Structured Settlements 4Real®Blog 2026

Structured settlements expert John Darer reviews the latest structured settlements and settlement planning information and news, and provides expert opinion and highly regarded commentary. that is spicy, Informative, irreverent and effective for over 20 years.

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The STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS 4REAL® Blog is a highly regarded source for structured settlement news, information, and commentary, led by structured settlement and settlement planning subect mater expert John Darer CLU ChFC MSSC CeFT RSP CLTC. With two decades of operation, the blog and 4structures.com are recognized as comprehensive resources, offering detailed guides and specialized insights. Established in 2005, the blog caters to a broad audience, including legal professionals, injured individuals, families, and various stakeholders, providing reviews and opinions on settlement planning. John Darer, President of 4structures.com LLC, is a seasoned structured settlement expert with over 40 years of financial services experience and 31 years specializing in structured settlements. Based in Stamford, CT, he is a Certified Financial Transitionist and Registered Settlement Planner, holding insurance licenses in 45 states and the District of Columbia. John Darer is dedicated to transparency and advocacy, he emphasizes the importance of engaging trained and licensed professionals for settlement planning, offering valuable insights through his investigative journalism and professional commentary.

Category: medicare set aside

  • The Case of “The Dreaded Shrimp”

    Timothy Richardson a former employee of the St. Louis branch of the Red Lobster restaurant chain, was left comatose in 2003 by the effects of a shellfish allergy hours after breading shrimp on the job. DealFlow Media’s report of the case on May 30, 2008 inaccurately states in its headline that the Richardson was "awarded a…

  • Structured Settlements and Government Benefits

    Traditionally the use of structured settlements as as a funding vehicle for SNTs enables the beneficiary to benefit from rated ages (medical underwriting) which theoretically enables that less trust corpus to be consumed. This is because a rated age means that the structured settlement quote will be less

  • Medicare Set Aside Allocations Set to Increase Due to CMS Prescription Drug Memo

    The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a Memorandum addressing the impact of Part D prescription drug coverage on workers’ compensation settlements on December 30th, which will dramatically impact workers’ compensation settlements nationwide. Medicare Set-Aside ("MSA") allocations will increase considerably because prescription drugs are often one of the largest cost categories of future…

  • The GPS For Fiscal Cancer

    As government entitlements become less certain there will be a need for more certainty…the kind of certainty that structured settlements can provide, that we offer. Structured settlement annuities offer certainty, deferred income annuities offer certainty, structured attorney fee annuities offer certainty, structured sales and employment stuctured settlements offer certainty.

  • Settlement Planner’s Double Standard and New York CPLR 5003-a?

    New York CPLR 5003-a does not address to the work of a structured settlement broker or settlement planner when it speaks of “tender” of payment