A lot of people feel challenged to meet all of their responsibilities in the present, so it is easy to understand why they may not want to think about planning for the future. However, this does not make it right. If you do want to retire at some point in time, you have to come up with some type of retirement plan that makes sense. Simply sitting idly by and expecting Social Security and Medicare to take care of everything when you reach the typical retirement age is going to leave you completely unprepared and you may never be able to retire.
As things stand on this day the average monthly Social Security check is not enough for most people to live on comfortably. And, Medicare does cover long-term care at all and there are out-of-pocket costs that must be paid on some of the services that are covered. You also have to consider the fact that we are in the throes of a federal budget crisis and cuts to these programs seem to be forthcoming.
Some people who want to take steps to be prepared for a comfortable retirement choose to serve in the armed forces. Veterans who have served for at least twenty years are entitled to a pension, and if you were to spend your entire career in the military your pension plus your Social Security benefits may be enough to provide you with enough income to live comfortably.
You could also choose to retire after twenty years and then start a new career as a civilian. The pension income could be set aside as a retirement fund and you could also contribute into the 401(k) plan at your new job. In this manner you could really put yourself in an advantageous position by the time you reach full retirement age as recognized by the Social Security Administration.
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