September 2026 | Peterson Wealth

Retirement Planning for Intermountain Health Employees: A Complete Guide

Posted on September 17, 2026September 17, 2026 by Daniel Ruske, CFP®

Recent changes at Intermountain Health have altered the foundation many employees once relied on for retirement income. The shift requires a more deliberate approach to building and managing your retirement future.

That shift does not call for panic. It calls for understanding. When you clearly see what is changing and what choices are available to you, you gain the ability to plan your life’s next chapter with far more intentionality.

Intermountain Pension Changes

The changes to Intermountain’s pension structure are specific, date-driven, and important to understand clearly. If you are among the employees participating in the pension program, these three elements define what is changing and what it means for your retirement planning:1

Timeline of the Intermountain Pension Freeze: Intermountain Health announced that its traditional pension program will be frozen effective December 31, 2026. Employees who are currently participating may continue earning benefits through the freeze date, then accrual stops at the end of 2026.

What Was Preserved: Earned and vested benefits remain intact. The assets supporting those benefits continue to be held in a trust dedicated to paying pension obligations. Retirees who are already receiving payments remain under the existing structure. Former employees with vested balances also retain their accrued benefits and maintain their current distribution rights.

401(k) as the Primary Replacement: After December 31, 2026, future retirement growth will occur through a 401(k) account. Employer matching contributions and personal deferrals become the primary drivers of accumulation, replacing additional pension accrual going forward.

Current Decision Points for Intermountain Employees

With the pension freeze approaching, you now face several decisions that directly shape how and when you receive income. Each of these decisions influences long-term income stability, flexibility, and overall retirement structure.

The freeze introduces several choices that require careful evaluation:

Choosing between a lump sum or annuity distribution
Deciding whether or not to defer your benefit election for further growth
Timing of separation from service relative to the freeze date

Coordinating Intermountain Health Benefits and Other Core Retirement Decisions

Your retirement income won’t come from a singular source. It almost always involves employer accounts, long-term savings, and Social Security. Additionally, the healthcare decisions you make will also influence how much of your money remains available for spending. When these pieces are aligned thoughtfully, the shift away from your final paycheck becomes far more structured.

401(k) Plan Structure and Strategy

Your Intermountain Health 401(k) now carries meaningful weight whether you are affected by the pension freeze or not. For employees whose pension accrual will stop, the 401(k) becomes the primary growth vehicle moving forward. For those not directly impacted, it still represents a central part of building long-term wealth.

Several structural elements deserve attention. Employer match formulas determine how much additional compensation is added for every dollar you contribute. Vesting schedules determine when matched contributions become yours fully. Contribution percentages influence accumulation more than short-term market movement.

Asset allocation is equally important. A portfolio that is too conservative may limit long-term growth. A portfolio that is too aggressive may expose early retirement withdrawals to unnecessary volatility. Reviewing fund costs, diversification, and rebalancing practices are all necessary to keep your overall investment approach aligned with your retirement time horizon.

Health Insurance and Medicare Coordination

Health insurance and retirement planning for Intermountain employees should be evaluated together. If you retire before age 65, you must account for coverage until Medicare eligibility begins. Premium differences alone can alter annual retirement income needs by thousands of dollars.

Once enrolled in Medicare, contributions to a health savings account must stop. Existing balances may still be used for qualified medical expenses at any point. After age 65, withdrawals for non-medical purposes avoid the 20% penalty, though they remain taxable as income.

Medicare premiums may also increase based on income through income-related monthly adjustment amounts (IRMMA). IRMMA is calculated using modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) from two years prior and can increase Part B and Part D premiums.

Social Security Timing Strategy

Social Security provides lifetime income, and timing affects the size of that income permanently. Benefits can start as early as age 62, though filing at that age results in a reduced monthly benefit.

Full retirement age ranges from 66 to 67, depending on your birth year. Delaying benefits beyond full retirement age increases the benefit by approximately 8% per year until age 70.2. Up to 85% of Social Security benefits may be subject to federal income tax, depending on combined income levels.3

Please Note: Social Security benefits for Intermountain Health employees may also be taxable at the state level, depending on where you live for work or retirement.

Late Career Planning Opportunities

For Intermountain Health employees approaching retirement age, small adjustments in the final working years can create meaningful momentum for building long-term wealth. The opportunities below can help you close gaps and make better use of your remaining earning window:

Catch Up Contributions: Employees age 50 and older may contribute additional amounts to employer plans and IRAs. Increasing contribution rates during higher earning years can meaningfully improve projected retirement income.

Allocation Review Before Separation: Revisiting asset allocation in the years leading up to retirement allows you to adjust exposure while income remains strong. Gradual adjustments tend to be more stable than reactive changes later.

Tax Bracket Planning Window: There is often a temporary income gap between retirement and required minimum distributions (RMDs). This window may create opportunities to shift taxable income strategically.

Income Gap Projection: Comparing projected expenses against pension, 401(k), and Social Security income highlights shortfalls while there is still time to adjust savings rates.

Pension-Specific Decisions for Affected Intermountain Employees

If you are directly impacted by the pension freeze, there are additional choices that deserve focused attention. These decisions shape how your frozen benefit integrates with your broader retirement income strategy.

