Straight answers about your retirement money.

No. When SSA withholds benefits before full retirement age because of the earnings test, they credit it back at full retirement age by permanently raising your monthly check for the months that were fully withheld. It's not a lump sum — it's a higher benefit for life. The catch: only fully withheld months count.

It's risky. COBRA doesn't count as creditable coverage for Medicare, so delaying Part B can trigger a 10% penalty for every 12 months you wait — added to your premium for life — on top of a possible coverage gap. Unless you're still actively working with current-employer coverage, enroll at 65.

An RMD is the Required Minimum Distribution — the IRS-mandated minimum you must withdraw from traditional IRA and 401(k) accounts starting at age 73. You can't go below it. Converting pre-tax money to Roth before 73 shrinks future RMDs, because Roth accounts have none.

Watch the tax timing. Take the lump sum as cash and the full amount hits this year's income at once, which can push you into a higher bracket. A direct rollover to a traditional IRA sidesteps that and keeps full control. Run the break-even too: divide the lump sum by the monthly pension to see how long until the annuity catches up.

Yes, through IRMAA. Medicare uses a two-year lookback, so a conversion at 65–67 sets your Part B and Part D surcharges two years later. Bracket-filling can land you at or above the first IRMAA tier; overshooting by even a little adds premiums per person. Size each conversion against the Medicare surcharge, not just the tax bracket.

Not "run out." The trust fund is projected to fall short around 2033, but payroll taxes still cover roughly 78% of scheduled benefits after that — a shortfall Congress can close, not a shutoff. Plan, don't panic.