For most people, signing up for Medicare is a retirement rite of passage.
But as they turn 65 and sort through their Medicare Part A, B, C and D choices, many individuals can also be vulnerable to costly mistakes.
Even done the right way, it’s a high-stakes choice. Medicare beneficiaries will need as much as $400,000 for health expenses per couple, according to 2018 research from the Employee Benefit Research Institute. That is up from $370,000 in 2017.
Sanford “SK” Sentaro Kaleolani (Nakagawa) Kame‘ekua, 72, of Kailua, passed away peacefully on November 25, 2019, with the love of his life, Sandy at his side. Sanford graduated from Kaimuki High School. Shortly thereafter, he joined the Hawaii National Guard and was sent to Vietnam.
Sanford had a passion for music and the ocean. He was a self taught talented musician and composer, performing in the late 60’s through the mid 80’s at the Chart House, Park Shore Hotel and other Waikiki venues.
When not performing, he could be found diving off the shores of Waimanalo. He had the “squid eye” and almost always brought home squid and other ocean delights. He retired from Da Bus.
Sanford is survived by his beloved wife, Sandy and his German Shepherd Ka’ele; step- daughter, Cami (Ken) Kamano- Morikawa, step-son Roger Kamano, Jr. and step-grandchild Brandi-Ayn Kamano and great step-grand- children Lily and Liam Kamano; sisters, Sharen (Frank) Sylva of Maui, Christine Nalani (Robert) Ladd of Oregon, and Luann Iwalani of South Carolina; brother Stephen Nakagawa of North Carolina; nieces and nephews.
Graveside services will be held on Thursday, December 12, 2019, 1:00 p.m. at Hawaiian Memorial Park Mortuary, Veteran’s Cemetery.
Retiree News extends heartfelt sympathy to his family and friends.
From the Frolic Hawaii website
So it’s not like Popeyes invented the chicken sandwich. Remember? Here’s where you can get good to great versions in Honolulu at local spots that aren’t national or global chains.
From the U.S. News & World Report website
If you’re in the market for a hearing aid, you may be shocked by the price tag.
According to the hearing aid review site HearingTracker.com, the average cost of one hearing aid is $2,372; the average cost of a pair of hearing aids is $4,672. Even if you have Medicare, your plan won’t cover the cost of hearing aids, and most private insurance plans do not typically fully cover the expense either.
That’s because the limits for pretax saving have gone up for aspiring retirees. And those already in retirement will see a modest boost to their Social Security retirement benefits, along with increased Medicare Part B premiums.
These charts give you an idea of how these changes may pad or pinch your wallet.
A transfer of authority ceremony was held this morning for the next Adjutant General for the State of Hawaii. Maj. Gen. Joe Logan transferred authority to Maj. Gen. Kenneth S. Hara, who was previously the Deputy Adjutant General. Logan will be retiring from the Hawaii Army National Guard, after five years of leadership as Adjutant General, next month. Hara has served in numerous positions of increased authority and responsibility from 29th Infantry Brigade Commander and most recently as the Commander of the Hawaii Army National Guard. Please join the State of Hawaii Department of Defense in welcoming our new Adjutant General, Maj. Gen. Hara and his ohana, and thanking Maj. Gen. Logan, and his ohana, for his service.
See more photographs of the ceremony
COL Stephen Logan is now serving as the State of Hawaii’s Deputy Adjutant General (DAG)
A day the U.S. will never forget. At 7:55 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, a Japanese force of 183 airplanes attacked U.S. forces on Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands without warning. @PACAF @JointBasePHH @USNavy #RememberPearlHarbor pic.twitter.com/sLsMueeiul
— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) December 7, 2018
The USS Arizona (shown above) as she appeared after a comprehensive modernization in 1929–1931 at the Norfolk Navy Yard in Portsmouth, Virginia.
USS Arizona was a Pennsylvania-class battleship built for the United States Navy in the mid-1910s. Named in honor of the 48th state’s recent admission into the union, the ship was the second and last of the Pennsylvania class of “super-dreadnought” battleships.
Although commissioned in 1916, the ship remained stateside during World War I. Shortly after the end of the war, Arizona was one of a number of American ships that briefly escorted President Woodrow Wilson to the Paris Peace Conference.
The ship was sent to Turkey in 1919 at the beginning of the Greco-Turkish War to represent American interests for several months. Several years later, she was transferred to the Pacific Fleet and remained there for the rest of her career.
From the State Department of Health website
The Hawai‘i Department of Health (DOH) is advising travelers to be on alert for measles as international outbreaks around the Pacific and elsewhere continue to increase. This year, there were four reported cases of travel-related measles in Hawai‘i including three visitors and one resident. In 2018, there were no reported cases of measles in the state. An advisory was sent to physicians in November, and healthcare providers are reminded to be vigilant.
This undated photograph show aircrew and mechanics reacting to a klazton sounding a scramble. The 199th Fighter Squadron has stood 24/7 alert since 0001 on October 23, 1958.
The story linked in the Twitter feed above was updated on December 2, 2019 with additional brands recalling flour products on November 4, 2019.
From The New York Times website
A new and distinct problem has been discovered in air bags made by the now bankrupt company Takata which has led to at least one death.
The recently discovered malfunction is different than the defect that led to at least 24 deaths and hundreds of injuries worldwide, though the result, like the earlier issue, leads to air bags that can explode and hurl shrapnel, killing or injuring people.
Takata is adding about 1.4 million front driver inflators to recalls in the U.S., according to government documents posted Wednesday.
BMW is warning owners of some older 3-series cars to stop driving them.
Pan American Airways Martin M-130 Hawaii Clipper at Pan Am’s Pearl Harbor base in 1937. pic.twitter.com/8Sgy4mBOrU
— Hawaii Aviation (@HawaiiAviation) January 5, 2019
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and commonly known as Pan Am, was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial flag carrier of the United States from 1927 until its collapse on December 4, 1991.
It was founded in 1927 as a scheduled air mail and passenger service operating between Key West, Florida and Havana, Cuba. The airline is credited for many innovations that shaped the international airline industry, including the widespread use of jet aircraft, jumbo jets, and computerized reservation systems. It was also a founding member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global airline industry association.
Identified by its blue globe logo (“The Blue Meatball”), the use of the word “Clipper“ in its aircraft names and call signs, and the white uniform caps of its pilots, the airline was a cultural icon of the 20th century. In an era dominated by flag carriers that were wholly or majority government-owned, it was also the unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States. During most of the jet era, Pan Am’s flagship terminal was the Worldport located at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. (Wikipedia)
Pan American Airways association with Hawaii began with M-130 China Clippers and ended in the jet age when they ceased operations in 1991.
Retiree News 