When it comes to health insurance in retirement, most people will ask: “Can I afford the premiums?” But this is only part of the picture. A more important question to ask that we perhaps don’t really think of is “What am I giving up to afford these premiums?” That’s because in retirement, every dollar counts. A dollar spent on insurance is simply a dollar you don’t get to use elsewhere. Revisiting Susan: When “Affordable” Still Feels Tight Let’s revisit Susan from our earlier case study. With a moderate retirement portfolio, she has a monthly income of around $3,000 from ages 66 to 90, which constitutes her CPF LIFE payouts and income from her remaining retirement assets. If she continues with her Private Integrated Shield Plan with an old rider, she would be paying about $1,550/month in premiums, which is more than 50% of her monthly income. A monthly premium of $1,550/month is computed as the simple mean premium of an IP...