Case Study: How We Helped 3 Kaiser Permanente Employees with Retirement Planning

How our team helped in three common retirement planning situations for employees of Kaiser Permanente, focusing on layoffs, building a comprehensive plan specific to Kaiser Permanente, and maximizing the Kaiser Permanente pensions.

Michael Lee

By Farther

the farther outlook

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Case Study: How We Helped 3 Kaiser Permanente Employees with Retirement Planning

Our Farther Focus team has served many employees, physicians and union members of Kaiser Permanente and their often unique retirement planning needs. As one of the largest healthcare systems in the U.S., Kaiser Permanente has more than 300,000 employees. Because of the size of the company, there are many different situations that can unfold when it comes to financial planning, and, more specifically, retirement planning.

While we can't capture all of the different retirement scenarios in this piece, we want to highlight three case studies that we commonly build a plan around when working with Kaiser Permanente employees. We'll introduce you to Chris, Diane, and Perla, and help you understand how we approach scenarios like being laid off, bringing all of the pieces of your plan together as you close in on retirement, and making decisions about your Kaiser Permanente pension.

Case Study #1: Severance Program + Retirement Planning

Name: Chris
Position: Senior Systems Programmer
Age: 58 years old
Years of Service: 16 or 22
Planning Focus: Severance Program + Retirement Planning

Chris qualified for retirement benefits from KP when he was laid off. As such, he was able to effectively retire with his severance paid out for an additional 13 weeks of pay. We reviewed his retirement paperwork and realized he was not credited with 6 years of service during his time as a loaned employee via IBM. His pension & severance credit was severely reduced initially. By entering discussions with KP to file for that extra time we were able to help our client increase both his pension and severance payout.

Utilizing our services, Chris enjoyed the additional benefits that typically fall out of the scope of work for the typical financial advisor. As his fiduciary, we engaged with the company to make sure he was credited with the funds he was due. We also assist with all paperwork filing including pension elections, retiree medical filing, and rollovers for his Vanguard TSA & Plan B.
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Case Study #2: Comprehensive Planning Near Retirement

‍Name: Diane
Position: HR Compensation Manager
Age: 64 years old
Years of Service: 24
Planning Focus: Retirement Planning

Dianne had been working with my team for years planning her retirement from Kaiser Permanente. She enjoyed our expertise and service although she was a senior member of the HR team at KP. As we planned her potential retirement dates, we focused on the pension timing, retiree medical coverage timing, and PTO planning.

Dianne had a hard time deciding if she should take her pension as a lump sum or a monthly annuity. Over the years. we tracked the pension interest rates and explained how it would affect her overall payout. Unfortunately,once she felt mentally and emotionally ready to retire, the interest rates wereat a high point reducing her lump sum severely. As a result, we utilized the monthly payout option on her pension.

Another concern for Diane was retiree medical coverage since her business unit at KP does not provide coverage for early retirement. As her advisors, we helped her sort through potential options, comparing her spouse’s medical coverage as well as the state health exchange. Once they turn age 65, both Dianne and her husband will be able to switch to Kaiser Senior Advantage.
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Case Study #3: Pension Plan Technical Planning

Name: Perla
Position: Senior Communications Consultant
Age: 52 Years Old
Years of Service: 11
Planning Focus: QDRO Computation

Perla sought out our services for a specific discussion and review of her Qualified Domestic Relations Order for her Kaiser Permanente Pension. She wanted to make sure that the agreement formed between herself and her ex-spouse, crafted by a mutual attorney, was fair and equitable. Kaiser allows for three (3) different calculation methods to determine the payouts to the employee and their former spouse. In certain situations, the different methods will result in different calculations on the pay outs.

As her advisors, we helped calculate each of the payouts to determine which one is best suited for her situation. We were able to compare the options presentedby the attorney within KP’s framework.

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Michael Lee

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Principal, Wealth Advisor & Focus Team Lead

With over 10 years of experience as an advisor, Michael brings a laser-focused approach to holistic wealth management. His first foray into retirement planning was when his mother retired from Kaiser Permanente Walnut Creek. As a first generation American, Michael had the duty of translating for his family – and he felt, firsthand, the stress and anxiety that large financial decisions can cause for the majority of retirees. Michael provides fiduciary advice to soon-to-be retirees of large corporations. And he makes it his number one priority to chop down complex financial concepts – including pensions, 401K/TSA, Social Security, and taxes – into easy-to-understand bites for his clients. Michael’s expertise enables him to add a strong layer of financial advice to a company’s HR team – with a particularly strong understanding of the retirement programs offered by PG&E, AT&T, Kaiser Permanente, Chevron, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, and Raytheon. Born and raised in Oakland, CA, Michael is an active member of the dog rescue community – having fostered many dogs through rescue organizations including Chows Plus and Love Second Chances. You can find him exploring around town with his latest rescue, Chow Chow Maple.

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