News

  • Seniors Lose 31 Percent Of Their Buying Power Since 2000 2013 Annual Survey Of Senior Costs Finds Expenses Have Increased More Than Twice As Fast As Social Security Cola

    On Wednesday, the Senate Finance Committee held a confirmation hearing for Sylvia Mathews Burwell, President Obama's nominee for the position of HHS Secretary. Burwell was nominated back in April, shortly after Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that she would be stepping down. If confirmed, she will oversee the Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security programs, and she will also manage the continued implementation of the Affordable Care Act. .More than 61 million people, including adults age 65 and older, and younger disabled adults who receive Social Security disability benefits, get their healthcare coverage though Medicare.[3] The Social Security hold harmless provision protects about 70 percent of beneficiaries (almost 43 million beneficiaries) from increases in the Medicare Part B premium that exceed the dollar amount of their COLA. When an individual's Part B premium increases more than the dollar amount of his or her COLA, the Part B premium is reduced to prevent a reduction in net Social Security benefits from one year to the next. .Legislation to help state is urgently needed because some of them are already cutting Medicaid. States are required by law to balance their budgets and Medicaid is one of the largest items in the budgets of many states. And of course, cuts to Medicaid hurt some of the most vulnerable seniors as well as others who could not otherwise afford the health care they need. … Continued

  • Legislative Update Week Ending July 13 2018

    The drugs that would be affected by any Trump action are among the costliest taken by Americans. They include innovative therapies for cancer, immune disease and other disorders. The industry says that Part B pharmaceutical spending makes up just 3% of overall Medicare costs. .It remains to be seen whether or not Congress will adopt the recommendations made by MedPAC in its most recent report. The Commission is an independent Congressional agency, but its policy recommendations are non-binding and Congress rarely takes immediate action on them. Nonetheless, TSCL will keep a close eye on the recommendations that were made this week, since they could positively affect millions of Medicare beneficiaries if enacted. .On Tuesday, House lawmakers advanced two Senate-passed bills that will reduce prescription drug prices at pharmacies if signed into law. The Patient Right to Know Drug Prices Act (S. 2554) will prohibit "gag clauses" that prevent pharmacists from telling consumers when it would be cheaper to purchase their prescriptions out-of-pocket rather than through their health insurance. Similarly, the Know the Lowest Price Act (S. 2553) will protect Medicare beneficiaries from "gag clauses." … Continued

For tips on which questions you should ask your Member of Congress at your next town hall meeting, click HERE. To find contact information for your Members of Congress, to learn about important issues affecting seniors, or to sign a petition to Congress, visit the ACTION CENTER of our website. .First, the bipartisan Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2017 (H.R. 807) gained four new cosponsors in ​Representative Mike Capuano (MA-7), Representative Tom Rooney (FL- 17), Representative Linda Sanchez (CA-38), and Representative John Curtis (UT-3). The cosponsor total is now up to 23If signed into law, H.R. 807 would repeal the Medicare outpatient therapy cap that currently limits coverage for rehabilitation services at ,940. .The legislation is called a "CR" - a continuing resolution, which means the government will be funded for a short period of time and for the most part it will be at the same funding levels as in fiscal year 201The CR will last until Nov. 21 at which time one of three things must have happened. Either they will have finally passed all the funding bills needed for the rest of the fiscal year; or they will have passed another CR; or we will have another government shut-down. .By 2012, in just five years, the first wave of those former illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. in the 1970's at age 20, and became legal permanent residents in 1986, will turn 62 and old enough to file claims for Social Security. As immigrants draw close to retirement age they are more likely to check their Social Security records and request reinstatement of any unauthorized earnings for which they have evidence. This comes during the same period that Baby Boomers start retiring, and assets of the Social Security Trust Fund begin to decline. .Such logic would be disastrous if it were applied to a successful COVID vaccine. COVID-19 has shut down countless businesses, creating record-high unemployment. And the medical consequences of severe COVID-19 mean weeks of highly expensive intensive care. .Background Information: Roughly 56% of older taxpaying households paid income taxes on a portion of their Social Security benefits this year, even though many of them only made twice the federal poverty level in income. Question: Do you believe this is fair, and if not, what should be done about it? .Growing numbers of seniors are working longer, and delaying the start of benefits. According to a TSCL survey conducted early this year, 42 percent of seniors who are still working say they plan to delay the start of benefits until age 66 or thereafter. Those who continue to work, continue to pay Social Security, Medicare and other taxes as well. .Congress Averts Government Shutdown .Co-pays and coinsurance: This refers to the portion of the cost of services that you pay out-of-pocket. Co-pays are a fixed amount that you will pay for each service. For example, in a Medicare Advantage plan, you may be billed a co-pay of to see a primary care physician and to see a specialist. On the other hand, coinsurance is a variable amount. It is a percentage of the cost of the service. Theoretically if the total cost of the service is ,000 and you pay 20% coinsurance, your cost could be about 0. Under Medicare Advantage your health plan negotiates the cost of service, thus you would want to call your plan to get an idea what your total out-of-pocket costs would be, and whether your provider is a preferred provider. Under most Medigap policies, the Part B co-insurance cost is covered in large part, but there still could be some "excess charges" that you pay out of pocket.