New Update: Healthcare Costs Increasing by Over 60% in Some States. Will you be impacted?

Discover 9 Surprising Insights About Social Security for Parsons Employees That Could Transform Your Retirement Planning

Healthcare Provider Update: For Parsons, the primary healthcare provider is the UnitedHealthcare plan, particularly significant as it is one of the largest insurers in the country, alongside others that may service Parsons employees depending on their locations. As we move into 2026, healthcare costs are expected to escalate dramatically due to a combination of factors affecting the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace. Reports anticipate substantial premium increases, with some states seeing hikes of over 60%. This surge is primarily driven by deteriorating medical cost trends and the looming expiration of enhanced federal premium subsidies, which could result in out-of-pocket premium payments rising by an average of over 75% for approximately 92% of marketplace enrollees - a situation that poses significant financial challenges for individuals relying on ACA coverage. Thus, Parsons employees are advised to consider these developments carefully as they plan their healthcare for the upcoming year. 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 Parsons, here are nine things that might surprise you.

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.
Most workers including those at Parsons 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.
As an employee of Parsonsk, 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.
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.

Those at Parsons 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.
Social Security is a major source of retirement income for 67% of current retirees, including those at Parsons.
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.
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.