Structuring the Intermountain Pension: Lump Sum vs. Annuity

When evaluating your frozen pension, you are generally choosing between two primary options: a lump sum payout or a lifetime annuity.

Each path carries tradeoffs:

Lifetime Income Security: An annuity provides guaranteed monthly income for life. It reduces market exposure and removes the need to manage those funds directly.

Flexibility and Control: A lump sum gives you access to the full value immediately. However, it’s your responsibility to control how it is invested, distributed, or preserved.

Inflation Considerations: Your annuity payments are fixed. Over time, inflation can erode their purchasing power. A lump sum invested appropriately, on the other hand, can provide greater growth potential.

Legacy Goals: Annuities can end at death unless survivor options are selected. A lump sum can be structured to leave remaining assets to heirs, but requires careful maintenance.

Five-Year Deferral Election: Some employees may have the ability to defer distribution for five years, allowing the balance to grow before payout. Modeling this scenario helps determine whether waiting improves long-term income projections.

Pension Distribution and Rollover Decisions

Once you choose a payout style, you still have to decide what happens to the value of your benefit and where it lives going forward. The right answer depends on your age, whether you are still working, and what distribution choices the plan makes available to you at that point.

Here are the most common distribution paths Intermountain participants typically see:

Leave the Benefit in the Plan for Now: Many participants keep their accrued benefit inside the plan and elect a start date later. This route usually makes sense when you do not need the income yet, or when you want more time before locking in a distribution election.

Start a Monthly Pension Payment: If you elect an annuity-style payout, the benefit is converted into monthly income based on the plan’s available payment options. Married participants often face spousal consent rules depending on the election.

Take a Lump Sum Distribution: Some participants may be eligible to take the present value as a one-time lump sum instead of monthly payments. Eligibility and timing rules can vary, so the plan’s own procedures matter here.

Roll the Lump Sum to a Qualified Account: If a lump sum is available, Intermountain provides rollover options into a new qualified retirement account. The best fit depends on your plan features and how you want to manage investment choices.

Please Note: A direct rollover is usually the cleanest way to move a distribution while keeping it tax deferred. Cash distributions can trigger mandatory withholding and may create a large taxable event in the same year, depending on your circumstances.

Measuring Retirement Readiness After the Freeze

A frozen pension changes what you can count on from that benefit. Readiness comes down to whether your total income plan covers your spending needs with a margin for the surprises that show up later.

Evaluating your retirement readiness after the pension freeze involves many things:

Gather your pension statement and current account balances so you are working from real numbers.
Estimating baseline monthly spending, then subtracting reliable income sources to find the gap your portfolio must cover.
Running a down market scenario early in retirement to see if income still works without forced selling.
Testing withdrawals using conservative assumptions to see whether assets last across a long retirement.
Mapping taxes across income sources so you can spot years where taxable income jumps.
Including healthcare premiums and out-of-pocket costs as a recurring budget line.
Confirming the plan supports your intended lifestyle so that spending decisions feel confident, not reactive.

Retirement Planning Mistakes Intermountain Employees Should Avoid

Pension related decisions often lock in outcomes for a long time. Small mistakes at the decision stage can show up later as reduced flexibility, higher taxes, or avoidable income pressure.

There are several common retirement planning mistakes Intermountain employees can make:

Picking a lump sum or an annuity without modeling both outcomes over time.
Treating the pension decision as separate from taxes, Social Security timing, and withdrawal sequencing.
Anchoring on the biggest number rather than the best income structure.
Taking cash without understanding the tax impact in the distribution year.
Ignoring survivor needs and spousal rules tied to pension elections.
Investing a lump sum without aligning risk to when withdrawals will start.

Why Professional Guidance Matters for Intermountain Health Employees

Retirement preparation often breaks down in the gaps between decisions. Forms get filled out without seeing the ripple effects. Deadlines arrive while you are still waiting for answers. A choice that looks fine in isolation can create tax friction, uneven cash flow, or an income plan that depends on unrealistic markets. This is where professional guidance for Intermountain employees can make all the difference.

You can get help translating plan documents into simplified choices, setting a timeline for when each election should happen, and building a written framework for how income will be created and adjusted over time. That kind of structure matters even if you are not affected by the pension change, since your 401(k), Social Security, taxes, and healthcare costs still have to work together in real life.

If you are affected by the pension freeze, the decision stack grows. You now have distribution elections, rollover mechanics, deferral timing, spousal considerations, and tax timing decisions that can interact in ways that are easy to miss. Our advisory team already works with Intermountain’s benefit structure regularly, so we can model these choices in context and help you move forward with a clear strategy instead of guesswork.

The Perennial Income Model™ for Intermountain Health Employees

Whether you are impacted by the pension freeze or not, the structure of your retirement income matters. The Perennial Income Model™ was built to match current investments with future income needs and coordinate the moving parts that shape retirement, including pension decisions, 401(k) growth, Social Security timing, healthcare costs, and tax sequencing:

Time-Segmented Income Planning: Retirement assets are divided into six five-year segments. Each segment is invested based on when that income will be needed, so near-term income and long-term growth are handled with different priorities.

Protecting Early Retirement Income: The first segment is invested conservatively to reduce the likelihood of selling assets during a market decline. This protects near-term income and creates stability during the early years of retirement.

