The January Checklist:
How to Update Your Retirement
When the FPL Changes

The federal poverty level (FPL) — the number that determines income thresholds for Medi-Cal and Covered California — is updated every year, usually in January or February. When it goes up (which it almost always does), the income limits for your benefits go up with it.

That's good news. But it also means the retirement contribution amount you calculated last year might not be exactly right anymore. Your threshold shifted. Your contribution may need to shift too.

This is your annual checklist — a 30-minute ritual every January to make sure you're still protected and still optimized for the new year.

Your January benefits checklist

1. Open the calculator. Go to CliffCalculator.com/calculator. We update the thresholds each year when the new FPL is published.
2. Enter your current income. Use your most recent pay stub's gross income. If you got a raise in the past year, use the new amount.
3. Check your new threshold. The calculator shows your updated Medi-Cal and Covered CA limits based on the new FPL. Compare where you land relative to the threshold.
4. Recalculate your contribution. If the threshold went up, you may have more breathing room — and might be able to contribute slightly less to your IRA while still staying under. Or you may want to keep the same contribution and capture more of the MAGI buffer as protection.
5. Update your IRA contribution amount. Log in to your brokerage and adjust your monthly automatic contribution if needed. Most brokerages let you do this in under 5 minutes.
6. Check the IRA contribution limit. The IRS also occasionally adjusts the annual IRA contribution limit. For 2026 it's $7,500 (or $8,600 if you're 50+) — up from $7,000 in 2025. If it increased, you may be able to contribute more.
7. Verify your benefits are still active. If you haven't done your annual Medi-Cal renewal, do it now. California requires annual redetermination — missing it can cause gaps in coverage even if you're still eligible.