There's an old saying: "Laws are like sausages; it is better not to see them being made." .Seniors are often targeted for their money or identity, commonly with fraudsters asking seniors to send a payment through gift cards, by wire transfer, credit card, or other predatory schemes. Retailers, financial services providers, and wire transfer companies have undertaken efforts to do their part to stop their customers, including seniors, from being scammed. .Lawmakers at Wednesday's Budget Committee hearing discussed potential solutions to the solvency challenge, including the Social Security 2100 Act (H.R. 860), introduced by Congressman John Larson (CT-1) and cosponsored by more than 200 House lawmakers. Congressman Larson, who testified before the committee members on Wednesday, outlined his Social Security reform proposal in detail. .According to the report, CMS has not expanded the recovery audit program to Medicare Advantage by the end of 2010 as was required by the Patient Protection Act. Recovery audits have been used for years in other Medicare programs to recover improper payments. TSCL believes Congress must provide stronger oversight to ensure that scarce Medicare dollars are spent appropriately and to prevent private insurers from boosting profits by gauging both taxpayers and older Americans. .A few years later, under 2003 Medicare drug legislation, funding for private plans was significantly boosted and the program got rebranded as "Medicare Advantage." Enrollment grew steadily and rapidly ever since. But by 2009, government economists reported that the payments to the plans cost the federal government 14 percent more than the same services would have cost under traditional Medicare. .Apply for Medicaid coverage while you wait. Check with a counselor at your local area Agency on Aging or local Medicaid department. Medicaid can take several months to start. .Commodities and Services Pricing Survey, an establishment survey of businesses selling goods and services to consumers, used to provide the price data for the CPI .There is a misconception that all veterans can get health care through the Department of Veterans Affairs. But that is not true. To get health care there a veteran must have a VA-rated disability. .We cannot afford to overlook the financial risks associated both with the U.S.-Mexico totalization agreement and with any immigration plan that includes an amnesty provision at the expense of first securing our borders against additional illegal immigration.