Balancing Growth to Address Inflation: Later segments are invested more progressively because those funds are not needed for many years. This structure allows growth potential to work over time while avoiding unnecessary exposure in the early years.

Harvesting to Lock in Income Targets: When a segment reaches its projected income goal ahead of schedule, gains are preserved by shifting that portion to a more conservative allocation. The focus is steady, inflation-adjusted income rather than chasing maximum return.

Intermountain Health Retirement Planning FAQs

1. What does the Intermountain Pension freeze mean for my retirement timeline?

The pension freeze means that after December 31, 2026, you will no longer earn additional pension benefits, even if you continue working. Your previously earned and vested benefit remains intact, but future growth shifts to your 401(k) and personal savings. Your retirement timeline itself does not have to change, but your income projections should reflect that your pension will no longer increase beyond the freeze date.

2. Should I choose a lump sum or a monthly annuity from my Intermountain Pension?

That decision depends on your broader income structure. A lump sum offers flexibility and personal agency over how the funds are invested and distributed, while an annuity provides a predictable lifetime income. The right choice typically depends on your other retirement assets, tax situation, risk tolerance, and whether leaving assets to heirs is a priority.

3. How does the Intermountain 401(k) replace the pension, and how much should I contribute?

The 401(k) becomes your primary vehicle for future retirement growth once pension accrual stops. Contribution rates, employer matching formulas, and long-term allocation discipline will drive your account balance. As a general principle, contributing enough to receive the full employer match and reviewing your contribution rate regularly can materially improve long-term outcomes.

4. Is rolling over my Intermountain Pension to an IRA the right move?

If you are eligible for a lump sum, rolling it directly to an IRA allows you to keep the funds tax deferred while gaining control over investment decisions and withdrawal timing. Whether that approach makes sense depends on your income needs, tax projections, risk tolerance, and long-term goals.

5. How should Social Security timing fit into my Intermountain retirement strategy?

Social Security timing should be coordinated with your pension income and 401(k) withdrawals. Filing early reduces your benefit permanently, while delaying increases it up to age 70. The optimal timing often depends on your expected longevity, taxable income levels, and whether delaying allows other assets more time to grow.

6. How do I know if I’m truly retirement-ready after the Intermountain Employment changes?

Determining retirement readiness involves projecting income against spending, stress testing early retirement years, reviewing tax exposure, and confirming that healthcare costs are incorporated into your plan. A coordinated review of all income sources provides a more accurate picture than looking at any one benefit in isolation.

Helping Intermountain Health Employees Build a Confident Retirement Plan

Intermountain’s retirement structure has changed, and that puts more weight on the decisions you make around your pension, 401(k), taxes, and healthcare. Taking action sooner gives you more clarity, more time to adjust, and fewer last-minute surprises.

Peterson Wealth Advisors works with Intermountain employees regularly, so we understand how these benefits function in real retirement scenarios. Whether you are affected by the freeze or not, we help you turn the details into a clear sequence of decisions tied to your goals.

We can model your pension options, coordinate Social Security and healthcare timing, and apply our Perennial Income Model™ to build retirement income designed to last. If you want a plan built around your numbers and the next chapter you are planning, schedule a complimentary consultation.

Resources:

1)https://news.intermountainhealth.org/intermountain-health-announces-changes-to-pension-plan

2) https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/delayret.html

3) https://www.irs.gov/publications/p915

Short-Term vs. Long-Term Capital Gains

Posted on September 14, 2026September 17, 2026 by Carson Johnson, CFP®, CRPC™, NSSA™

Capital gains can be one of the most overlooked investment tax traps in retirement. This is something that I have seen, we have seen, many times throughout working with retirees and really just understanding what are capital gains, how they are taxed, and how can they work in retirement.

What is a Capital Gain?

So first, let’s talk about what is a capital gain. Capital gain simply put is when you buy an investment and it grows over time and then you sell it. So that profit that you make on an investment is the capital gains income. Now, there are only certain assets that are considered capital gains. So things like an investment property, selling of a stock or a mutual fund within a non-retirement account, or even the sale of a business can count as a capital gain.

So understanding what type of investment you have, if it does qualify for capital gains, is an important part. But let’s say you buy an investment like a stock, like Apple, for example, for $100 and it grows over time and it is now $300. The difference between those two, the $200, it would be considered the capital gain if you were to sell that investment. Then that $200 is reported on your taxes and then it’s taxed from there.

But, another part of capital gains that is important to note is that capital gains are broken down into two categories. They can be either short-term capital gains or long-term capital gains. And what really determines that is simply how long you’ve held the investment.

So, for example, let’s say you buy an investment and sell it within a year. That will be considered a short-term capital gain. If you have held it and sold it for longer than 12 months, longer than a year, then that would be considered long-term capital gains. So, understanding not only what type of investment you have and how long you’ve held it, actually creates a lot of planning opportunities when it comes to taxes.

How are Capital Gains Taxes?

Which leads me to kind of the last part of this, which is how are capital gains taxed? So as you can see, short-term capital gains are taxed as ordinary income, which just simply means it’s taxed like your other income that you get from either a job or pensions sometimes. It’s just taxes, ordinary income. So depending on how much income you have, you can see it will determine at what tax rate that is taxed at, which is typically higher than what long-term capital gains tax rates are.

