News

  • Social Security Medicare Questions August 2011 Advisor

    Medicare Advantage plans require very careful scrutiny of potential costs. Some plans have lured seniors with low premiums and deductibles, only for enrollees to discover high undisclosed costs later. .While disability benefits may pay slightly more than early retirement benefits at age 63, starting the disability application and determination process is an arduous, bureaucratic procedure that can take a long time before benefits actually start — sometimes years. Many people find they must hire an attorney. According to data from the Social Security Administration, only one quarter of applicants are determined eligible for disability benefits the first time they apply. Filing an appeal has about 49% chance of succeeding, but the process can result in long waiting periods to be found eligible for benefits, which often takes more than two years. By the time your husband might be found eligible for disability benefits, he may only receive them for a year or two before he would age into his full retirement benefit. .Source: Fiscal Year 2010 Inspector General Statement, Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General, November 2010. … Continued

  • Legislative Update 3

    How much are you over-paying for your prescription drugs? The only way to find out is to do a drug plan comparison based on all the drugs you take. This is the time of year you can make changes during the Medicare Open Enrollment period, which runs through the month of November and ends December 7th. Give the Medicare Drug Plan Finder a try. You can get free one-on-one counseling by contacting your local Area on Aging, State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) or senior centers and ask for help comparing Medicare drug plans. .Visiting with an unvaccinated person who is at increased risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 or who lives with a person at increased risk .Here are some examples of scams being tried. … Continued

That spells trouble for people living on fixed incomes. "When COLAs fall down on the job of protecting benefit buying power, seniors face working longer, digging deeper into retirement savings, or falling into debt and poverty," says Ed Cates, Chairman of TSCL. .Recently one of our readers asked "Is there a percentage as to how much less NOTCH BABIES receive monthly?" .House Passes Funding Bill .The fundamental fact is that two-thirds of Americans over the age of 65 depend on an average annual Social Security benefit of ,400 for at least half of their income. Yet little consideration has been given so far to the fact that earned income in excess of 3,700 is entirely exempt for the 6.2 percent payroll tax that funds Social Security benefits. TSCL believes that by raising the maximum wage ceiling Congress could significantly reduce the financial crisis facing the system, without causing financial hardship. .Industry groups and health systems led by the American Hospital Association challenged the rule, arguing that the rule would do more harm than good because it won't "tell consumers their actual out-of-pocket costs, will likely produce confusion and may be less effective than the price-transparency tools the hospital field has been developing." .Please, share this video with your friends (use the "Share" button above or copy the URL into an email). .We urge you to keep wearing a mask if you been doing so, and if you haven't, please start – for your own safety and the health and safety of those around you. .Advocates for less government involvement in health care and instead letting the free market have a stronger role base their arguments on the idea that just like groceries or cars or clothes, consumers should be able to shop around and look for the best value in health care. .Here are some important tips to get you started: