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The United States is lagging behind most of the world when it comes to credit card technology, but luckily it’s about to catch up. In the next 18 months, the US is gearing up to transition debit and credit cards away from the magnetic stripe to chip-and-PIN technology, which is already widely used in Europe, Asia and beyond. Who can you thank for the long-overdue upgrade? Target, whose data security breach earlier this year highlighted the security flaws in the magnetic stripe system. It’s a 50-year-old technology, after all, and it’s much easier to counterfeit than the computer chip in your next Visa card.
Continue reading http://ow.ly/wDxWP
You’re retired. Your kids are self-sufficient and the house is paid off. There’s no need to continue carrying life insurance, right?
For the most part, that’s correct, said Bob Adams, a certified financial planner with Armstrong Retirement Planning. Life insurance is intended to replace lost income if the policyholder dies prematurely, he explained. If you’re no longer working, there’s no income to replace.
Before you let your policy lapse, however, it’s important to consider your unique financial picture. There are plenty of exceptions for which continuing to pay those premiums into your 60s and beyond might make sense.
Read more http://ow.ly/wz7uC
Edward K. “Napi” Napihaa Jr., 75, of Hilo, a Hawaiian Airlines customer service agent and a Hawai‘i Army National Guard veteran, passed away in the Queen’s Medical Center on April 11, 2014. He was born in Hana, Maui. He is survived by hanai son Robert Almeida; mother Anna; brothers Anthony, Roland and Everett; and sisters Patricia Napihaa, Hazel Miller and Margaret Moore.
Many retirees are unclear with what Medicare does and doesn’t cover when it comes to eye care. The good news is that Medicare covers most medical issues like cataract surgery, treatment of eye diseases and medical emergencies. But unfortunately, routine care like eye exams and eyeglasses are usually the beneficiary’s responsibility.
Here’s a breakdown of how original Medicare covers your eyes, along with some tips that can help you reduce your out-of-pocket costs.
Read more http://ow.ly/wz4Sw
One way to save money on travel is to cash in on points earned through travel rewards credit cards. These cards can be a good way to score free flights and hotel stays – as long as you pay off your balance each month so that interest payments don’t outweigh any perks you receive.
However, there are so many travel rewards cards that it can be difficult to figure out which one makes the most sense for you. The major airlines offer credit cards linked to their frequent-flier programs. Hotel chains offer cards tied to their loyalty programs. And plenty of credit card companies offer their own versions of travel rewards cards. All let you earn points when you make purchases that can be redeemed for travel-related benefits – but that’s where the similarities end.
There really is no single best travel rewards card, says Tim Winship, publisher of FrequentFlier.com and editor-at-large for SmarterTravel.com. The key to choosing a card, he says, is to consider your travel habits
Read more http://ow.ly/wr3a
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 6, 2014
SCAM ALERT: SHERIFF IMPERSONATORS VICTIMIZING RESIDENTS
HONOLULU — Scam Alert: A reminder that there is a scam in which individuals are calling people and claiming to be Sheriff Deputies serving warrants for people who did not show up for jury duty or pay a ticket. They are offering to clear the warrant if people will pay for their product or service.
Deputy Sheriffs will NEVER call people about warrants having to do with jury duty or solicit the purchase of anything.
If you received a call matching this scam please alert our Sheriff Division by calling 808-586-1352.
# # #
Toni Schwartz
Public Information Officer
Department of Public Safety
Office: 587-1358
Cell: 683-5507
Toni.E.Schwartz@hawaii.gov
http://hawaii.gov/psd/
Starting this spring, more than 400,000 military retirees and senior dependents in the TRICARE for Life program will owe the full amount for certain prescription refills if they use a retail pharmacy rather than a military pharmacy or a mail service.
The change, part of a pilot program created by Congress, is meant to help control the cost of military health care. In its first year, it is expected to cut $120 million from the $3.3 billion that the U.S. Department of Defense pays annually for TRICARE For Life pharmacy needs.
The government insurance serves about 2 million military retirees and their dependents over 65, supplementing Medicare. TRICARE for Life accounts for nearly half of the $7.1 billion that the Defense Department spends each year on its pharmacy program.
Read more http://ow.ly/wqzpL
The 2014 Internet Security Threat Report gives an overview of global threat activity for the past year, based on data from Symantec’s Global Intelligence Network. http://ow.ly/wq9wq
Retired Col. James Kasler, the only three-time Air Force Cross recipient and a former prisoner of war, died in Florida on April 24. He was 87, reported the Daily Journal. Kasler enlisted in the Army Air Corps as a B-29 Superfortress tail gunner, flying combat missions over Japan during World War II. After getting his commission, Kasler flew 100 combat missions as an F-86 Sabre pilot over Korea, where he downed six enemy MiGs, becoming one of the first jet aces.
On June 29, 1966, Kasler earned his first Air Force Cross as an F-105 Thunderchief pilot leading a strike against a heavily defended target in Hanoi, Vietnam. Just five weeks later, he was awarded a second AFC for braving heavy ground fire while attempting to locate a downed pilot. His aircraft was hit during the search and he ejected, beginning six and a half years of captivity in North Vietnam. He was awarded his third AFC for resisting torture and keeping faith with his fellow captives through unimaginable hardship.
Kasler ended his 31-year uniformed career in 1975 as vice commander of the 366th Tactical Fighter Wing at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho. In addition to his three AFCs, Kasler received two Silver Star Medals, nine Distinguished Flying Crosses, and two Bronze Star Medals, reported the Daily Journal.
For more on Kasler, see Valor in Three Wars from the Air Force Magazine archive http://ow.ly/wr4hD
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RICHMOND, VA. — Commissary case lot sales are returning, announced Defense Commissary Agency director Joseph Jeu.
Jeu spoke at a commissary round table meeting of the American Logistics Association, whose members include manufacturers and distributors of products sold in commissaries, exchanges and other retail outlets on military bases.
The sales will resume this year from mid-August through September, said DeCA spokesman Kevin Robinson.
Until they were discontinued for budget reasons, the sales were held in May and September, generally in extra space outside the commissary. Larger items such as club packs helped offer savings over and above the regular savings that average about 30 percent.
The sales are “back by popular demand,” Jeu said, noting that customers as well as members of industry have asked for them.
Running two case lot sales in a year worldwide costs DeCA about $900,000. Industry has agreed to provide more support to reduce the costs for DeCA, Robinson said.
Paper Social Security benefits statements, which used to be mailed out every year and then fell victim to budget cuts, are going to make a partial comeback.
Starting this September, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will resume mailings at five-year intervals to workers who have not signed up to view their statements online, an agency spokesman told Reuters. The statements will be sent to workers at ages 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55 and 60, he said, adding the agency would continue to promote use of the online statements.
The SSA stopped mailing most paper statements in 2011 in response to budget pressures, and saved the SSA $70 million annually – about 50 cents per mailed statement. But the decision has been a sore point with some critics, who argue the statement provides a valuable annual reminder to workers of what they can expect to get back from payroll taxes in the future.
Read more http://ow.ly/wlSfY
Daniel Steve Oliveros, 57, of Ocean View, Hawai‘i, a former employee of Cal-Kona Produce and KTA Super Stores Keauhou, a food service worker, former security guard and a Hawai‘i Army National Guard veteran, passed away in Kona Community Hospital on April 20, 2013. He was born in Kealakekua,Hawai‘i.
He is survived by wife Roselyn; daughters Jasmine DeConte and Lyric Oliveros; mother Visitacion; brothers Stanley and Donald; sisters Carmen Sumbalen, Priscilla Llanes and Patricia Oliveros; and two grandchildren.
