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Let me tell you my story - it might help you see what you need to do.
5 years ago I was in major burnout mode. I'd been working in a corporate job for 33+ years. I wanted to quit then but I made myself stay until my husband was eligible for Medicare. I left the workplace when he turned 65 with 18 months of COBRA for me until I figure out what else to do. We don't quite have $1M and we still have a mortgage although we are in pretty good shape overall. We could exist on our savings and Social Security - but it would be just that - existing. In my planning I made the mistake of trying to figure out how little we could live on instead of how much I wanted to live on.
I could probably get a part time job - like you, I had ideas of working at a job doing something I loved. But the honest truth is, it's really hard to go to work for a mere $250 a week (25 hours at $10/hr) and without benefits. I was used to making $95K and while I didn't expect to go into another job making that kind of money, working for that little doesn't seem worth the effort. It is difficult, if not impossible, to find somewhere that you can work part time and get health insurance.
I'm starting to think that I may need to go back to work full time for a couple more years if not until 65. A lot depends on what happens with ACA. I'm not hopeful that I will be able to get an affordable plan or that my husband will be able to continue his supplemental policy with his pre-existing conditions. It's a scary world out there right now for anyone over 55 trying to get insured.
You may have to stick it out a little longer or look for another full-time opportunity that will carry you for a few more years with benefits. I almost wish now that I had changed jobs back when I was at the end of my rope. I hated the thought of having to "start all over again" at another job that late in my career but it looks like I may have to do that anyway.
Best of luck in whatever you decide.
If you're in Travis county take a look at the Medical Access Program, I think it would cover you until you reached the Medicare age, you may have to shuffle some things around with regards to mortgage vs savings etc to be eligible though. I believe all Texas counties are required by state law to have medical access programs for low income people. I know from direct secondhand experience that the Travis county program is pretty good especially considering it's low cost (ER visit $25, prescriptions $7 or so, etc), don't know about the other counties. It is not sufficient to meet the ACA "coverage" requirements, so you would have to decide what is the best for you with regards to the penalties etc. Just throwing it out there in case you didn't know.
What you really need is health insurance until you are old enough for Medicare. A part time retail job is not going to give you insurance. Only people who have never worked these jobs think they come with perks like insurance. Academic life does insulate you from the real world. I think if you want to really be able to evaluate this fairly the first step would be to get that retail job, work part time on weekends and see for sure that it's something you can do and it does indeed, come with benefits. My experience tells me the only part time retail job that has insurance is Starbucks. And these jobs are hard physical work. You will need some really good shoes and compression socks. McJobs are good exercise!
Have you priced out ACA insurance based on 1 salary? Honestly I think I would wait and see what's going to happen to ACA. It would be a shame to leave your real job then find there is no insurance available a few months down the road. At least not anything affordable.
There is a good chance once you leave that real job, there is no going back. Age discrimination is rampant out there. I left my real job back in 2008 with the intention of moving and finding something else. I was at the top of my career and while I was spending the years safe in my office the world changed. Education and experience is not valued as much as it used to be. Especially if it comes in an old package. The universe sort of retired me and all I have done since 08 are the McJobs you discussed. No pay, mind numbing, and boring. My feet will never be the same. And none of those jobs came with benefits of any kind.
It does occur to me there may be some alternatives available to you. Perhaps you could teach at a local or community college part time and still have benefits. Try something new to you that's still in or related to your field of study.
I wish you all the luck in the world and I hope your leap turns out well. Just be really sure there is water in the pool before you take that last step!
Since IRS isn't enforcing penalties for people who don't have insurance or creditable coverage, could you find an affordable policy outside of the Obamacare exchanges? I'm not sure they exist yet.
It may not meet Obamacare criteria but could satisfy your needs.
My brother, 63 had the same problem. He is self-employed and makes too much money to qualify for Obamacare subsidy. He and his wife pay close to $3000 a month for premiums as well because the policy must include so many things - like maternity care - that they don't need or want.
I haven't read each thread, but you are 61. Can you hang in until you are 62...a year or less.....then collect SS which would offset the cost of insurance for both of you or it may even cover the full amount...maybe with a surplus even. Could you also withdraw from your 401k monthly to cover the cost? I'm not sure how financially savvy that would be...just a suggestion.
