|
||||||||
Notch Bulletin: The `There Is No Notch` Myth Why Notch Victims Must Keep The Faith And Keep Writing By Michael J. Zabko, Executive Director, TSCL One of the most effective ways to avoid a problem is to deny that it exists. For example, how many times have you been told either by a Member of Congress, or by someone at your Social Security office that "there is no such thing as the Notch?" How many times has someone tried to explain that because the Notch does not exist, then surely organizations who lobby for the correction of a non-existing problem are therefore frauds? An Ohio newspaper recently reported that a woman born in 1923 called the office of her Member of the U.S. House to discuss the Notch issue. She was wrongly told that "the Notch issue has been closed" and that TREA Senior Citizens League (TSCL) is somehow misleading seniors because it continues to lobby for Notch Reform. The article further reported that according to a Congressional aide and a Social Security spokeswoman "there is a $5,000 Notch Lump-Sum bill pending, but it is not going anywhere." If the Notch issue is dead, why then are so many hard working Members of Congress such as Representatives Ralph Hall (D-TX), Robert Wexler (D-FL), Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO) and Bob Clement (D-TN) and Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) compelled to introduce and co-sponsor Notch legislation? One quarter of the House have signed on as co-sponsors. Are they to be considered frauds as well? Politics is not pretty. When an issue such as the Notch is under debate, one group, in this case TSCL, publicizes that a problem exists and that it's causing inequitable treatment of a group of citizens. Those on the opposite side, in this case the Social Security Administration and some members of Congress, use tactics to downplay the problem-like telling you there is nothing to complain about because the Notch does not exist. The fact is, the mere existence of a corrective piece of legislation means that with enough support, it could pass into law. Notch Reform now has a total of five bills pending in the House and one in the Senate with co-sponsors continuing to sign on. It is through your many letters, telephone calls, e-mails, faxes, and personal contacts that the Notch issue continues to gain the attention of Congress. TSCL is one of the only senior organizations that persists in fighting for an end to the Notch. As long as there are seniors affected by the Notch or other inequities that affect earned benefits, and as long as there is at least one Member of Congress willing to stand up and introduce corrective legislation, then TSCL will be here fighting for you. This article first appeared in Volume 5, Issue 6 of "The Social Security and Medicare Advisor" newsletter (May/2000). To receive future editions of "The Advisor" in its special, free e-mail version, please click here. | ||||||||
|
|
||||||||
