News

  • Legislative Update For Week Ending August 21 2015

    Unless something totally extraordinary happens, the President is expected to sign the bill prior to midnight on the 28th and at long last the federal government will be fully funded through the remainder of fiscal year 2021 and much needed economic stimulus and rescue money will be sent to taxpayers and businesses alike. .Under current law, noncitizens who gain temporary work authorization can qualify for long-term Social Security benefits based on work that was done, prior to gaining authorization, under invalid Social Security numbers. Once they receive green cards, they become entitled to benefits based on prior "illegal" work. If elected, would you support legislation to modify this policy? .At the hearings, many Committee Members were still getting up to speed on the structural and procedural aspects of the IPAB. The IPAB, which will be made up of 15 "experts" appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, will begin issuing recommendations to Congress in 2015 if Medicare spending exceeds the targets established by the Affordable Care Act. Those recommendations will be reviewed on a "fast-track" basis, and, if Congress fails to act quickly, HHS will be forced to implement them. … Continued

  • March 2013 Indianapolis Business Journal

    The House passed H.R. 1868 by a vote of 246-175 on March 19, with 29 Republicans voting in favor of the bill. .This week, after receiving countless complains from seniors without cell phone access, the Social Security Administration removed the text requirement from the online account login process. In addition, lawmakers continued their seven-week congressional recess. .According to the Associated Press, the AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, which is being used in Great Britain, does more than prevent people from falling seriously ill — it appears to reduce transmission of the virus and offers strong protection for three months on just a single dose, researchers said last week in an encouraging turn in the campaign to suppress the outbreak. … Continued

Resource online: StopMedicareFraud.gov .Trump Expected to Issue Executive Orders about Prescription Drugs .TSCL's surveys have found that moving Medicare Part D to a pricing system that has similarities with Medicaid has strong support among older adults. Seventy percent of those who participated in our 2019 Senior Survey support allowing Medicare to negotiate prices for prescription drugs using a similar system to Medicaid's. .Initial coverage stage: 4.61 from the lowest-cost drug plan but, as you have discovered, the total cost of the drug is so expensive that you rapidly use up the initial ,820 in the first three months once you factor in the portion that your drug plan pays. .Millicent Graves of Williamsburg, Virginia recently was shocked to discover an astounding price range in the same generic drug after her doctor prescribed a different form of Clobetasol propionate, commonly used to treat psoriasis. When she filled her previous prescription in December of 2014 for the Clobetasol solution, she paid — the full retail cost. But when filling the first prescription for Clobetasol foam in 2015, Graves discovered the retail cost was 5.8And five weeks later when she refilled her prescription for the foam, the cost had jumped dramatically— to 7, making the total difference in price between the solution and foam 1,691%. "When I looked at the receipt I almost passed out," she says. "Everything is the same as the first bottle! It's price gouging," she says. .This tax hike will disproportionally hit America's oldest and most vulnerable populations. Seniors make up more than half of those claiming the medical expense deduction. .72% support applying the Social Security payroll tax to all earnings (instead of capping the amount of wages to be taxed at 2,800), a move that would reduce Social Security's long - term deficit by as much as 73%. .It pays to compare your options, but you need to do this soon, before the Medicare Open Enrollment period ends December 7th. For help shopping for a new drug or health plan locate Medicare benefit counselors in your area. Visit the State Health Insurance Program website — https://www.shiptacenter.org. .Paying heating or cooling bills,