Retiring Early? Consider Health-Care Costs.

FOR YEARS, you've socked away a good portion of your paycheck, and now you want to reward yourself with an early retirement. But if your employer is not offering you health benefits after you leave, make sure you plan for medical costs. Otherwise, you could be in for a big shock.

Just ask Greg Johnson and his wife, Linda, who live in Naples, Fla. In mid 2003, Greg, who was a manager at a large corporation, was laid off because of a downsizing. His employer did not provide health benefits to retirees. So the Johnsons continued benefits under COBRA, a federal law allowing former ...

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