Second, the Social Security 2100 Act (H.R. 1902) gained one new cosponsor in Representative Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), bringing the cosponsor total to 16If signed into law, H.R. 1902 would strengthen Social Security benefits by improving the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), increasing monthly benefits by 2 percent, creating a new Special Minimum Benefit equal to 125% of the poverty line, providing a tax cut to Social Security beneficiaries, applying the payroll tax to annual income over 0,000, and gradually increasing the payroll tax rate by 0.25%. .You can learn more about Social Security disability benefits at https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/disability/. Find information about when to start retirement benefits here: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/learn.html h3. .The Congressional Budget Office recently released a report noting that Medicare could save 500 billion dollars if the eligibility age was raised from 65 to 6The figure would mean five percent savings, enticing Americans to work longer and causing the size of the labor force and total output of the economy to increase by one percent. According to the report, "Many of the people who lose access to Medicare would pay higher premiums for health insurance, pay more out of pocket for health care, or both." .Because the House of Representatives has 435 members its rules are much less complicated than the Senate's, which has 100 members. If the House had the same rules as the Senate, nothing would ever be accomplished. .Create a family documentary. Create a family scrap-book with old photos and memorabilia. If you have access to a computer and scanner or a friend with one, scan old photos for a digital family scrapbook you can share online. If a family member is good with making videos, consider doing a mini-documentary. Think of the questions you have about your ancestors and ask yourself the same. Like how you and your spouse met, how your family coped during a particularly hard time, or document a skill or craft that you love. This is also a good way to teach cooking your favorite family foods! Upload the video to YouTube to share with your family and send a link in a holiday email. .A report conducted by the Congressional Management Foundation claims that this year's budget will force House member offices to trim an additional 90,000 dollars in each office. A reduction to staff positions could mean decreased constituent services as responsibilities are shifted. .To pay for the boost, advocates propose lifting the payroll taxable maximum so that higher earners pay Social Security taxes on their fair share. In 2017 workers pay Social Security taxes on the first 7,200 in income. But the highest earners, like highly paid CEOs, don't pay anything on earnings over that amount. .The coronavirus pandemic has also raised a new issue of concern regarding the price of any new treatment or vaccine for the virus. Congress is pumping billions of federal dollars into research and efforts to spur the production of treatments and a vaccine for Covid-19 but there are no price controls as part of the effort. That means you will have already paid, in-part, for any new vaccine or treatment for the virus. .Cutting the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) by switching to a more slowly rising measure of inflation – the "chained" Consumer Price Index (CPI) – is currently one of the most popular deficit reduction proposals on the table. Backed by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle – including President Obama – proponents are calling it a small "technical correction." But "chaining" the COLA would compound over the course of a retirement and, after ten years, it would amount to an per month benefit cut for the average retired married couple – an amount that most seniors simply cannot afford to lose.