News

  • 2015 Legislative Update Week Ending April 17 2015

    Health Subcommittee Hears from Medicare Providers .President was expanding home and community-based care for the elderly and disabled and improving conditions for the poorly paid workers who give that care. .The new cards will have unique, randomly-assigned numbers called a Medicare Beneficiary. Benefit Bulletin: June 2016 Can You Identify Medicare Fraud In This Story? … Continued

  • Legislative Update Februarymarch 2017

    In addition, Avik Roy – Co-Founder and President of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity – suggested that lawmakers focus on increased transparency in the pharmaceutical industry. He said if action is not taken reduce prescription drug prices, "the poor, vulnerable, and elderly have the most to lose." .In his opening statement, Congressman Buddy Carter (GA-1) – the sole pharmacist in Congress – said, "I'm disgusted that we're here today to talk about drug price increases … I know free market principles are the best way to provide quality, affordable health care to the American people. But what was done here was different. Perverse business practices were employed to exploit a patient group trying to do nothing more than to extend their lives … I'll tell you that you can meet your shareholders' needs, that you can meet your board's needs, and still take care of the American public." .Although many older Americans continue to face challenges as they approach retirement, Congress can and should do more to ensure that no retiring American needs to worry about making ends meet. … Continued

When he issued the orders President Trump gave the drug industry until Aug. 24 to find a suitable alternative to one of his drug pricing plans. He also announced that he would be meeting with drug company executives last Tuesday to begin discussions about a different plan. .The billion could be financed without taking money from the Social Security Trust Fund. One way is through reduction of pork barrel spending and government waste. In the fiscal year 2001 budget alone, pork "watch-dog" Senator John McCain (AZ-R) estimated that the government would spend a record billion in pork-barrel projects. .You must follow Medicare guidelines for receiving the services to ensure coverage. Find out how often you should receive a service. Some preventive services are covered only once every few years, others are covered only if you meet specific criteria. To learn more read "Your Guide to Medicare's Preventive Services," CMS Product No. 101Download a copy at www.Medicare.gov or call 1-800- Medicare ( 7). .(Washington, DC) – Low inflation is striking another blow to the long - term Social Security income of millions of older and disabled Americans, according to a new analysis by The Senior Citizens League (TSCL). "For the third time in only 7 years, older Americans will not see any Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase in their Social Security benefits," says TSCL Chairman, Ed Cates. "For tens of millions of people this has a devastating impact on the long-term adequacy of their benefits," he says. The Social Security Administration recently announced that more than 59 million beneficiaries would not receive an annual COLA next year, because inflation was lower this year than it was a year ago. .The credit for qualifying children is fully refundable, which means that taxpayers can benefit from the credit even if they don't have earned income or don't owe any income taxes. .You can go here to see the Mayo Clinic symptoms chart: .While 401(k) plans have enjoyed a decade of relatively strong returns recently, these plans carry greater risk and place responsibility on individuals for saving, investment decisions, and management. "These are three skills sets that most of us have never adequately learned, much less ever expected to practice after we retired," says Johnson. "One simple mistake can affect your standard of living in retirement for years," Johnson says. .We know from past surveys and email comments that you want the freedom to choose how you receive your Medicare benefits — either through a Medigap supplement and Part D plan, or a Medicare Advantage plan that includes drug coverage. Nobody wants to get a cancellation notice or to give up their doctor, hospital or other important provider because their health plan is closing. Maintaining affordable access to quality healthcare coverage is the key issue for every Medicare beneficiary and for TSCL. Coming up with a plan to pay for all this is the hard part which depends heavily on how quickly we can get our economy up and running full speed again and get people back to work. .Case 1—A woman who was born in Mexico worked illegally under an invalid SSN for 6 years. Later when she received a work authorized SSN, she had the earlier wages, earned while illegal, transferred to her record and then filed for Social Security disability benefits. From 1999 to 2002 this woman collected approximately ,990 in disability benefits, including benefits for dependents based on her account. Estimated benefits over 20 years — 4,275.