So how are long-term capital gains taxed? Compared to the ordinary income tax rates, they are pretty simple. They’re either taxed 0%, 15%, or 20%. But they are dependent on your other combined income, things like your Social Security, your pensions, or even W-2 wages as well. That’s what determines which rate they’re taxed at.

So, for example, let’s say you’re a single filer. If you have income less than $40,400 combined between your Social Security, your wages, and all of that, then your long-term capital gains are taxed at 0%. Which you can see can present a huge opportunity to sell investments with zero tax impact. If that single individuals combined income is between $40,400 and $445,850, long-term capital gains are taxed at 15%. And if their combined income is greater than $445,850, then long-term capital gains are taxed at 20%. The same principle applies if you are married filing a joint return, but the numbers may be a little bit different. So if your combined income is less than $80,800, long-term capital gains are taxed 0%. Between $80,800 and $501,600, that’s taxed at 15%. And combined income above $501,601 is taxed at 20%.

Conclusion

So as you can see, understanding how capital gains work, what they are, and how they are taxed is so important. It’s essential in maximizing a retiree’s investment portfolio and creating a better retirement outcome for them over the course of their retirement.

Step-Up In Basis – Inheritance

Posted on September 12, 2026September 17, 2026 by Carson Johnson, CFP®, CRPC™, NSSA™

Step-up in basis is an important planning tool that can make taxable capital gains disappear when leaving property to your heirs. I want to talk about step-up in basis because it’s an important part as part of a retirement plan. For those that have taxable assets things like a non-retirement account stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and investment property, this can all be applied for a step-up in basis.

So, when you have an investment or an asset that grows in value, investors should be aware that if they sell it then they would owe capital gains taxes on the profit, or the difference between what they sold it for and what they bought it for. But when you are thinking of an inheritance to heirs, a step up in basis makes such an important and tax efficient transfer to your heirs.

What step up of basis is, is that it allows you to pass on non-retirement assets like an investment or an asset to an heir, and wipes away that capital gains impact to the heir.

Example

For example, let’s say we have Jack and James, and Jack is a retiree and father to James. Jack purchased, let’s say, Apple stock at $20,000 10 years ago and now it’s worth $100,000 today. If he were to sell that, the stock, he would have a capital gains income that he would have to report on his taxes of about $80,000, which if we assume a capital gains rate of 15%, that would equal $12,000 in additional taxes that Jack would have to pay. If the goal is for Jack to donate, give that stock to his son, there’s a more tax efficient way to doing so, which is through the step-up in basis. If Jack simply allows that stock to pass on to James, James is able to inherit that stock at the $100,000 amount and completely avoid the capital gains responsibility.

Essentially, what happens is Jack’s cost basis of $20,000 that he originally purchased the stock for gets stepped up to the current value of the stock, which is worth $100,000. As soon as James owns that stock, at that point in time, any profit is then taxable to him. But, it’s a great way to pass down assets to future heirs in generations tax free so that they don’t have to deal with the capital gains impact.

One of the mistakes that we see retirees make is they want to give their assets or investments to their heirs prior to their passing, but with the correct knowledge of the step-up in basis, there is a lot more tax efficient way to pass on those assets to their heirs in future generations.

There’s one example that I had with a client that I was working with where it was siblings, two brothers. One brother had given an investment property to his other brother. And by doing so, when he passed away, the client that I was working with ultimately is now responsible for those capital gains. Because if you gift that property during one’s life, you get to essentially keep the same cost basis or what the original owner purchased it for.

So, it’s important to consider, especially later in retirement, if there’s any investment assets that you’re looking to pass on to future heirs to have a conversation about how the step-up in basis can apply.

Important Takeaways

Now there are a few takeaways and important rules to remember about this. Step up in basis can apply to stocks, bonds, mutual funds, real estate, and much more. Really, any type of asset that’s considered a capital asset, according to the IRS’ definitions, which it can be found IRS.gov.

The other important takeaway is that step up in basis works differently for spouses. Instead of being able to receive a full step-up in basis, a surviving spouse is only eligible to receive a step, a half step-up in basis if they own the property jointly, meaning if both husband and wife or both spouses own it together. If only one spouse owns it, then the other spouse could potentially get a full step-up in basis as well.

The other aspect of this is depending on where you live. There are certain states that are considered what’s called community property states such as California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington, where the step up in basis rules may be different.

Conclusion

So for anybody that wants to learn more about this, should consult with their financial advisor or tax advisor to specifically know how this may apply to their situation.

When it comes to your investment assets, it’s important that investors are aware of step-up in basis and have a plan on how those assets should be distributed to their heirs in the most tax efficient way.

Should You Roll Over Your Intermountain Health Pension? What to Consider

Posted on September 10, 2026September 17, 2026 by Daniel Ruske, CFP®

If you are one of the Intermountain Health caregivers who earned a pension, this decision probably feels personal, and it should. You put in years of work for this benefit, and with the plan freeze on the horizon, the question of what to do with it has gone from someday to soon.

It is also a decision with real consequences for your income. Taxes, your spouse, Social Security, healthcare costs, and how long you live all shape whether it makes more sense to keep the pension as a monthly check or move its value into an account you control.

