News

  • Legislative Update For Week Ending March 21 2014

    An alternate measure of inflation, the Supplemental Poverty Measure, indicates that the number of older adults who are living in poverty is larger than what the "official" poverty measure reports, according to a recent analysis from the non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation. The way in which the government measures poverty is important because eligibility for critical low–income programs such as Medicaid, food stamps, and rental subsidies is determined by income, and tied to the "official" U.S. poverty measure. A greater number of needy people would qualify for safety-net programs like Medicaid, if the government were to use the more accurate Supplemental Poverty Measure to determine eligibility. .The amount spent per person, which increases with age and health changes, and .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. … Continued

  • Illegal Work Under Fake Social Security Number Government Still Pays Benefits

    During the most recent years for which data are available (2000-2004), the total number of mismatched wage reports jumped from 217 million at the end of 1999 to 264 million by 2004, an average of more than 9.3 million per year—82% higher than during the 1990's and more than double the rate of the 1980's. .Nineteen percent (19%) have postponed filling one or more prescriptions due to quarantine or emergency orders to stay home. .Originally, Members of Congress planned to quickly debate and approve the CR last week so that they could turn their focus towards the November 4th elections. However, President Obama made a last-minute request to authorize extra military funding for the training of rebels in Syria, and the discussion grew complicated. After much discussion behind closed doors, leaders in the House and Senate agreed to attach an amendment to the CR to provide the military with the necessary funds to complete the training mission. … Continued

This week, President Obama delivered his State of the Union Address, and talks to repeal and replace the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula for doctors who treat Medicare patients seemed to have stalled. .Get quotes from 5 to 10 highly-rated insurance companies. Make sure you are getting apples–to–apples comparisons for the same type of annuity. .Clobetasol propionate is one of four medications that accounted for the most significant generic price increases in 2014 according to information on the website of pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts. The steep climb in generic drugs prompted a Senate hearing last year. The prices of more than 1,200 generic medications increased an average of 448 percent between July 2013 and July 2014, according to Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), ranking member of the Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging. .It is bad enough that non-medical professionals are involved in criminal activity like this but for a doctor to be part of it is outrageous. .The Senior Citizens League can be reached via e-mail at comments@ or you can reach us by telephone at 800-333-TSCL (8725). Our mission is to promote and assist members and supporters, to educate and alert senior citizens about their rights and freedoms as U.S. Citizens, and to protect and defend the benefits senior citizens have earned and paid for. The Senior Citizens League consists of vocally active senior citizens concerned about the protection of their Social Security, Medicare, and veteran or military retiree benefits. .Action on Capitol Hill was slow this week as Members of Congress remained in their home states and districts to prepare for the November 6th election. They are not expected to return to Capitol Hill until after the Veterans Day holiday, on Tuesday, November 13th. TSCL would like to remind you that many Members of Congress will attend local events or hold town hall meetings in the upcoming weeks, giving voters an excellent opportunity to voice their concerns. We encourage you to approach your Senators and Representatives to request their support for fair cost-of-living adjustments and other key issues. .This week, TSCL enthusiastically announced its support for the Preventing and Reducing Improper Medicare and Medicaid Expenditures (PRIME) Act (S. 1123 and H.R. 2305). In the Senate, the bill was introduced by Sens. Tom Carper (DE) and Tom Coburn (OK), and in the House, it was introduced by Reps. Peter Roskam (IL-6) and John Carney (DE). It currently has bipartisan support, with fifteen cosponsors in the Senate and ten in the House. .Increasing the payroll tax rate. Social Security is currently financed by a 12.4 percent payroll tax, split evenly between employers and employees. Gradually increasing the tax rate to 14.4 percent – just one percent more for both workers and employers – would extend the solvency of the Social Security program for decades to come and would amount to just an extra 50 cents per week for the average worker. .TSCL surveys confirm that costs for older Americans continued to climb despite no COLA this year. A recent TSCL survey found that 72 percent of respondents reported that their monthly household expenses rose by more than in 2015.