The husband (a current IBMer) of one of our DFW IBMers members and his spouse (a former IBMer) heard a rumor that if you are grandfathered in the “old” original IBM retirement plan you will probably need to retire sometime this year to keep the plan. If you don’t, you will have to take the cash option when you do retire. Does anyone have information about this rumor? This could have a huge impact and they want to plan ahead. If you have any feedback, please send your information directly to queenbettina44@aol.com. Thank you!

If you retired before Dec. 31, 1996, you are eligible to apply for 80% reimbursement of your Medicare B premium – that’s $900 per family per year. All claims must be post marked by December 31 of the following year. This means if you have not made a claim for 2008, you need to do so by 12/31/2009.

Contact IBM at 1-800-796-9876 to request the form for reimbursement.

Thanks to Karen Ball for providing the following information about the Special Health Assistance Provision:

I thought you mind find this interesting, and, maybe others who are not familiar with this would want to know. It isn’t intuitive when you retire. My father who passed away last year never filed for this after he retired. Also, I found an article that speaks to this from another IBM retiree website that also contained some interesting information.

Special Health Assistance Provision (SHAP) eligibility: Once eligible for Social Security (SS), which makes you eligible for Medicare, SS will deduct for Medicare Part A & B. You file reimbursement using the Acceleris form with IBM and IBM will reimburse you for a portion of Medicare Part B Premium. File quarterly. The fax number is 1-813-830-7900. It’s not big money, but, it is something – my mother files and receives about $150 quarterly.

Here is an article I just found on an IBM Tampa Bay retiree website (you might also find their home site interesting too):

http://www.itbrc.org/MemArea/SHAP_Health.htm

Contact # is 1-888-880-2775 – www.acclarisonline.com

Special Health Assistance Provision (SHAP) Reimbursement request form

(Acclaris)

31M-H-4701 100 (revised 11/06)