How the Pension Freeze Changes the Decision

Intermountain Health announced that its pension plan will be frozen on December 31, 2026. If you are still participating, you continue to earn benefits up to that date, and the benefits you have already earned remain yours, held in a trust and protected by federal law.1

Because the pension stops growing after the freeze, your 401(k), personal savings, and other accounts may need to carry more of the weight they used to share with the pension. That shift is worth planning around now rather than later.

It also brings the rollover question to the fore. Depending on the plan’s rules, you may be able to take your earned benefit as monthly payments or move its lump-sum value into a retirement account you manage. Knowing what job that benefit is meant to do in your income plan is the first step.

What Rolling Over Your Pension Actually Changes

A rollover moves your pension’s value out of the plan and into a retirement account you own, if the plan allows it. In exchange for that control, more of the responsibility for investing, tax timing, and disciplined withdrawals lands on you.

Here is what actually shifts when you roll it over:

It becomes money in a retirement account. Your lump-sum value can be transferred to an individual retirement account (IRA) or another qualified plan. When done as a direct rollover, the move is generally not taxed in the year it happens.

A guaranteed check turns into an investment you manage. Instead of a fixed monthly amount, you hold a balance that rises and falls with the markets, so its investment mix should match the income job you need it to do.

You take over the withdrawals and the tax timing. You decide how much to pull, when, and from where, which opens your options to coordinating withdrawals, Roth conversions, and charitable giving, but also makes the planning your responsibility.

Whatever is left can go to the people you choose. Money you do not spend can pass to heirs, your church, or other causes, which a monthly pension usually cannot do once payments stop.

It adds a future required-withdrawal obligation. Once your money sits in a pre-tax IRA, required minimum distributions (RMDs) will eventually force taxable withdrawals whether you need the money or not.2

It is hard to undo. Once your rollover is processed, you generally cannot switch back to your monthly pension, so this is close to a one-way door.

Please Note: How your money moves matters as much as the decision to move it. If your pension is paid directly to you rather than transferred directly to your new account, the plan must withhold 20%, and you have only 60 days to complete your rollover.3 Any amount that misses that window can be taxed and, if you are under 59½, hit with an extra 10% penalty.4

Compare a Monthly Pension and a Rollover by What You Need

At its core, this is an income decision. The real question is which option better supports your expenses, taxes, giving, spouse, and the years of retirement ahead.

A monthly pension buys predictability and simplicity, while a rollover buys control, tax flexibility, and access to whatever you do not spend. Neither is automatically better, so the right fit depends on your preference.

When a Monthly Pension May Fit Better

A monthly pension tends to be a good fit when you value steady income and would rather not manage a large balance yourself. It works like a paycheck for life, covering your basic bills without you having to make investment calls.

A monthly pension may be the better fit when:

You want a dependable income floor for your fixed expenses.
Market swings make you uneasy, and you would rather not worry about them.
You want income that is guaranteed to last as long as you do.
You already have enough saved elsewhere for emergencies, taxes, and anything you want to leave behind.
A survivor option can protect your spouse’s income after you are gone.

When a Rollover May Fit Better

A rollover tends to be a good fit when you want more say over how the money is invested, taxed, spent, and eventually passed on. The tradeoff is that your broader plan has to shoulder that responsibility.

A rollover may be the better fit when:

You want the freedom to take more in some years and less in others.
You want control over your taxable income, including Roth conversion windows.
You want whatever is left over to be available for heirs or giving.
You want growth potential, so your income keeps up with inflation.
You have the discipline and experience to manage it, or an advisor to help.

Risks to Weigh Before You Roll Over

A rollover can be the right move, but the flexibility comes with tradeoffs worth testing first. Once the money is yours to manage, it has to keep paying you through market drops, tax surprises, a long retirement, and your spouse’s needs too.

Before you choose a rollover, pressure-test these risks:

Investment risk. Once your money is invested, it rises and falls with the markets, your fund choices, and fees. If it becomes a main source of income, even a reasonable mix can feel uncomfortable in a downturn.

Sequence-of-returns risk. A rough market in your first retirement years does more damage than the same drop later, because you are selling while balances are down. Test whether the account can recover while still paying you.

Longevity and inflation. Your money has to last a long time and keep up with rising costs, especially healthcare costs, over a retirement that could last three decades. A pace that feels fine at first can fall behind if you live long or prices climb.

Tax stacking. Pre-tax withdrawals, Roth conversions, taxable Social Security, and required withdrawals can all land in the same year and push you into a higher bracket, shrinking what you actually get to spend.

Overspending. Easy access is a double-edged sword. It helps with a surprise repair or medical bill, but without guardrails, it can invite spending faster than the plan can handle.

Spouse and survivor income. Map what your household keeps if one spouse dies. A rollover can leave a balance behind, while a pension’s survivor choice affects how much the monthly check is and how much continues for your spouse.

Behavioral risk. Downturns tempt even seasoned investors to sell low or chase returns after a loss. A written plan you agree to in advance takes some of the emotion out of those moments.

Coordinate the Choice With the Rest of Your Retirement

Your decision does not happen in a vacuum. The better option can flip once you factor in your Social Security timing, taxes, 401(k), Roth accounts, and cash reserves.

Think of each of your income sources as having a job. One provides a stable income, another covers flexible spending, and another helps with taxes, emergencies, growth, or the protection of your spouse. Your pension choice should fit the role you need it to play among them.

