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  • Beware Of Coronavirus Vaccination Scams

    Finally, two new cosponsors – Congressman Bill Foster (IL-11) and Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (CA-19) – signed on to the Nursing Home CARE Act (H.R. 4704), bringing the total up to twenty-four. The bill, if adopted, would protect Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries by more quickly codifying emergency preparedness rules for nursing home facilities that receive funding from the federal government. .TSCL has been concerned that the coronavirus pandemic could accelerate the impending insolvency of the Medicare Trust Fund. With record numbers of Americans out of work, fewer payroll taxes are coming in to fund Medicare spending. At the same time, the number of beneficiaries is rising and, earlier this year, Congress accessed Medicare's reserves to fund COVID-19 relief efforts. .Before the Affordable Care Act, seniors could deduct out-of-pocket medical costs that exceeded 7.5 percent of their Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). Starting in 2017, however, the law increases this threshold to 10% of a person's AGI – effectively lowering how much can be deducted at the end of the year and increasing how much seniors will pay in taxes. … Continued

  • Should Social Security Benefits Be Adjusted Using A Locality Based Payment Rate

    One paid family leave proposal discussed at Wednesday's hearing would negatively impact the future of the Social Security program if adopted. It would allow parents to claim up to 12 weeks of early Social Security benefits as a form of paid family leave following the birth or adoption of a child. To offset the cost, individuals would be required to delay the collection of their Social Security benefits in retirement. Those who take twelve weeks of paid family leave would see their full eligibility ages in retirement increase by as much as twenty-five weeks. .TSCL is receiving a large number of comments about the impact of no COLA from retirees around the country, and recently started posting some of the stories. According to new research for TSCL, there are several important factors affecting why COLAs aren't accurately reflecting retiree healthcare costs. "First of all, the consumer price index (CPI) used to calculate Social Security and other retiree COLAs doesn't survey the spending of people age 65 and over," Cates explains. The Consumer Price Index for Workers (CPI-W) does not include changes in Medicare premiums, according to background information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). .The message here isn't "work till you drop." Working even a few additional years can boost retirement security substantially when you finally do retire. There's a "triple whammy" effect -- delayed Social Security filings means higher monthly benefits; you have more years of contributions to retirement accounts; and you have fewer net years of drawing down those accounts. Working with financial planning experts, we estimated that these factors can boost income in retirement by one-third or more. … Continued

Mary: Who tends to use anchors to influence our decisions, and when should we be wary? .To learn more about Medicare deductibles visit online at www.Medicare.gov or call toll free at 1-800-MEDICARE ( 7). .On Wednesday, the Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee met to discuss fraud, waste, and abuse within the Disability Insurance (DI) program. Subcommittee members heard from two expert witnesses – Sean Brune of the Social Security Administration (SSA) and Seto Bagdoyan of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) – on recent progress the administration has made in detecting and preventing fraud. .In addition, two new cosponsors – Congressmen Jim Langevin (RI-2) and Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (MP) – signed on to the Protecting and Preserving Social Security Act (H.R. 3302), which was recently introduced by Congressman Ted Deutch (FL-22). If adopted, his bill would base the COLA on the CPI-E and cover the cost by removing the Social Security payroll tax cap for high earners. H.R. 3302 now has nine cosponsors in the House. .In his opening statement, Dr. Conway said, "This proposal is part of the Administration's broader strategy to encourage better care, smarter spending, and healthier people by paying for what works, unlocking health care data, and finding new ways to coordinate and integrate care to improve quality." .In addition, the bill would help finance Part D benefits. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill will save Medicare billion over a decade and save beneficiaries billion in out-of-pocket costs over the same period. .As far as the other three orders are concerned, it has been reported that consumers may not notice immediate changes since the orders must be carried out by the federal bureaucracy and could face court challenges. .What is likely to happen if the test is not done? .In mid-December there were reports that the Administration expected to begin sending out President Trump's promised 0 drug discount cards to seniors by Jan. However, we have not heard any report about whether or not that has begun. We will keep you posted when there is new information about the distribution of the cards.