Agree life is too short to stay for four-five more years until you are 65/66. I retired at 62 for the same reason....not happy on the job. No regrets! Working a minimum wage retail job would not appeal to me at all, but to each his own. I certainly would not expect any retail sales job to offer benefits so you would be doing it for fun or just to get out of the house.
ETA: My friend just got Medicare and went with Kaiser Permanente for her supplemental plan and said it is reasonable. Kaiser might be a viable option for you.
Last edited by Celeste16; 05-01-2017 at 04:58 PM..
Reason: Add info
My primary home is in Massachusetts, I am a 57 year old healthy single woman, self-employed (partly retired), and I pay about $350 per month for health insurance with a large deductible (which I have had since 2005, and used only once, when I had a brief scare related to retinal bleeding inside my eyes). Massachusetts has had mandatory health insurance plans (I guess Romneycare, which is similar to Obamacare but older, instituted when Romney was the governor) since around 2005 when I was 45, and my health insurance premium has gone up only about $80 per month over these 12 years. What I pay for health insurance in my late 50s (similar to what I'll be paying in early 60s) isn't that much more than what I will be paying for Medicare after 65. I plan to fully retire at 61, and do not consider health insurance as any major factor in that plan. I do not get it why people fret so much about affording health insurance if they retire early - what, is everybody so much sicker than I, or is healthcare so much more expensive everywhere outside Massachusetts??
A 63 year old benefits far more being rated in a risk pool with a thirty something woman with maternity coverage than the reverse.
Move the thirty something woman into a risk pool with other thirty something women and move the 63 year olds into a risk pool with other sixty year olds and guess who gets the short end of that stick?
There is a reason AARP was up in arms over Trumpcare's potential change to increase the maximum premium difference based on age from 3x to 5x.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pilotpair
My brother, 63 had the same problem. He is self-employed and makes too much money to qualify for Obamacare subsidy. He and his wife pay close to $3000 a month for premiums as well because the policy must include so many things - like maternity care - that they don't need or want.
OP: You might be able to game the system to get a subsidy for an ACA policy.
I don't think they consider assets, just income. If you quit and your income drops low enough, you would get a subsidy. If you lived on savings or a loan, e.g. a HELOC, your income could be quite low.
Another reason we are stashing cash now before we retire. Savings isn't considered income but pulling from investments is. We'll have hubby's pension and SS when I retire early. The actual income will still be low enough to ensure an ACA plan for me will be affordable but we'll still have a nice savings cushion to pull from for the extras and traveling. Hope it works out the way I imagine it will in my head. LOL
The biggest "con" is that such jobs DO NOT OFFER health insurance. Most will be part-time, swing-shift, and on-call. You are 60 yo - are you prepared to be on your feet all day? Because retail sales positions don't include chairs.
You are an intelligent professional - how are you going to feel when the customers come in and treat you like the idiot hired help? Because they will. The more upscale the place, the more likely you are to run into folks who think its their dog-given right to make you feel small and treat you like dirt.
You don't have that long to go to "normal" retirement. I'd hang in there were I you. Or look into Obamacare. Though given the current administration, that's pretty risky, especially if you're in one of those states that the state legislature allowed stupidly high premiums, or has otherwise impeded it somehow.
Another job in your field MIGHT be a solution. Even if its a temporary solution, you don't have that much further to go. Take into account any retirement benefits you'd be losing from moving now though.
But going into hourly slavey jobs? That will hurt you and make you far far FAR more miserable than you think you already are. There will be enough people who treat you like crap that it will ruin each and every day for you. And you won't even be getting enough remuneration to take the sting out of it.
Plus - age discrimination. You'll be hard pressed to get a retail sales job at your age, even in a shop that caters to women your age. And then you'll likely find it IMPOSSIBLE to get back into your actual profession.
There's an old fable about a bird who is freezing. She falls off her branch, half dead with cold, and falls into a pile of manure. The manure is hot and steaming (as properly built compost piles are) and soon she is warm and comfortable. She begins to sing. A cat hears her and digs her out and eats her.
The moral is - if you're warm and comfy, keep your mouth shut - even if it is a pile of sh**!
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