Social Security Timing

Social Security often matters more than people expect because when you claim it, it changes the size of your check for the rest of your life. Claiming before your full retirement age permanently reduces the monthly benefit, while waiting can grow it, right up until age 70.5

That timing decides how much pressure falls on your pension or portfolio early on. If you delay Social Security for a larger check later, you may lean more on a pension payment, your 401(k), or cash reserves to bridge the gap in the meantime.

A larger Social Security benefit can make a rollover easier to carry, since it covers more of your baseline spending for life. A smaller or earlier benefit can make a steady pension more valuable, especially for a surviving spouse who may rely on it.

Healthcare Costs and Medicare

Your health coverage and its costs affect both your spending and your taxes once you retire. Timing the transition well takes some planning.

A few healthcare and tax points deserve attention here:

If you retire before 65, you will need to bridge to Medicare. Weigh retiree coverage, Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) continuation, a marketplace plan, or a spouse’s plan, and remember that Medicare enrollment has its own timing rules once you reach 65.6
Large withdrawals or Roth conversions raise your taxable income, which can ripple outward: increasing how much of your Social Security is taxed and lifting your future Medicare premiums, which are tied to your income from two years earlier.7
Cash reserves can cover uneven medical costs without forcing a taxable withdrawal. That helps most when your income is already high in a year.
Roth accounts can fund needs without adding to your taxable income, which is useful in years with big medical bills or other one-time costs.

Your 401(k), Roth, Cash, and Other Savings

Finally, look at your accounts that fill gaps and absorb shocks. Strong savings make either pension choice easier; thin savings make the decision more delicate, because the pension may need to do more.

Take stock of what surrounds the pension:

Your 401(k) and employer contributions. Count your 401(k) balance and any employer match or contributions, since these accounts are set to carry more of the load once pension accruals stop.

Pre-tax balances and future taxes. A rollover into a pre-tax IRA increases the balances that will someday trigger required withdrawals, so it is worth considering how that affects your future tax picture.

Roth accounts. Qualified Roth withdrawals are tax-free, giving you a valuable lever to pull in tax-sensitive years.

Taxable and cash accounts. Taxable accounts and cash reserves can fund early retirement or emergencies and ease the pressure to sell investments at a bad time.

Numbers to Gather Before You Decide

When you are ready to run this for real, gather your actual numbers. Rough guesses about spending, taxes, and how long you will live can strain the plan later.

Before you choose, pull together and compare the following:

Your pension estimate, including both the monthly amount and the lump-sum value, so that you can weigh guaranteed income against the investable total.
Survivor options and how each one changes the monthly check and your spouse’s income.
Your real income needs to cover expenses once the paychecks stop, including fixed costs, taxes, giving, travel, and irregular expenses like home and vehicle repairs.
Social Security estimates for both spouses at different claiming ages.
Your 401(k), IRA, Roth, taxable, and cash balances, plus what you can still add while working.
Your current investment mix and how much risk it can handle, since a rollover needs both near-term stability and long-term growth.
A tax projection that lays out pension income, withdrawals, Roth conversions, required withdrawals, and Medicare thresholds.
Your health picture and any legacy goals, since both can change how much you value access, flexibility, and leaving money behind.

Rolling Over Your Intermountain Health Pension FAQs

1. Should I roll over my Intermountain Health pension?

It depends on what you need the pension to do. A rollover makes sense if you want control over the money and its taxes; keeping the monthly payments makes sense if you want steady, predictable income you do not have to manage.

2. Is a lump-sum rollover better than monthly pension payments?

Neither is better on its own. A lump sum gives you flexibility and access, while monthly payments give you a predictable income floor for life. The right choice comes down to your income needs, taxes, spouse, and how long you expect retirement to last.

3. Will rolling over my Intermountain pension create taxes?

A direct rollover into an eligible retirement account generally keeps the money tax-deferred, so no tax is due in the year you roll it over. Taxes come later, when you withdraw from a pre-tax account, or sooner if the money is paid to you or converted to a Roth account.

4. What are the biggest downsides of taking monthly payments instead of rolling over?

You give up flexibility, control over your tax timing, and the ability to leave what is left to family, and a fixed payment can lose purchasing power to inflation over a long retirement. For households that need dependable income, that stability can still be well worth it.

5. How does Social Security timing affect the pension decision?

Social Security determines how much income you still need from your pension or portfolio. If you delay it for a bigger check later, you may lean more on the pension or savings in the early years; if you claim early, more pressure lands on your income sources sooner.

6. Should I roll my pension into an IRA or another retirement account?

That depends on the investment options, fees, distribution rules, and how each choice fits your spouse and your other accounts. It is worth comparing an IRA against your 401(k) and any other eligible plan before you move anything.

Get Help Deciding Whether to Roll Over Your Intermountain Health Pension

Choosing between a lump sum and monthly pension payments affects your income, flexibility, taxes, spouse’s security, and long-term peace of mind. The best answer is the one that fits the life you want after work, not a rule of thumb.

At Peterson Wealth Advisors, we help you weigh your pension options alongside Social Security timing, healthcare costs, taxes, investment risk, and your spouse’s needs, and we lay out the choices side by side so you can see the trade-offs clearly.

