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  • Category Legislative News Page 37

    If it has been less than 2 weeks since your shot, or if you still need to get your second dose, you are NOT fully protected. Keep taking all prevention steps until you are fully vaccinated. .TSCL agrees that improvements must be made to ensure that older Americans are better informed about their benefit claiming options, and we are hopeful that SSA will carefully consider the proposals made at Wednesday's hearing. In addition, TSCL hopes that Congress will appropriate adequate funding to SSA in the months ahead so that field offices around the country can provide the highest quality service possible to individuals nearing and in retirement. For progress updates, follow TSCL's advocacy efforts on Twitter. .Premium support by itself is no shoo-in for cutting federal spending. In fact, the track record is pretty messy. The costs for Medicare Part D have been lower than originally projected. Competition between Part D drug plans seems to be working, for now, to keep costs down both for the government and for some seniors — particularly those who carefully shop and compare drug plans each year. … Continued

  • Legislative Update For Week Ending December 2 2011

    In response to the proposed changes, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (CA-12) said, "With their latest budget proposal, House Republicans have made their values very clear: strengthen the special interests, abandon seniors and hard-working families." TSCL agrees that adopting a premium-support model for the Medicare program would be a step in the wrong direction, and we oppose the Budget Committee's efforts to include it in next year's resolution. In the weeks and months ahead, we will continue to advocate against plans to privatize the Medicare program. .Sources: "Vets Break Past World War II Memorial Barricade," Laura Koran and Ashley Killough, CNN, October 1, 2013. .We are still learning how well COVID-19 vaccines keep people from spreading the disease. … Continued

The overpayment amount that the Social Security Administration is claiming in your case may be due to several reasons. Here are some things that may affect you: .According to the president and CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals, "The bill throws a lifeline to caregivers by continuing the pause in the 2% Medicare sequester, and making adjustments to buffer the impact of an ill-conceived change in physician payments during a pandemic." .TSCL enthusiastically supports H.R. 1030 and H.R. 3118, and we were pleased to see support grow for both of them this week. .Some Members of Congress are calling for Congress to strike a deficit reduction deal of their own. Although gridlock may occur and would hardly be surprising, TSCL remains adamantly opposed to a key proposal that would change the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) calculation. The proposal, which would affect not only future retirees but ALL retirees, would switch to a more slowly-growing consumer price index known as the "chained" CPI to calculate the annual COLA. This proposal that would reduce the lifetime Social Security income of seniors by potentially tens of thousands of dollars is one of the few areas of agreement between both Democrat and Republican negotiators. TSCL also strongly opposes proposals that would increase what seniors have to pay for the Medicare benefits. .With reconciliation, Democrats can pass a bill without any Republican votes so they are hoping to get a much more comprehensive bill than the Grassley-Wyden one. .This study looks at 39 expenditures that are typical for people age 65 and up, comparing the growth in the prices of these goods and services to the growth in the annual COLAs. It includes cost increases in Medicare premiums and out of pocket costs that aren't tracked under the index currently used to calculate the COLA. .More Veterans Could Get Covid-19 Vaccinations .Last week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relaxed its warning for cruise travel for the first time since several outbreaks on ships brought the industry to a halt last year. .Americans are anxious to get back to normal after over a year of being limited in their activities because of the pandemic. For many seniors, as well as others, that includes vacationing, and vacationing includes trips on cruise ships.