The end-of-year season is a time when we feel a sense of togetherness with friends, family and fellow-(wo)man in general, whether we can be physically close to those we love or not. All of ACA’s volunteer staff wishes happy holidays and a fruitful 2006 to each one of you in our widespread readership.

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Everyone with Medicare, regardless of income, health status, or prescription drug usage, will have access to prescription drug coverage beginning on January 1, 2006. The initial sign-up period extends until 15 May 2006.

As with basic Medicare coverage, the new Part D coverage for prescription drugs will not pay for expenses incurred abroad. How, then, can it affect Americans living abroad?

If you have US-based health insurance and are 65 or over, check to make sure that you will still be reimbursed for prescription drugs. Some plans (in the Blue Cross/Blue Shield system, for example) are eliminating drug coverage for those 65-plus, on the presumption that you will be covered under Part D.

If you spend part of the year in the US, or want to keep open health coverage options for returning to live in the US, be aware that there is a 1% per month penalty for not signing up when you initially qualify and--as for Medicare itself (with a 10 per cent penalty per year of non-participation)--this will cause higher premiums for the remainder of your life. Note that those who switch over from Tricare for Life, or some other programs for government employees, are exempt from such penalties.

Details on websites such as: medicare.gov and aarp.org. Federal Benefits Units at American embassies can also help explain the ins and outs of this somewhat complicated new program.

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The US Supreme Court will be hearing a case concerning the rights of consular notification and access to a foreign detainee in a US state court (Bustillo v. Johnson, see northwestern.edu)

The right of an individual detained in a foreign country to have access to his national consular representative is internationally recognized in the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, of which the US is a signatory (www.un.org). Denying or undermining this right could in turn have serious repercussions for Americans arrested abroad.

ACA and other groups of Americans abroad filed amicus curiae briefs in a previous case of this type (Medellin v. Dretke, see northwestern.edu) and are following the case closely.

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"DO NOT IGNORE NOTICES FROM THE IRS!" warns Jane Bruno, tax consultant, in her detailed message. "If you get a letter from the IRS, don’t panic. Realize that you need to take it seriously and respond in a timely fashion, but know that you have rights in the process," she adds.

(Jane Bruno is a tax consultant in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, who specializes in tax issues for American overseas. She can be reached at: janebruno@adelphia.net)

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Dan Stephan in Chiang Mai, Thailand, is conducting research to estimate the total of USA citizens (other than military employees) now living outside the USA. He also hopes to learn (a) how many of these are retirees and also (b) to get estimates of these for major nations...for example, Mexico, Canada, Costa Rica, etc. He will use this information to write articles for USA newspapers and will be sure to cite the sources of any data. E-mail him at danstephan3000@yahoo.com with any feedback.

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The US State Dept has issued an unusually strong and very specific warning concerning travel to Indonesia during the holiday season. If you have plans to go to and/or remain in this area in the coming months, read carefully the mid-November travel warning available at: travel.state.gov. (Thanks to the Consulate General in Sydney, Australia, for bringing this to ACA’s attention.)

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Following the recent entry into force of new regulations demanding biometric passports, the US Embassy in Paris warns that obligatory visa interviews for those affected must be scheduled more than a month in advance. Check the Embassy website at: amb-usa.fr

France will begin to produce passports with biometric information in the near future, but not in time to meet the October 26, 2005 deadline. Therefore, people traveling to the United States for business or tourism with a French passport issued ON OR AFTER October 26, 2005 that does not have an electronic chip will need to apply for a US visa.

Please note that business and tourism travelers with passports issued BEFORE October 26, 2005 are not affected by the new law. Conditions for them remain the same: bearers of machine-readable passports, issued before October 26, 2005, may travel visa-free to the United States; bearers of older, non-machine readable passports will need to apply for a U.S. visa.

(Thanks for the message circulated by the US consul in Lyon, France)

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A recent query to ACA concerning an upcoming move to Vienna was answered by providing the link to the very useful publication of the American Women's Club of Vienna: "Living in Vienna". awavienna.com

American Women's Clubs worldwide are a source of similar inexpensive publications, chock-full of commonsense advice, locql names and addresses. Many of these groups are members of FAWCO (Federation of American Women's Clubs Overseas), on whose website you can find their URLs: fawco.org

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The November issue of the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) journal features brief reviews of books on a broad spectrum of subjects – from poetry to policy studies to travels and memoirs. If you are looking for a good read by someone with a world outlook, check out the listings at: afsa.org

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The ACA Book Committee foresees that So Far and So Near: Stories of Americans Abroad will be published in January 2006. This entertaining and enlightening book with dozens of life experiences and reflections by American abroad will be a must read for anyone living overseas. All information as to how it can be ordered will be available on the ACA website in the coming weeks. Keep a look out for it!

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This may be TEOTWAWKI (the end of the world as we know it), now that e-mail abbreviations are becoming ever-more common.

The collection of sites below may leave you CIG (collapsing in giggles), make you realize that GMTA (great minds think alike), or perhaps that English is FUBAR (fouled up beyond all recognition). OTOH (On the other hand), perhaps you can limit yourself to one abbreviation: NAP (no abbreviations, please)!

zeusprod.com

loganact.com

shakespearespeddlter.com

comcast.net

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This News Update is, like ACA itself, of, by, and for Americans abroad. ACA is staffed through the efforts of volunteers, with its primary income source being membership fees and donations from private American citizens around the world.

WAYS TO CONTRIBUTE HANDS-ON TO ACA WORK:

1. NEWS UPDATE EDITORS. ACA is seeking to supplement its News Update staff. Work involves actually writing the News Update 2 - 3 times a year, under supervision of a Senior Editor, and monitoring raw material considered for the newsletter on a regular basis. Calls for e-mail access and an ability to write/edit succinctly and against a deadline. ACA takes pride in the global spread of its editors.
2. BOOK REVIEWS/REVIEWERS. ACA is interested in discovering books of particular interest to Americans abroad. It also seeks individuals willing to review such books. Reviewers get to keep the book, and to see their contribution in print. Click here for a list of books or contact the ACA office.

WAYS TO CONTRIBUTE TO ACA'S FINANCIAL SUCCESS:

1. ORDER YOUR PUBLICATIONS THROUGH THE ACA WEBSITE and we get paid for your business - at no cost to you. Go to the Book Review section and click on any link to amazon-com (USA) or amazon-UK. Any purchases you make when you have entered through the ACA portal, whether of items reviewed on the website or not, will generate a small revenue for ACA; Please make this extra click-to-give gesture to help us continue to help you.
2. JOIN US FOR OUR ANNUAL AUCTION. The FUNdraiser evening produces the single largest annual contribution to ACA's working budget. And the highest bids are for items ingenious and/or exotic. It's a good bet that someone in the attending crowd of internationals will be intrigued by even the most distant and/or unusual of objects or services.
3. IS YOUR MEMBERSHIP CURRENT? Renew by secure online payment or contact the ACA office . Membership is only $40 a year ($30 for seniors). Of course, an outright contribution via check or charge card is the most obvious way to support the work of ACA and its worldwide volunteers working to help YOU. Secure payment via thru PayPal^®, or send a check to: ACA, 5 rue Liotard, CH-1202 Geneva, Switzerland.

Disclaimer: While ACA makes every effort to be accurate in the information it transmits, such information is not to be considered a substitute for specific and qualified professional advice.

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