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    Most individual taxpayers will pay lower taxes, at least in the first few years, tax analysts say. But the tax cuts affecting middle-to-low-income people are temporary, and are set to expire in just eight years, by the end of 2025, while the tax cut for families in the very top income bracket is permanent. That's expected to leave the majority of taxpayers with higher tax bills down the road — something most people living on fixed income simply can't afford. TSCL is still assessing the expected impacts of the new legislation. .The budget resolution now heads to the House floor, where its future remains uncertain. Republican leaders in the House have been attempting to win the support of the 40-member conservative Freedom Caucus for weeks, but they have not yet been successful. They will need to rely upon a least a dozen of their votes for its passage. Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (GA-6) told reporters this week that he is "working with members who are not on the Budget Committee" to build support for it, and that it will be taken up "when we have the votes." .Stories About High Drug Costs Lead To Congressional Investigation of Pharmaceutical Pricing … Continued

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    For example, those living in North Carolina's 3rd congressional district received emails introducing them to Congressman Walter Jones, sponsor of the Social Security Guarantee Act, and consistent supporter of important bills like the Notch Fairness Act and the Social Security Fairness Act. Those living in Oregon's 4th district received emails introducing Congressman Peter DeFazio, sponsor of three critical bills: the CPI-E Act, the Social Security Protection and Truth in Budgeting Act, and the No Loopholes in Social Security Taxes Act. These and other campaign efforts proved to be successful, as many critical lawmakers won their re-election bids and will continue to advocate for seniors in the next session of Congress. ."Opting out" of a former employer's coverage on occasion might be able to save you money, but it requires careful cost comparisons and sound guidance. Never make any change without first getting the unbiased advice from a trained Medicare benefits counselor. The service is provided free of charge through your State Health Insurance Program and is available at many local Agencies on Aging. Check your local yellow pages. .Unlike other government penalties, such as a tax penalty, the extra 0 per month is permanent, and is payable for the rest of the time he has Medicare. To avoid further penalties, we strongly urge your daughter to get her father-in-law enrolled in Medicare Part B as quickly as possible. If her father-in-law only receives Social Security and has limited savings, he may qualify for a Medicare Savings Program that would pay the cost of the Part B premium. … Continued

The majority of seniors aged 65 who get Social Security depend on it for at least 50 percent of their income. Average benefits today only total about ,200 a year. .TSCL believes a better approach to Medicare Advantage "risk adjustments" is needed, and should be written into law, rather than left to the discretion of politically appointed Medicare administrators. Congress could do this by writing a method for calculating the adjustment into the law. This approach would make payment for MA plans more like payment for other Medicare providers. .The week ended with a live speech from President Trump heralding the new legislation passed recently that makes mandatory the transparency of the cost of hospital treatments, supplies and prescriptions. Of most interest to TSCL is the high cost of prescription drugs. During our meetings with Congressional offices this week we left information with all of them concerning a large number of issues we are working on including prescription drug prices. .On Thursday evening, lawmakers in the House and Senate voted to pass a continuing resolution (CR) that will fund the federal government until Friday, December 22nd. TSCL is pleased that lawmakers successfully averted a government shutdown since failing to do so could have impacted the timely delivery of Social Security benefits. Physicians and other medical providers also could have seen delays in their reimbursements from the Medicare program if the federal government had shut down. .The "defined benefit" pension plan has become rare, only available to about 16 percent of private sector workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Most companies have transitioned from traditional pension plans that offer a fixed benefit to 401(k) plans, that are invested in the stock and bond markets, and vary on the amount of income that can be expected, depending on investment performance and the economy. .TSCL opposes the payment of Social Security and Medicare benefits that are based on illegal work, and supports legislation that would ban Social Security work credits based on unauthorized earnings from being used to determine entitlement. .This issue has just popped up and TSCL will be in contact with members of Congress to do all we can to prevent these looming cuts and we will keep you advised as to how things are going. .When the Social Security Administration announced that the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2016 would be zero, a stunning thing occurred. The Medicare Trustees projected that the monthly Part B premium would increase by an unprecedented .50 (52%) between 2015 and 2016— from 4.90 to 9.30 per month. What does this have to do with the situation today? .First, four new cosponsors – Representative Darren Soto (FL-9), Representative Grace Napolitano (CA-32), Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40), and Representative Grace Meng (NY-6) – signed on to the Nursing Home CARE Act (H.R. 4704), bringing the total up to nineteen. If adopted, the bill would protect Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries by more quickly codifying emergency preparedness rules for nursing home facilities that receive funding from the federal government.