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  • Ask Advisor December 2018

    Under current law, noncitizens who gain temporary work authorization can qualify for long-term Social Security benefits based on work that was done, prior to gaining authorization, under invalid Social Security numbers. Once they receive green cards, they become entitled to benefits based on prior "illegal" work. If elected, would you support legislation to modify this policy? .TSCL is working to convince Congress to enact a bill that provides an emergency COLA. The organization supports the Seniors and Veterans Emergency (SAVE) Benefits Act (S. 2251, H.R. 4144), which would provide Social Security beneficiaries with a one-time emergency COLA of 3.9 percent. For the average retiree, the emergency COLA would amount to around 0 dollars. To learn more, visit . .Here's how the coverage gap works. Once individuals and their Medicare Part D plans spend the initial coverage amount (,310 in 2016) on covered prescription drugs in a calendar year, beneficiaries hit the doughnut hole. Once in the doughnut hole, coinsurance on covered drugs is not only higher, one must also pay a substantial amount out-of-pocket to reach the limit for catastrophic coverage. For brand-name drugs in the coverage gap, individuals are responsible for 45% of the cost, and for generic drugs, they're responsible for 58%. Once out-of-pocket costs for those in the doughnut hole total ,850, catastrophic drug coverage takes effect, and Part D plans pay 95% of prescription drug costs until the calendar year ends. … Continued

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    TSCL is opposed to this new rule. It is not possible to reduce the costs of prescription drugs by taking actions that end up making those who need the drugs pay more. .Another major concern for those at the hearings was that the IPAB might inadvertently ration care. The law explicitly prohibits this, but many fear that without clarifying the definition of "rationing," there will likely be many discrepancies in the future. Rep. Phil Gingrey (GA) pointed out that what one calls rationing, another might simply consider reducing costs. .This week, lawmakers returned to Capitol Hill and those in the House passed legislation that will reduce prescription drug costs at pharmacies. In addition, the House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee met to discuss information technology within the Social Security program, The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) saw two key bills gain support. … Continued

Federal law requires that any reduction in payroll tax revenues going into the Social Security Trust Fund must be replaced dollar-for-dollar with general revenues from the U.S. Treasury. Consequently, a temporary extension of the payroll tax cut will have no effect on the Social Security Trust Fund. .At a time when Congress is deeply divided on many issues, we need to find a way to break through the gridlock to pass bipartisan, commonsense measures to support our nation's seniors. In that spirit, I introduced the bipartisan SAFE ID Act to ensure that seniors can retire without fear of having their identity stolen or losing their savings. With nine of the ten top cities for tax-ID fraud located in Florida, many seniors in my home state have fallen prey to identity theft and other forms of fraud. This bipartisan legislation will eliminate one big source of identity theft by allowing a shortened taxpayer identity number to be used in place of a social security number on taxpayer forms like W-2s. .Newly Eligible People with Medicare .his week, members of the new budget conference met for an opening session, and The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) announced its support for legislation that would extend the open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act's (ACA's) health insurance exchanges. In addition, important numbers were released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) this week, and TSCL saw . .The FDA is particularly concerned that these deceptive and misleading products might cause Americans to delay or stop appropriate medical treatment, leading to serious and life-threatening harm. It's likely that the products do not do what they claim, and the ingredients in them could cause adverse effects and could interact with, and potentially interfere with, essential medications. .We were also told that the Congressman is working on further legislation to raise benefits and further extend solvency which he plans on introducing later this year. We will report on that new bill whenever it is introduced. .By doing her research now, your sister can start learning about her options in the area where she would like to live. She needs to get an idea of how much senior living options cost, how the options are financed, and what she needs to do to get ready for such a move. There are companies that specialize in helping older adults downsize, and she may need to talk to a financial planner and real estate agents to get her home ready to put on the market. .After the drug executives announced they would not meet with the President, he went on Twitter and accused the pharmaceutical industry of running ads that lied about his new executive order. .Mr. Kluck and The Senior Citizens League's legislative team met with several congressional offices — including the offices of House Veterans' Affairs Committee Ranking Member Phil Roe (TN-1) and House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee Chairman John Larson (CT-1) — to discuss goals and strategies for the 116th Congress, which officially began on January 3rd, 2019.