Retirees

SMWIA retirees are critical to helping our Union grow and in providing the strength behind our political action.

Since retired members are an essential part of the union, our site has been developed carefully to provide a wide range of information important to both current and future retirees. These issues include the preservation of retirement security through Social Security and Medicare; and information for members that help them keep their strong ties to their union once they retire.

We will help you defend your rights and obtain the best benefits available to you as a union member. Take a few minutes and browse through our site and find what your union has to offer. It's your union, let us know if there is an issue that you’d like to see covered.

Featured Links

Financial Planning for Retiree Members In depth practical advice about retirement planning and advice for issues you will confront during your retirement years.

Employee Benefits Security Administration Large volume of pension and 401(k) informnation from the federal agency charged with protecting them.

Pension Rights Center The Pension Rights Center is the country’s only consumer organization dedicated solely to protecting and promoting the retirement security of American workers, retirees, and their families.

News

Visit the New Blog for the Alliance for Retired Americans

The blog comes in addition to our website - with frequently updated content, comments from readers and photo/video features. We encourage you to "bookmark" the blog on your computer and check in periodically for news.

Senate May Vote to Offer Medicare to Those 55 - 64
President Obama hailed a tentative health care agreement announced in the Senate on Tuesday night, saying that he would support it, and majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) sent the proposal to the Congressional Budget Office for cost analysis the next day. According to The New York Times, the deal would allow some people ages 55 to 64 to buy coverage through Medicare beginning in 2011. At first, they would pay full cost. Eventually, the legislation would allow them to obtain subsidies to help defray the cost. Senior advocates view the Medicare expansion as a major step for people nearing retirement who face some of the biggest obstacles to obtaining insurance and pay some of the highest prices. The agreement also calls for creating a menu of national insurance plans, modeled after those offered to federal workers, including members of Congress. The new, nonprofit insurance plans would be overseen by the Office of Personnel Management, which now runs the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. The deal maintains the public option as a fallback plan, to be "triggered" if private insurers do not step up to offer the new national plans.