News

  • House Lawmakers Want Fast Action Social Security Medicare Overhauls

    This week, lawmakers passed legislation to avert a government shutdown and those in the majority party continued working on legislation to reform the tax code. In addition, The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) saw several key bills gain support in the House and Senate. .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. .Susan's mother started taking the prescription drug Eliquis last year, that will cost her mother about ,244 out-of-pocket in 2019 for that drug alone (she takes five other generics). Last year, the cost of Eliquis pushed her mom into the Part D doughnut hole where out-of-pocket costs were higher. Rising costs of the drug in 2019 will mean her mom will hit the doughnut hole a month sooner this year. … Continued

  • Issues Prevention Of Fraud Waste Feed

    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? .SGR Talks Stall as Deadline Looms .Provide a one-time bump – up in monthly benefits for all beneficiaries. A higher level of monthly benefits would mean more adequate COLAs and a greater ability to afford Medicare Part B premium increases in coming years. … Continued

Just years before they were set to retire, these individuals learned that they would have significantly lower benefits than originally anticipated. The issue was created by the amendments to the Social Security Act that were signed into law in 1977, and it has compounded over time. .First, two new cosponsors – Representative Paul Gosar (AZ-4) and Representative John Larson (CT-1) – signed on to the Audiology Patient Choice Act (H.R. 2276), bringing the total up to thirty-two. If adopted, H.R. 2276 would improve Medicare coverage for hearing services that are performed by licensed audiologists. Under current law, audiologists are not recognized as providers of health-related hearing services, and the Medicare program will only reimburse them for their services when patients are referred by physicians or nurse practitioners. .Raising Medicare Age Would Save 500 Billion Dollars .There will likely be court challenges to the President's actions, making it unclear how quickly any money would reach the unemployed. On top of that, it is unclear how many states will want to participate in this enhanced unemployment program or how many companies will want to suspend payroll taxes for employees only to have to pay them in 2021. .Here are some tips to identify false or misleading claims. .Look into mail-order pharmacies. When ordering by mail you save money because you order in quantity – a 90-day versus a 30-day supply. Many mail order pharmacies charge lower co-pays for a 90-day supply than what you pay for a 60-day. Check with your drug plan to find out if mail order is available. .At Tuesday's committee meeting, Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan (WI-1) referred to the board as "unelected bureaucrats that could cut Medicare's payments to doctors and essentially ration care." TSCL shares these concerns about the IPAB – we fear its recommendations could result in increased costs for beneficiaries or decreased access to quality medical care. .Compare your drug and health plan options NOW during the Medicare Open Enrollment period before it ends on December 7th. Does your current drug plan even cover your expensive new prescription? If not, you need to check your other options. Chances are another plan will. Use the Drug and Health Plan Finder at www.Medicare.gov. Make sure you carefully enter every prescription drug you take in order to get a custom comparison of your best drug plan choices. Costs can vary by hundreds, even thousands, of dollars, and you may be very surprised by the savings from switching to a better plan. .2014 Annual Survey of Senior Costs, Mary Johnson, The Senior Citizens League, March 2014.