Discover 9 Surprising Insights About Social Security for MDU Resources Group Employees That Could Transform Your Retirement Planning

Healthcare Provider Update: Healthcare Provider for MDU Resources Group MDU Resources Group, a utility and construction services company, primarily partners with various healthcare providers and insurance companies that serve its employees, including Blue Cross Blue Shield and UnitedHealthcare for healthcare coverage options. Brief Overview of Projected Healthcare Cost Increases in 2026 As we approach 2026, healthcare consumers face significant challenges as premiums for Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace plans are projected to rise sharply, with some states reporting increases exceeding 60%. The anticipated loss of enhanced federal premium subsidies coupled with escalating medical costs is creating a perfect storm for healthcare expenses. According to industry experts, without congressional action to extend these subsidies, over 22 million enrollees may experience out-of-pocket premium hikes of more than 75%, underscoring the need for proactive financial planning for healthcare in the coming year. The landscape suggests that the combination of heightened rates and diminished financial assistance could push many families toward more financial strain in 2026. Click here to learn more

Social Security’s been a fact of retirement life ever since it was established in 1935. We all think we know how it works, but how much do you really know? If you work for MDU Resources Group, here are nine things that might surprise you.

1. The Social Security trust fund is huge. At $2.9 trillion at the end of 2018, it exceeds the gross domestic product (GDP) of every economy in the world except the ten largest: China, the European Union, the United States, India, Japan, Germany, Russia, Indonesia, Brazil, and The United Kingdom.
2. Most workers including those at MDU Resources Group are eligible for Social Security benefits, but not all. For example, until 1984, federal government employees were part of the Civil Service Retirement System and were not covered by Social Security.
3. As an employee of MDU Resources Groupk, you don’t have to work long to be eligible. If you were born in 1929 or later, you need to work for 10 or more years to be eligible for benefits.
4. Benefits are based on an individual’s average earnings during a lifetime of work under the Social Security system. The calculation is based on the 35 highest years of earnings. If an individual has years of low earnings or no earnings, Social Security may count those years to bring the total years to 35.
5. Those at MDU Resources Group may also want to consider how there hasn't always been cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) in Social Security benefits. Before 1975, increasing benefits required an act of Congress; now increases happen automatically, based on the Consumer Price Index. There was a COLA increase of 2.9% in 2019, but there was only an increase of 2% in 2018.
6. Social Security is a major source of retirement income for 67% of current retirees, including those at MDU Resources Group.
7. Social Security benefits are subject to federal income taxes — but it wasn’t always that way. In 1983, Amendments to the Social Security Act made benefits taxable, starting with the 1984 tax year.
8. Social Security recipients received a single lump-sum payment from 1937 until 1940. One-time payments were considered “payback” to those people who contributed to the program. Social Security administrators believed these people would not participate long enough to be vested for monthly benefits.

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9. In January 1937, Earnest Ackerman became the first person in the U.S. to receive a Social Security benefit—a lump sum of 17 cents.

1. Social Security Administration, 2018; CIA World Factbook, 2018
2-5, 7-9. Social Security Administration, 2019
6. Employee Benefit Research Institute, 2018