News

  • Legislation Would Make It Easier For Low Income Beneficiaries To Qualify For Medicare Assistance Feed

    Those receiving work authorization become vested for benefits with as little as ten years of earnings. The oldest of those who are eligible for the deferred action could potentially have worked illegally long enough to be "vested," or nearly so, for Social Security already — including disability benefits. Once illegal workers gain a work-authorized Social Security number, individuals who have evidence of earnings, even for jobs worked under invalid Social Security numbers, may claim and reinstate those earnings under their own number. The earnings are then later used to determine Social Security benefits. .President Trump recently released a proposal that could change the way drugs are sold in the U.S. Patients have been forced to pay out-of-pocket costs based on the rising list price of drugs. The proposal would require that often-secretive discounts or rebates, received by pharmacy benefit managers from drug companies, would have to be credited at the pharmacy when a patient fills a prescription. For patients who need expensive drugs, out-of-pocket costs are likely to go down. .The SNAP Simplification for the Elderly Act will build upon the success of the USDA's Elderly Simplified Application Project by extending the SNAP recertification periods for households from 12 to 36 months if all adult household members are elderly, disabled or enrolled in Medicaid or the Medicare Savings Program. … Continued

  • Issues Social Security Reform Faqs Feed

    Despite all the tragedy and difficulty coming out of the pandemic emergency there is a little good news, in our opinion. The spread of the coronavirus has reignited the push in Congress to expand domestic manufacturing of drugs, and renewed concerns the U.S. relies too much on foreign medicine makers. As we have been seeing, the need for medications can be urgent during a pandemic and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have raised alarms about possible shortages. .Congress is now back in session but they will not begin considering new legislation for a few days. They are in the process of organizing for a new session and, of course, they will be involved in the electoral college process of electing a new President starting, but perhaps not concluding, on Wednesday. .Wall Street economists are in the midst of a growing debate over whether we are in for "the return of inflation." (Oh, go ahead and snort. I did too when I first read about this.) … Continued

Fortunately, there are other bills in Congress that TSCL supports to lower the amount of money seniors must pay for their prescription drugs which we believe have a much better chance of passing and we will keep fighting for them. .Perhaps the most difficult task on Capitol Hill today is getting the attention of Members of Congress. Yet, the nature of grassroots advocacy lends itself as an effective tool for grabbing the ear of Congress on matters needing decisive action. For The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) and our nearly 1.1 million supporters across the nation, this is no different. .The proposal calls for switching to a more slowly-growing consumer price index (CPI), known as the "chained" CPI, to calculate annual COLAs. Chaining is an apt name for it because that's what it would do to benefits — chain them down. .TSCL believes that the Supplemental Poverty Measure is a more fair and appropriate measure of poverty today. We encourage you to ask Congressional candidates where they stand on programs to reduce poverty affecting older Americans. .The second session of the 113th Congress is nearing its end, and The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) is pleased to report that 2014 has been a year to remember. Over the past few months, TSCL has hand-delivered hundreds of thousands of petitions to Members of Congress, urging them to support critical legislation like the CPI-E Act, the Notch Fairness Act, and the Strengthening Social Security Act. In the weeks leading up to the November elections, we sent out thousands of emails to members and supporters in an effort to help them get to know TSCL's long-time friends in Congress. .Sources: "Social Security The Notch Issue," GAO-HRD-88-62, March 1988, page 1Financial Management, Challenges in Meeting Requirements of the Improper Payments Information Act, GAO-05-417, March 200"Annual Statistical Survey 2004, Social Security Administration, Table 5.A.1. .At Tuesday's committee meeting, Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan (WI-1) referred to the board as "unelected bureaucrats that could cut Medicare's payments to doctors and essentially ration care." TSCL shares these concerns about the IPAB – we fear its recommendations could result in increased costs for beneficiaries or decreased access to quality medical care. .Nine prominent physician groups recently released lists of 45 common tests and treatments they say are often unnecessary. The problem is costing you dearly — as much as one third of every healthcare dollar, researchers say. As someone supposed to be giving you tips on how to save money, I'm embarrassed to admit that earlier this year I was a victim of overzealous medical testing. I'm not on Medicare yet, but what happened to me is happening to millions of those of you who are. .Protecting Medicare for current beneficiaries and saving it for future generations is one of my most important responsibilities as a Member of Congress. It is no secret that demographic and economic factors will not allow us to continue the program unaltered. There are 10,000 baby boomers retiring every day, and when these programs were first enacted there were more than 40 workers for every 1 retiree. Today, that number is below 3 workers per retiree and headed towards 2 to Health care costs continue to rise much faster than inflation. In order to ensure the solvency of a program that senior citizens have come to rely on, changes must be made. The days of doing nothing, burying our heads in the sand, and pretending the status quo is sustainable are over.