What you can do. If you come across an op-ed calling seniors "Greedy Geezers" in your paper or hear it elsewhere let's set the record straight. Send a letter to the editor of the publication where you see it and please send TSCL a copy! Send mail to: The Senior Citizens League, 1001 N. Fairfax St. 101, Alexandria, VA 22314. .I read your story about a potential Social Security benefit cut affecting people who were born in 1960. Has Congress taken any action yet to correct this? .Regarding Medicare, the budget blueprint calls for increased means testing for Parts B and D, and it would increase out-of-pocket spending for new beneficiaries by charging them co-payments for home health services, and by adding a surcharge to certain Medigap plans. TSCL fears that these added costs for beneficiaries could result in some unforeseen consequences. .That said, the SSDI program paid .2 billion in benefits to ineligible people in FY2012 according to the Social Security Administration's Office of the Inspector General. And skyrocketing enrollment is putting added financial strains on the program. Both the Social Security Trustees and the Congressional Budget Office have recently forecast that the SSDI trust fund will become fully depleted in three years. When that occurs, program revenues will only be sufficient to pay about 80% of benefits. Unless Congress takes action, severely disabled beneficiaries would face benefit cuts of 20%. .According to the IRS, advance payments of the Child Tax Credit will be made from July through December to eligible taxpayers and will be up to 50% of the credit. Advance payments will be estimated from your 2020 tax returns, or 2019 returns if the 2020 returns are not filed and processed yet. .Deductible: During the initial deductible, the beneficiary pays 100% of the cost of the drug—up to 5 depending on the plan. Many plans provide immediate coverage on generics, and even preferred brand drugs "before the deductible." In this type of plan, you only pay the full price up to the deductible on higher tier drugs, and some plans don't charge a deductible at all. .In a letter of support to Rep. Kevin Brady (TX-8) – the sponsor of H.R. 711 – TSCL's Chairman Ed Cates wrote: "According to a recent study completed by TSCL, Social Security beneficiaries have lost over 20 percent of their purchasing power since 2000. Those who are subject to the WEP have undoubtedly fallen even further behind. It is now more important than ever for Congress to address the inequities that have been created by the WEP, and TSCL believes the Equal Treatment of Public Servants Act is a fair and responsible solution." .There are, however, a number of ways that unauthorized workers can, and do, become entitled to benefits based on illegal work (see our "FAHow "Undocumented" Workers Are Becoming Entitled To Social Security" from the May 2012, Volume 17, Number 4 issue of The Social Security & Medicare Advisor. Despite a 2004 law forbidding illegals from claiming Social Security benefits, they are able to do so if at some point their status changes and they receive work authorization — as would happen under an amnesty. With work authorization, noncitizens can file a claim for Social Security benefits. Under current law when determining entitlement for benefits, Social Security uses all earnings for calculating the primary benefit amount, even if the earnings were for unauthorized work using fraudulent documents. All the individual needs to do is to supply evidence of the earnings, such as old W2s, and earnings in the ESF file would be "reinstated" to the account of the claimant. .TSCL Believes New Policy Would Add To Growing Social Security Woes