%. (from $454 to $579) They outlined other changes to my coverage.
1. My coinsurance went from 15% to 35% (same plan)
2. Deductible of $6,000 stayed the same
3. Max out of pocket went from $6,350 to $6550 (same plan)
We got our Anthem letter a week or ago.

Happily our plan is still offered (a pre-ACA plan). Pretty much coverage stayed the same. The premium went up about 9%, which frankly I'm not all that unhappy about considering an ACA plan would still be almost twice the monthly premium.

We haven't had to use the plan much (we're generally healthy). This year I just had a covered yearly physical, a covered colonoscopy, a covered flu shot, and I paid $70 for a skin check. I still could get hit by a bus before year end, but I dutifully budget for the maximum out of pocket deductible. So I'm good (except for the actual pain for the bus thing...).
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Lower gas prices means no Social Security increase next year
Old 10-18-2015, 02:04 PM   #58
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Lower gas prices means no Social Security increase next year

Quote:
Originally Posted by sheehs1 View Post
Yes. The devil is in the individual details. They can say all they want but I have seen mass inflation in my health care because it is an individual policy and I don't qualify for a subsidy. So, for all cheering please know some of us are not.

For those like me, ACA has had the opposite effect. I don't go to the doctor unless I have to. Paying monthly premiums buys me absolutely nothing, no care at all, Unless or until I have a catastrophic condition (knock on wood).

One additional change which doesn't affect me but will affect families is that Anthem (perhaps other insurers as well), states: It takes satisfying at least two or more of the individual deductibles to satisfy the Family Deductible. Apparently, they had situations where one member satisfied the Family Deductible and they were on the hook for all other family members or they found a way to get more dollars….because they could.
I hear ya. I have a similar deductible and when I had a chronic cough checked out a year ago, the doc offered to do an X-ray although he said it would likely be negative. "No", I said. I've got a $6 thousand deductible. I don't want to pay for a negative X-ray." In retrospect, it was likely a seasonal allergy. It disappeared on its own. I'm due for a colonoscopy but have decided to postpone it to January since I haven't used up any of my deductible this year. May as well get a start on the 2016 deductible.

The family deductible/max OOP is tricky. I was pretty horrified when I found that we had to absorb twice the per-person deductible in one year even though it was all due to DH's expenses, in order to meet the family deductible. That was my previous employer and I believe it was $1,250 per person/$2,500 family. I'd like those deductibles back, please!

I try to live in the moment but I'm really looking forward to being eligible for Medicare in a couple of years. DH has it already.
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Old 10-18-2015, 02:09 PM   #59
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I live in a competitive grocery market. Multiple grocery chains, including smaller specialty markets, such as Sprouts and Trader Joe's, as well as Walmart and Target. Red bell peppers used to be three for $1.00 on sale. Now they are $0.88 each on sale. Lettuce is $1.69 regular price this season, used to be $0.99. Frozen vegetables that could be snagged for $1.00 at Target last year are $1.82 on sale. Sugar, flour, other baking supplies are all up 20 percent in the last year or so. Eggs, thanks to the California cage law, went from $1.99 to $4.99. Halloween candy, which was a loss leader last year, is not cheap this year.

Boneless, skinless chicken and from what I see pork are still at or close to last year's prices. Meat prices are like oil prices, they vary with supply. Potatoes on sale are priced the same as last year.

Overall, my grocery bills are about 15 to 20 percent higher than last year. And I don't see them coming down anytime soon.

ETA: I just signed up for Social Security that will start next year. Guess I will use the money to stock up on food. That might be followed by guns and ammo, if prices get completely out of control!
I find this interesting.
I don't pay that much attention to individual item prices.
Overall, our monthly grocery bill has not increased in the last year, so I have not noticed any food inflation.
I'm not saying you are wrong with the items you mention in your area. Just that we have no overall increase in our area.
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Old 10-18-2015, 02:35 PM   #60
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The comments make me wonder - If things like grocery prices are up when gasoline is down (delivery/transport costs), what will the price of groceries be when/if gasoline prices go back up?
as much as folks like to blame the government for all their ills, many times grocery prices are dependent on other factors.

Cost of eggs has gone up due to Avain flu wiping out a huge population of hens leading to a shortage.

Bake goods, mayonnaise etc are going to be higher.

California has been in a drought for 4 years.


We've been exporting a lot of dairy and cheese products to 3rd world countries and now we have a growing demand for it, you know what happens with supply and demand

Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting any faith in the bozos in Washington, they are the very definition of Murphys law, if they can screw it up they will
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