Back in 2010, before Obamacare became law, the President made the following promise to the public: "If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor. Period." Fast-forward four years, and many seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage – the privately-run alternative to traditional Medicare – are finding themselves doctor-less. As it turns out, yet another Obamacare promise has been broken. .Paying heating or cooling bills, .As a country, we need to be ready to fix this problem once our economy recovers by making reforms that strengthen both programs. Once this occurs, more money will flow back into the trust funds to bolster their coffers. To address this issue I introduced H.R. 1517, the Social Security and Medicare Lock-Box Act, which would establish separate surplus accounts for both the Social Security and Medicare Part A trust fund and help protect against anyone in Washington from spending those resources on unrelated projects. Washington may be broken but legislation like H.R. 1517 will help ensure retirees' hard-earned tax dollars are protected and our promise to seniors is kept. .Medicare Part B enrollees who don't receive Social Security benefits. This includes people who have delayed the start of Social Security benefits, and all people who are billed for Medicare. According to a report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, in 2013, about half of all people on Medicare who don't yet receive Social Security had incomes below ,000. .Thus the new formula went into effect almost immediately for most people and is one reason why retirees born over the ten-year period of 1917 through 1926 were affected, not only those covered by the five-year phase-in. In addition, the economy did not perform the way Congress and the Social Security Administration assumed it would under the new benefit formula. Slower than anticipated wage growth, and higher than expected price inflation, resulted in even greater benefit reductions than under original assumptions. These economic conditions persisted for a decade, thus affecting those born over a ten-year period. .Missing Medicare Part B Enrollment Deadline Triggers Penalties .Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (AL) told reporters this week that a government shutdown later this month is a real possibility. He said: "This could make us all come together or it could drive us further apart. We don't know yet … I've been here on Christmas Eve." .Despite receiving some pointed questions at Wednesday's hearing, most Senators on the panel seemed overwhelmingly supportive of Burwell's nomination. Sen. Tom Coburn (OK) introduced her to the Finance Committee and he recommended her confirmation, saying: "When you have someone who is competent and also has a strong character, you find a way to get past your differences and try to solve your problems." In addition, in his opening remarks, Sen. Jay Rockefeller (WV) said, "We need you, Sylvia Mathews Burwell, very, very much." .I worked in a California city police department for 30 years and I'm now entitled to a pension. For the past 8 years, I've also paid into Social Security for self-employment earnings from a small company that I own. My accountant tells me that, in order to qualify for Social Security benefits, I should continue to work at my company and send in in two more years' worth of taxes. Will this be worth it?