Health Care Group of Companies Plans to Offer Discounted Health Insurance January 31, 2005 • Sixty large companies work with three health insurers to offer a variety of health options to workers who don't qualify for regular coverage. As many as 4 million who lack insurance could be eligible, but some experts say the costs could still be prohibitive for some.
Experts Answer Questions on Social Security January 28, 2005 • Robert Siegel talks with Alicia Munnell of the Carroll School of Management at Boston College and Kent Smetters of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Munnell and Smetters, both former Treasury Department officials, address questions about Social Security.
Opinion Social Security Debate The Birth Rate and Social Security January 27, 2005 • Predictions of Social Security's demise have been floating around for years -- but what is the best data to judge the system's future? Some way the nation's changing birth rate is a good place to start.
Social Security Perspectives Young Workers Doubt Future of Social Security January 27, 2005 • Young people have heard warnings about the health of the Social Security system for decades. Many younger workers are highly skeptical they'll get their promised benefits.
Social Security Debate Social Security Perspectives January 27, 2005 • President Bush has put fixing Social Security at the top of his second-term agenda. NPR's John Ydstie has a series of reports on how Americans of different generations view Social Security and the president's proposed reforms.
Business Boston Company Sues Ticketmaster over Resale Concept January 26, 2005 • Ticketmaster is sued for $100 million by a small company in Boston. Season Ticket Solutions alleges that the giant ticket broker took and repackaged online resale technology that it developed.
Social Security Perspectives Middle-Aged Americans Weigh Social Security Options January 26, 2005 • As overhauling Social Security takes center stage in Washington, perhaps no group is watching the debate more closely than middle-aged Americans.
Business Working for the (Little) Man: Young Bosses January 26, 2005 • The traditional order of corporate America, with younger workers reporting to older bosses, is often turned on its head these days. The trend is the spark for the comedy In Good Company. As NPR's Frank Langfitt reports, the phenomenon isn't merely in the movies.
The Color of Money Getting Ready for Tax Season January 25, 2005 • Day to Day personal finance contributor Michelle Singletary talks with NPR's Madeleine Brand about how people can get ready for tax season. Singletary writes the syndicated column "The Color of Money" for The Washington Post and is author of the book Spend Well, Live Rich.
Technology Microsoft Adds Program to Fight Spyware January 24, 2005 • Microsoft releases its "Antispyware Beta" as a free download, without saying if consumers will have to pay for it in the future. It works like other free tools available from other providers, scanning computers for software known to have ill inent.
Analyzing Private Retirement Accounts January 23, 2005 • Debate has raged over the idea of allowing Americans to invest part of their Social Security contributions in private funds. NPR's Jim Zarroli takes a look at the performance of some of the funds in question
Business New York AG Warns About Charity Telemarketers January 22, 2005 • New York's State Attorney General has warned that telemarketers sometimes keep much of the money they solicit for charities. Hear Patrick Rooney of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, and Walter Sczudlow of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
Business Grocery Stores Vie for Immigrant Customers January 21, 2005 • The immigrant population in Gwinnett County, north of Atlanta, has exploded over the past 10 years, and four national ethnic supermarket chains have opened large supermarkets to compete for the business of the mostly Latino and Asian immigrants in the community.
Business Grocers Look to Provide More Diverse Products January 21, 2005 • In Miami, there's a growing trend among supermarket chains to carry a wider variety of ethnic specialty foods. It's an effort to compete with small neighborhood shops and warehouse stores. The Publix chain, which has stores in southeastern states is adding several Latino items to its brand line.
Book Argues for Retiring on Less January 21, 2005 • In his book Retire on Less Than You Think, author Fred Brock says retirees can live comfortably on about 40-45 percent of their pre-retirement income. In contrast, many experts say retirees will need about 70 to 80 percent of what they earned before they stopped working to maintain a similar lifestyle.