News

  • Hearings On The Hill 4

    Benefit formula cuts: Change the benefit formula reducing benefits for new retirees with both high and average earnings. .The trillion Senate Republican stimulus proposal comes with a measure that could curb federal spending in the future by reducing costs tied to Social Security, Medicare, and highway trust funds. ."Whatever the reason, most Americans before they retire have paid little attention to the huge life transition that is coming. We don't have a good idea of how much we need to save for retirement," writes Mark Miller, journalist and author who writes about trends in retirement and aging. Mark, the author of The Hard Times Guide to Retirement Security: Practical Strategies for Money, Work and Living (John Wiley & Sons/Bloomberg Press, 2010) shares a few important tips with our readers. … Continued

  • Issues Medicare Prescription Drug Policies Faqs

    Enrolled in Medicare Advantage? ,700 in Benefit Cuts by 2017 Predicted .According to an article in The Hill, a Washington, D.C., newspaper that covers legislative matters in Congress, it just might happen. .Congressman Elijah Cummings (MD-7), Ranking Member of the Committee, agreed, saying: "Drug company executives are lining their pockets at the expense of some of the most vulnerable families in our nation … [People in my district] struggle every single month to pay the increasing cost of housing, education, and health care. They live from paycheck to paycheck and sometimes from no check to no check." He went on to promote his bill, the Prescription Drug Affordability Act, which would take several steps to ensure more affordable prescription drugs, including greater price transparency. … Continued

This is especially important new research at a time when Social Security faces potential changes. President Obama's "National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform" is scheduled to release its plan to cut the federal deficit by December 1st. .Although Part D plans are given leeway to vary how they structure their plans here is a breakdown of the standard Medicare Part D plan cost sharing in 2020: .By Representative Tim Walberg (MI-7) .One further reason for the growth is undoubtedly the growth in the primary beneficiary rolls, upon which the benefits of ANP dependents and survivors are based. According to the Inspector General, older non-citizens workers are now at the age and have worked in this country long enough to be potentially eligible to file claims for retirement or disability. The Inspector General has also said that those who worked using invalid, or non-work Social Security numbers issued prior to January 1, 2004, did not need valid work authorization in order to file a claim. Under current law the Social Security Administration uses all earnings, including those for illegal work, to determine entitlement to benefits. .28% Of Medicare Beneficiaries Hit Doughnut Hole In 2015 .This week, progress stalled on a continuing resolution to fund the federal government past September 30th. In addition, one Senate committee held a hearing on maximizing Social Security benefits. . Send an email to your Members of Congress. This is an election year, and the last thing they want to hear is that health insurers are blaming COVID-19 for the steep price increases. You can get email addresses on TSCL's website here: http://wfc2.wiredforchange.com/o/8854/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=10560. Or, you can look up your Representative and send emails at: www.house.gov and Senators at: www.senate.gov. .And, given the unfunded mandates and billions of dollars in regulatory costs from Obamacare – the last attempt at government-controlled healthcare, Medicare-for-all would undoubtedly break the back of at least half of our rural health care providers. .Francis Collins, the head of the National Institutes of Health, has said the government has some intellectual property rights. Moderna seems to dispute that view, saying it is "not aware of any I.P. that would prevent us from commercializing" a COVID-19 vaccine.