News

  • Q August 2016

    Medicare Advantage plans require very careful scrutiny of potential costs. Some plans have lured seniors with low premiums and deductibles, only for enrollees to discover high undisclosed costs later. .The President ordered a payroll tax deferral, not a cut, meaning the taxes will not be collected for a while but they will still be due at a later date. However, some observers have suggested that rather than give employees the additional money and then try to collect it back from them at the end of the year, employers will simply hold onto the money so that the employees would never see it in their paychecks. .Congress Adjourns for Memorial Day Recess … Continued

  • Social Security Reform Feed

    Sources: Social Security Disability Insurance (DI) Trust Fund: Background and Solvency Issues, Morton, Congressional Research Service, November 20, 2013, R4331"Social Security Made .3 Billion in Improper Disability Payments," Stephen Ohlemacher, Associated Press, September 14, 201"60 Minutes: Disability USA," Steve Kroft, CBS News, October 6, 201To view this story visit: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-57606233/disability-usa . ."Concern is high among older Americans that undocumented immigrants who illegally worked under fake, invalid, or fraudulent Social Security numbers may at some point receive benefits based on such work," says TSCL Chairman, Ed Cates. A survey conducted by TSCL, a nonpartisan seniors organization, found that 82% opposed the current government policy that allows Social Security to determine entitlement to Social Security benefits based on earnings from jobs worked without legal authorization. .Unlike income tax brackets that are adjusted for inflation, the income thresholds that subject Social Security benefits to taxation have never been adjusted since Social Security benefits became taxable in 198When the law was first passed, less than 10 percent of all Social Security recipients were estimated to have incomes high enough to be affected by the tax on benefits. But today, even retirees with very modest incomes can be affected by the tax. … Continued

COLAs Going To Be Flat In 2014 .This is good news. While we have disagreements with some doctors over things like surprise medical billings, this year has taught us how critical and valuable to us all are our medical personnel. This certainly was no time to try to balance the budget on the backs of those who have borne the weight of so many of us this year. .Medicare supplements tend to have higher premiums than Medicare Advantage plans, but will cover most, or even all of your out-of-pocket costs, depending on which policy "A" –"N" that you choose. Medicare Advantage plans have lower premiums, but you instead pay co-pays for every service. If you get sick or you are hospitalized, your out-of-pocket costs could be thousands of dollars. But unlike Medicare alone, Medicare Advantage plans have annual out-of-pocket maximums to cap what you pay. Those maximums average ,332 in 2017 but can be as high as ,700. .Congress managed to pass a short-term fix to prevent a 19% benefit cut that was due to hit disabled Social Security beneficiaries by the end of this year. The legislation heads off the cut by temporarily transferring some payroll tax revenues over the next three years, expanding measures to better ensure medical eligibility for benefits, and by preventing improper payments due to fraudulent work. The stronger eligibility and anti-fraud provisions are strongly supported by TSCL, incorporating several recommendations that TSCL presented last fall to the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. The legislation: .Sixty – seven percent of seniors participating in the survey said they already spend up to one-third of their Social Security benefits on Medicare costs. Another 21 percent said they spent up to one-half. "Because healthcare costs are rising more rapidly than Social Security benefits, spending on Medicare takes an increasing share of senior income as seniors age," says Cates. .President Gives First State of the Union .The Social Security COLA is provided to help protect the buying power of benefits when costs rise due to inflation. Yet even under the current method of adjusting benefits, Social Security benefits have lost 30 percent of buying power since 2000, according to a recent report released by TSCL. "Switching to the chained CPI would mean the erosion in the buying power of Social Security benefits would occur at faster rates than is already occurring today," says Johnson. "That puts retirees at higher risk of depleting retirement savings more quickly than expected, going into debt, and going without." According to Johnson's analysis, if the proposal were to take effect this year, average benefits would be about per month lower by 2026, and about per month lower in 20 years. .TSCL's Board of Trustees on Capitol Hill ."Official" Poverty Measure Undercounts The Number Of Older Americans Living In Poverty