From there, we can build a coordinated plan that puts your pension, 401(k), Roth accounts, cash reserves, and every other piece to work together. To see how your Intermountain pension could fit, schedule a conversation with our team.

Resources:

1) Intermountain Health Pension Plan Announcement

2) Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs

3) Rollovers of Retirement Plan and IRA Distributions

4) Exceptions to Tax on Early Distributions

5) Social Security Benefit Reduction and Delayed Credits

6) When Can I Sign Up for Medicare?

7) Medicare Premiums for Higher-Income Beneficiaries

Common Qualified Charitable Distribution Mistakes

Posted on September 7, 2026September 17, 2026 by Carson Johnson, CFP®, CRPC™, NSSA™

A Qualified Charitable Distribution is one of the best tax planning and charitable giving strategies available to retirees. For those that give regularly in retirement, they should consider this as part of their retirement plan. A Qualified Charitable Distribution is a provision in the tax code that allows you to withdraw your money from your IRA tax free as long as it goes directly to a qualified charity.

When you normally withdraw money from your IRA or 401K, every dollar you pull out is taxable to you. But, if it’s done as QCD, that is completely tax free. Ultimately, a QCD gives you three tax benefits. If you think about it, you put money into your IRA or 401K that you’re not taxed on. Then you’re also not taxed on any of the growth that you’ve had on your investments over a 20 or 30 year career.

And then lastly, you’re able to pull that same money out tax free as long as it goes to a qualified charity. So, this has huge tax savings if done properly. But despite these benefits, there’s also many downfalls or mistakes that investors make.

Who is eligible for a Qualified Charitable Distribution?

So I wanted to talk about a few of them and how to avoid them. First, is that this strategy is only available to those that are at least 70.5 years old. The maximum amount that you can do is $100,000 per year. That is adjusted for inflation, so that will go up over time.

Second, is that this is only available within IRA accounts. So, many retirees have 401Ks or 403Bs and may wonder if it’s available within their plans. However, it is not. QCDs are only available within an IRA account. So one way that you can get around that is by simply rolling over a part or all of your funds into an IRA account to be able to do this strategy.

Third, a QCD must be a direct transfer from your IRA to the qualified charity. I have a client of mine who had the ability or a feature on his IRA to write a check from time to time, and that’s how he was doing his QCDs.

However, this is not eligible for a QCD. After we talked to him, we explained that this is not a direct transfer and it has to come directly from the custodian like TD Ameritrade, Fidelity, Vanguard, etc., in order for him to qualify.

Fourth, a QCD is not an itemized deduction. This is important because the IRS doesn’t want investors to double dip in their tax savings. So, I like to remind everyone that a QCD allows you to avoid the tax so it’s a tax free income, but it is not considered a tax deduction.

Lastly, is the reporting and reporting is such an important part in order to get a benefit from this strategy. The IRS has a lot of different codes on how money is distributed from an IRA, but they don’t have a specific code for a QCD. However, the IRS has issued some guidance on this and there’s some instructions on the IRS.gov website for that. But if it’s not reported correctly, it’s as if it never happened. So you need to make sure it’s done, correctly.

Conclusion

Qualified Charitable Distributions ultimately gives retirees the opportunity to save taxes and accomplish their charitable giving goals. Every retiree that regularly gives to charity, is over age 70.5, and has an IRA should consider how QCDs can better help and enhance their retirement.

Improper Use of a Donor-Advised Fund

Posted on September 3, 2026September 17, 2026 by Carson Johnson, CFP®, CRPC™, NSSA™

A Donor-Advised Fund is an excellent tool to maximize your charitable giving while minimizing your tax burden. I like to think of these accounts as a charitable giving account. How these accounts work is you donate cash or other assets such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. and the amount that you contribute gives you a tax deduction.

Whatever you choose to donate, your contributions are irrevocable and completely dedicated for charitable giving. But once you make the contributions to these accounts, those funds sit in the account until you’re ready to grant or transfer those funds.

Now, you can choose from a list of thousands of different qualified charities, whether that’s your alma mater, religious organization or local food bank. There are a variety of practical applications on how you can use a Donor Advised Fund. Oftentimes, the savviest thing is to donate long-term appreciated assets like a stock, bond or mutual fund.

This allows you to potentially eliminate the capital gains for tax that you would otherwise face, while also receiving an income tax deduction. Another application is if you’re anticipating the sale of a business or expecting a large tax year. This can come in the form of receiving a severance or selling an investment property. Because of the extra taxable income that you would have to report, that may cause a bigger tax year for you.

So by contributing, making these contributions, you can essentially reduce your taxable income by making these contributions.

A Donor-Advised Fund Helps Reduce Taxes

Now, there are ways that the Donor Advised Fund can be helpful to reduce the tax impact of these big tax years. But, if done improperly, it can reduce the benefit that you actually receive from this strategy. I wanted to go over a few of those mistakes that we see and how to avoid them.

First, some people may invest the money in their Donor Advised Fund too aggressively. But, by investing too aggressively in those funds, in any given time, the market could go down and have less money there to be able to use for you charitable giving goals.

Another common mistake is contributing too much to a Donor Advised Fund. Now, there’s a lot of people that get carried away with these strategies and think that they should just contribute as much as they can. However, they should be aware of how this plays in with other tax planning strategies that they may need to consider like a Qualified Charitable Distribution or a Roth conversion, etc..

