News

  • Lets End The Social Security Payroll Tax Cut

    Alexandria, VToday's seniors are living longer and spending more years in retirement — which is why a Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that keeps up with rising costs is essential protection, says The Senior Citizens League (TSCL). Yet Social Security benefits have been growing at record lows over the past five years — an average about 1.4% per year — less than half the average rate of growth in previous years. .Last fall, the Government Accountability Office uncovered .3 billion in improper payments from December 2010 to January 2013 made to people who had jobs when they were supposed to be unable to work. To be eligible for Social Security disability, beneficiaries must be unable to work due to a medical condition that's expected to last at least one year, or result in death. The list, however, includes murky afflictions like back pain, depression and other un-measurable afflictions, opening the system to fraud and abuse. .On the other hand, critics of the proposal argue that people can't always determine the timing of the application for Social Security benefits. They say that people are often forced to retire earlier than planned due to health problems, layoffs, new technology, or needing to care for one's parent or spouse. They argue that raising the age for full benefits results in reducing the early, age 62 benefit even more than it already is today. … Continued

  • Category Legislative News Page 44

    The "Doc Fix" ."The distinction between inpatient or outpatient can make a tremendous difference to what Medicare patients have to pay," says TSCL Executive Director, Shannon Benton. Inpatient stays are covered under Medicare Part A. Inpatients who are hospitalized for three days or more qualify for Medicare's limited nursing home stay coverage. Observation stays are considered outpatient services covered under Part B. Observation patients can have much higher copayments costs and sometimes get hit with huge bills for non-covered drugs. .The fact is no one can know ahead of time what healthcare will be needed in the future, let alone the actual costs of the services that providers charge. Doctors frequently refer patients to expensive specialists, and order endless expensive tests without spending adequate time to explain why the tests are necessary, how much they cost, or the chances of improving treatments through their use. … Continued

Last week we wrote about a new bill that was expected to be introduced this week by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that would lower prescription drug prices on some of the most expensive drugs. The plan would allow the secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate the price of up to 250 drugs per year, and the lower prices would apply to people both with private insurance and those on Medicare. .The massive effort is needed to change how 59 million people enrolled in Medicare are identified. Historically the red, white, and blue Medicare cards have used the beneficiaries' Social Security number for the Medicare ID number. Unsurprisingly those numbers are a prime target for identity theft and fraud. The new cards come with a unique computer-generated series of 11 letters and numbers. .Know what debt you have. Make a list of your mortgage, any home equity line of credit (HELOC), credit cards, and any other debt. Making minimum payments may keep you out of collections, but that strategy doesn't pay off debt. Prioritize your loans by the amount of interest, and whether the interest (such as for a mortgage) is tax deductible. Work out a plan to pay off the highest non-deductible interest loan first, while making the minimum payments on other loans. As you get a loan paid off, start on the next highest interest loan. .For each visitor to our website, The Senior Citizens League collects only the domain name and aggregate information on what pages are visited. This information is used to help improve the content and ease of use of our website. .Nineteen percent (19%) postponed filling one or more prescriptions due to price spikes caused by coronavirus shortages or supply chain disruptions. .In order to keep Social Security checks coming, in full and on time, Congress will need to work promptly to raise or suspend the debt limit in coming months. Failing to do so would be irresponsible, especially when more than 60 million Americans rely on Social Security and Medicare. TSCL believes that Congress has better options than benefit cuts for strengthening Social Security. What do you think? Please take our new online 2019 Social Security survey here. .For details, or to see if your Members of Congress will be holding town hall meetings during this week's recess, call their local offices. You can find contact information HERE. .The proposed funding increase into Medicaid's Home and Community Based Services program has two goals: reducing waiting lists for support for older and disabled Americans who want to stay in their homes rather than go into assisted living facilities or other institutions, and raising pay for home health care's largely female, minority workforce. .Tax Plan Moves to Conference Committee