If signed into law, S. 960 would base Social Security cost-of-living adjustments on the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E) and gradually phase out the cap on income subject to the payroll tax. .Thus, if you need to replace lost income right away, and you don't have a lot of savings or other resources to finance a waiting period for benefits, your husband may be better off simply filing a claim now for Social Security retirement benefits. While those benefits would be reduced due to starting benefits prior to his full retirement age, the application process is straightforward and can be accomplished easily online. Benefits could be started on the effective date you choose. .The fraudsters enlist unscrupulous doctors to approve the test and the doctor receives a kick back from the recruiting company for each prescription. Medicare receives a bill that can range from ,000 to ,000. Victims have later reported that they did not even know the doctor who prescribed the test. Law officials warn that health fairs, senior centers and even church events are magnets for the scam, where recruiters take cheek swabs for genetic testing and collect Medicare numbers. .TSCL believes that the extreme cost increases are putting Medicare beneficiaries and funding for Part D at risk. "Medicare must be given the authority to negotiate pharmaceutical prices with manufacturers for covered Part D drugs," says Cates. How are rising healthcare costs affecting you? TSCL wants to hear from you, visit . .New Medicare enrollees, higher -income beneficiaries, people age 65 and older who have not started Social Security benefits (about 11% of beneficiaries).[5] .TSCL Announces Support for New Bill .A majority of seniors 65 and older who receive Social Security depend on it for at least 50 percent of their total income, and one in three beneficiaries rely on it for 90 percent or more of their total income. TSCL is fighting proposals to cut COLAs. TSCL believes that seniors could receive a more fair COLA if the government were to use a consumer price index that more closely tracked the spending patterns of seniors. .The Senior Citizens League enthusiastically supports the two bills mentioned above, and we were pleased to see support grow for them this week. For more information about these and other bills that have been backed by The Senior Citizens League, visit the Bill Tracking section of our website. .When the pandemic hit early last year, seniors became more susceptible than ever to scams, because of the increased digitization of our daily lives. Newly-available resources are now being used as bait, and already existing scam techniques have unfortunately adapted to fit the pandemic narrative.