And by overlapping these strategies, they may reduce the benefit of one tax strategy or the other.

Lastly, if you’re planning on gifting the funds directly to a charity, then there’s no reason to set up a Donor Advised Fund there. There are a lot of qualified charities that accept stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and you can transfer those directly to the charity without having to set up an account like this. These accounts are particularly suited for those who regularly give to charities, and planning on making a large contribution for tax purposes, but don’t plan on sending all of that money to the charity right away.

Conclusion

A Donor Advised Fund can be a huge tax planning tool for those who are anticipating a large tax year and can be an excellent tool to maximize your charitable giving efforts in a tax efficient way.

Roth Conversions: Converting too much or too little?

Posted on September 1, 2026September 17, 2026 by Carson Johnson, CFP®, CRPC™, NSSA™

One of the most common questions that we get is, should I do a Roth conversion? And if so, how much?

What is a Roth conversion?

Now, for those that don’t know what a Roth conversion is, all it is is simply taking money from your IRA or 401K retirement accounts and converting them to an after-tax Roth 401K or a Roth IRA. Now, there are significant tax benefits for having these accounts, but there are many factors that should be considered before you make that decision to doing a Roth conversion.

Factors that may include where am I in the tax bracket today? What is my tax bracket projected to be in retirement? How do Required Minimum Distributions fit into all this? And what happens if my spouse passes away early during my retirement?

Today, I’d like to talk about a few of those costly mistakes that many people make when considering a Roth conversion in their retirement.

Many people get carried away with Roth conversions

First, many people get carried away with Roth conversions. There’s a lot of content and information about Roth conversions in the news, media, and nearly every financial institution has an article or content about it. But, often retirees get carried away and think I needed to be doing as much as I can into a Roth IRA or a Roth 401K, but they may not be seeing the tax impact of that during their retirement.

You take a look at the tax brackets, you’ll notice that it starts off with the 10% bracket, 12% bracket, but then it jumps, significantly jumps, to the 22% bracket. There’s more significant jumps throughout the tax brackets as well. But, what we see is when people come into our office, they say they have been doing Roth conversions and they end up making these big jumps in their taxes. But in reality, their tax bracket may not be as high in retirement as what they thought it was going to be.

People fail to plan for their Required Minimum Distribution

The second mistake is people fail to plan for their Required Minimum Distributions. All Required Minimum Distributions are is that you are forced to withdraw a certain amount out of your IRA or 401K account as soon as you reach age 73. Now, if you’re a retiree that is relying on your investment income then this may not be as big of a deal for you because you are relying on that income throughout your retirement.

But for most retirees, that income is not their only source of income. They may have pensions, Social Security, rental income, and more. And so what we see is retirees will get into retirement, start their Required Minimum Distributions, and then they’re not using all of their investment income, which is just ultimately going to be withdrawn from their retirement accounts and taxed.

Every retiree should have a plan on how their Required Minimum Distributions are going to impact them during and throughout their retirement.

The next mistake is how Roth conversions can potentially impact your Medicare premiums. Many may not realize that Medicare premiums is based on your combined income. And so the more income you have, the higher your potential Medicare premiums will be. The base Medicare premium cost for Part B is $164.90.

For those that are married and file a joint return, that will stay the same if their income stays below $194,000. If you’re a single filer and your income stays below $97,000, it will also stay that same amount. But as soon as your income is a dollar over that threshold, it will jump to $230.80. Believe it or not, there are actually four other thresholds or for other increases to your Medicare premiums above that. So if you have substantial income coming in, your Medicare premiums could be as high as $560.50 per person per month.

So as you can see, Roth conversions can make a significant impact. You may be wanting to do Roth conversions to save taxes, but you may be adding additional expenses to your Medicare premiums along the way.

What non-financial aspects of Roth conversions should be considered?

Lastly, there are some non-financial aspects of Roth conversions that should also be considered. Things like moving from one state to another. If you live in a state that doesn’t currently have state income tax and moving to a state that does, that can be a big factor.

Or if you have a spouse that has a terminal illness and isn’t expected to live throughout a long retirement, knowing how Roth conversions can impact them. Or even potentially your heirs, how these Roth conversions could help your heirs for generation after generation.

With the new changes to secure Act 2.0, some of your heirs may be required to withdraw all of the money from IRA or retirement accounts within ten years. So having a plan to consider these other non-financial aspects is so important.

Now, there is an important disclaimer I have to share about Roth conversions and tax planning altogether is there are some things that are just simply out of our control. Whether that be market movements, or changes in legislation, tax laws, is always constantly evolving.

Conclusion

What I like to share with my clients is financial planning also evolves with the time and changes. We plan for the best and if there are any changes, we make adjustments along the way. Now, Roth conversions may seem straightforward, but it’s important that retirees carefully consider the factors that we’ve talked about today. Roth conversions may seem straightforward, but it’s important that retirees carefully think through these considerations that we’ve talked about today.

The best way to protect yourself from these costly mistakes is to simply have a plan. A plan that is dollar specific, goal specific, and that addresses other non-financial aspects of Roth conversions. As you do so, you’ll start to address these items and you’ll see that it’s going to help you maximize your retirement.