|
||||||||
Seniors! Check Your Social Security Check
Alexandria, VA (November 01, 2004) - "Seniors should plan to check the amount deducted from their 2005 Social Security checks for their Medicare Part B premium," warns a national seniors issue advocacy organization. "After the deduction for the Medicare premium, if your Social Security benefit checks are lower in January 2005 than they were in 2004, you should look into the problem carefully," says George Smith, Chairman of TREA Senior Citizens League (TSCL). Seniors will soon receive statements from Social Security telling them what their benefits will be for 2005. The Medicare Part B premium, which is automatically deducted from most seniors' Social Security checks, will rise by $11.60 per month in 2005[1] - a record high[2]. "For the Social Security recipient with average benefits, an increase of this size will take about half of the Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA)[3]," Smith points out. But beneficiaries with low Social Security benefits need to pay special attention. Those receiving a monthly benefit of about $362.40 or less this year - after the deduction of the Medicare premium [4] -- could see their entire COLA wiped out by the Medicare increase, " Smith explains. "The good news is that, by law, your check cannot drop because the Medicare premium increase exceeds your COLA.[5] TSCL believes that those who are most likely to be affected include widows and some of the seniors born from 1917 through 1926, known as Notch Babies. Minorities and disabled beneficiaries are also threatened," Smith notes. "If a senior's benefit in 2005 is lower than it was in 2004 after deduction of the Medicare Part B premium, seniors should contact their local Social Security office to have their benefit checked and corrected if necessary," Smith states. TSCL believes that the record increase in Medicare premium could have been reduced or avoided. "Congress and the administration can do much more to negotiate better costs for beneficiaries; reduce waste, fraud and abuse; phase in new costs; and protect the Medicare Trust Funds," Smith declares. "TSCL is working to help seniors cut their drug costs by lobbying for prescription drug reimportation legislation, a more fair COLA that uses a "senior's only" Consumer Price Index that more accurately measures the portion of income seniors spend on health care, and protection of the nation's Medicare, Social Security, military and civil service retirement trust funds. TSCL is a national group of politically active seniors concerned about the protection of their earned Social Security, Medicare, military, and other retirement benefits. TSCL members participate in a number of grassroots lobbying and public education campaigns designed to ensure governmental bodies, including the Social Security Administration and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, live up to their commitments. For more free information, please contact TREA Senior Citizens League, Department S607W, 909 N. Washington St., Suite 300, Alexandria, VA 22314, or visit our website at: www.tscl.org. [1] HHS Announces Medicare Premium, Deductibles for 2005, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, September 3, 2004. Distributed by The Senior Exchange, Inc. November 2004 | ||||||||
|
|
||||||||
