Your finances: Pre-retirement planning

Usually, when people talk about someone "going through a stage" they are talking about a 2-year-old or a teen. But there's another age at which people go through a key transitional period, also marked by angst and rebellion: Call it pre-retirement.

It hits for real about five years before an expected retirement date. Here are some guidelines for getting through that phase with a minimum of stress and strain.

You can figure out if you're covered for gaps before Medicare kicks in at 65 and afterward. How is your health? Do you need to be near certain medical facilities? What drugs do you take regularly? Will they be covered under Medicare?