King County is ready to help you prepare for retirement*

Before you retire from King County, there are things you might want to plan for well in advance. The most obvious one is your financial future and how you’re going to adjust to what could be a smaller income. However, you also need to consider how you’re going to cover you and your family for health care. The information and resources on these pages can help you with this planning.

For example:

• You need to plan ahead for receiving your retirement pension and withdrawing your deferred compensation earnings.
  
  
• Unless you are eligible for Medicare, you will want to think about whether to pay for continued health coverage under the county’s retiree medical and dental plans or under COBRA.
  
  
• Depending on your union, you may need to transfer your sick leave cash-out to a Voluntary Employee Benefits Association (VEBA) to reimburse yourself for health care expenses
  

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*Formal retirement is defined as when an employee who is eligible applies for and begins drawing pension benefits from PERS, LEOFF, PSERS or the City of Seattle immediately upon leaving county employment.

Check it out

You can find more information on Retirement Readiness by perusing this Web site or by attending a monthly Exit Class (to register, e­mail kc.orientations@kingcounty.gov). Or, you may contact Benefits and Retirement Operations directly at 206-684-1556 or kc.benefits@kingcounty.gov.


Retirees speak out

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Here's what they have to say.