News

  • Comprehensive Proposals To Enhance Social Security Statement Submitted To Ways And Means Subcommittee

    Congress last year expanded this program in the healthcare reform act, or the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), which was signed into law in March 20The PPACA expanded "means testing" to Medicare Part D, and froze the income thresholds at which beneficiaries become subject to the "means test" at the 2010 levels through 201This year, depending on income, individuals who make more than ,000 and couples who make more than 0,000 will have to pay from .10 - 3.70 extra per month for their Part B premiums, and from .10 to .10 extra per month for their Part D premiums in 2011. .Similarly, Sen. Mike Lee (UT) wrote in a statement: "The Fifth Circuit should be commended for its well-reasoned decision to prevent President Obama from implementing his lawless executive amnesty program. Our immigration system is in desperate need of reform. But that reform must be agreed to and passed by Congress, not unilaterally imposed on the American people by the executive branch." .If signed into law, the Social Security Fairness Act would repeal the windfall elimination provision (WEP) and the government pension offset (GPO), which have long prevented certain civil servants from receiving the full Social Security benefits they have earned. TSCL believes these two provisions should be repealed, and we were pleased to see support grow for the Social Security Fairness Act this week. … Continued

  • H R 867 Notch Fairness Act

    TSCL recently delivered letters to every Member of Congress asking for their vote in favor of legislation. To learn more, visit . ."The question becomes how we can strengthen the retirement security of today's retirees, while strengthening funding for both Medicare and Social Security at the same time," Johnson says. .According to The Senior Citizens League's research, Social Security benefits have lost 34 percent of their purchasing power since 2000 due in large part to inadequate cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) and rising health care costs. … Continued

House members are increasingly feeling the effects of a five percent budget cut passed last year. Already tight budgets have forced drastic reductions in the number of salaried positions and could reduce the amount of services provided. .Lawmakers returned to their home states and districts this week to celebrate the Christmas holiday. Members of the Senate returned to Capitol Hill on Thursday, while Members of the House are expected to return on Sunday, just one day before the Fiscal Cliff is scheduled to hit. .New Co-Sponsors Added .Unfortunately, this has become standard operating procedure in Congress, regardless of who's in power. And even shutting down the government for a period of time is no longer seen to be the drastic action it once was. .Jodey Arrington represents Texas' 19th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives and is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. .By Rick Delaney, Chairman of the Board .The provision only protects an estimated 70 percent of beneficiaries (almost 43 million beneficiaries) from increases in the Medicare Part B premium that exceed the dollar amount of their COLA. When an individual's Part B premium increases more than the dollar amount of their COLA, the Part B premium is reduced to prevent a reduction in net Social Security benefits from one year to the next. .Have you heard anything about congress fixing a Social Security cut for those of us born in 1960? — K.S. .The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that spending for Social Security, Medicare, other major healthcare programs, defense, and interest payments alone would require every dollar of revenue in about eight years, leaving nothing left over for the rest of the federal budget. The CBO further says that federal debt cannot grow faster than the nation's output indefinitely without causing long-term damage to the government's finances and broader economy.