News

  • The Senior Citizens League Weekly Update December 6 2019

    If your husband's company had 20 or more employees, and your husband's former employer still has the same health coverage, you and your husband may have the option to temporarily continue to get healthcare coverage under your husband's former employer plan as provided by the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). That coverage now, however, is likely to be more expensive than it was while your husband was an active employee, and it's only a short-term option. These are two reasons why both you and your spouse should explore other options promptly. .Many expected the Obama administration to seek an emergency review of the decision by the Supreme Court, but on Wednesday, the Justice Department announced that it would not. Instead, the administration said it will focus on another 5th Circuit hearing that's scheduled for the week of July 6th. .Few diseases or conditions can be treated quickly, so be suspicious of any therapy claimed as a "quick fix." … Continued

  • Q A 2

    Here's how the board works: As soon as Medicare spending exceeds certain growth rates, the unelected 15-member board will begin making recommendations to lawmakers to rein in spending. Congress will then have a chance to respond by passing cost-cutting measures of its own. But if they fail to adopt legislation, the IPAB's recommendations will be automatically implemented. .Payroll taxes, and the taxes that people pay on a portion of their Social Security benefits, are two major sources of program funding. The Social Security Trust Fund also receives interest payments from the U.S. Treasury for the money that the federal government has borrowed when the program was in surplus. In fact, the .All in all, it's too early to determine how much person-to-person transmission has occurred on plane flights. … Continued

Budget Moves Through Committee .TSCL's Board of Trustees Visits Capitol Hill .Source: "Senators Introduced Medicare Reform Plan: The Congressional Health Care for Seniors Act," Paul.Senate.Gov, March 15, 2012. .First, four new cosponsors – Representative Darren Soto (FL-9), Representative Grace Napolitano (CA-32), Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40), and Representative Grace Meng (NY-6) – signed on to the Nursing Home CARE Act (H.R. 4704), bringing the total up to nineteen. If adopted, the bill would protect Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries by more quickly codifying emergency preparedness rules for nursing home facilities that receive funding from the federal government. .About 75 million people in the U.S. are 60 and older. Recently, about four-fifths of the nation's Covid deaths have occurred in that population. .Senator Chuck Grassley (IA) introduced S. 61 on January 9, 201It has since been referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. .Support for the IPAB at both hearings was scarce. Some Members, including the Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee, Chris Van Hollen (MD), called the IPAB a necessary "failsafe" measure that will stabilize healthcare costs. He stressed the fact that the experts on the IPAB will make recommendations, but Congress will ultimately have the final say in whether or not they become law. .The Guaranteed 3 Percent COLA Act (H.R. 991) from Congressman Eliot Engel (NY-16) also gained one new cosponsor this week: Congressman Andre Carson (IN-7). If adopted, it would base the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) on the more accurate Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E), and it would guarantee an annual benefit increase of at least 3 percent. The bill now has six cosponsors in the House. .Need more help? Free one-on-one counseling is available through State Health Insurance Programs (SHIP). To get contact info for your area visit http://shiptacenter.org.