News

  • The Senior Citizens League Press Release

    Other Goods and Services: (tobacco and smoking products, haircuts and other personal services, funeral expenses). .TSCL is hopeful that President Trump will lend his support to the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act, since we believe it would go a long way in reducing the costs of lifesaving medications for beneficiaries. We will continue to advocate for it on Capitol Hill, and we hope to see it signed into law before the end of the 115th Congress. For more information, visit the Bill Tracking section of our website. .It sounds as though either your mother, or her acquaintance, received some incorrect information. "The Notch Fairness Act," legislation that would provide Notch Babies born 1917 through 1926 with a settlement of ,000, or a higher monthly benefit, has not yet passed. No doubt that's why the Social Security Administration did not respond to your mother's request. It is correct that widows or widowers receiving benefits on the account of a Notch Baby would be entitled to the ,000, or the higher monthly benefit if the legislation is enacted. … Continued

  • Legislative Update Marchapril 2013

    Do you have a low benefit and think you may be affected by hold harmless? TSCL would like to hear from you! Contact us at . .This week, TSCL was pleased to see four key bills gain new cosponsors in the House and Senate. .The recommendation of MedPAC would combine the deductibles for Part A and Part B services. Currently the deductibles are charged separately and for good cause. About 80 percent of Medicare beneficiaries never pay a Part A deductible because they don't require hospitalization in most years. The Part A deductible for hospital inpatient services is ,156, a cost that is covered in full today by all Medigap supplements. Some Medigap supplements also cover all of the Part B deductible, which is 0 in 201Costs differ for seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage depending on the plan. Co-payments would also change and vary by the type of service and provider. … Continued

Legislation before the House and Senate would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) so that public servants receive the Social Security benefits they have earned and deserve. Will you cosponsor the Social Security Fairness Act (S. 521, H.R. 141) when you return to Washington? .TSCL enthusiastically supports H.R. 1030 and H.R. 3118, and we were pleased to see support grow for both of them this week. .The other two actions are related to eviction protections and student loan relief. .Although Social Security and Medicare need some changes to enable the programs to continue paying scheduled benefits in a timely manner, TSCL believes that benefit reductions should not be imposed on people who have already retired, or are close to retirement. Other deficit reduction options exist, and Congress needs to allow time for the public to more fully learn about the proposals, consider the choices, and have an opportunity to provide input to elected lawmakers. .Because of the coronavirus, however, the BLS has been unable to gather much of the information from those two categories. Therefore, although they do not use the word, they are going to guess at those costs. It may be an educated guess, but it is still a guess, nonetheless. .GOP Backs off "No New Taxes" Stance .Earlier this year, a Congressional report referred to the AARP as a "massive for-profit enterprise" whose financial structure "conflicts with its legal requirements to ‘primarily operate to promote the common good and social welfare of a community of people.'" .Several lawmakers at Tuesday's hearing promoted legislation they introduced this year to combat rising costs. Senator Al Franken (MN) asked his fellow committee members to support his Improving Access to Affordable Prescription Drugs Act (S. 771), which would take comprehensive steps to reform the prescription drug industry. In addition, Senator Bernie Sanders (VT) urged those on the committee to cosponsor his bipartisan Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act (S. 469), which would allow individuals and pharmacies to import prescription drugs from approved pharmacies in Canada. .Medicare Part B enrollees who don't receive Social Security benefits. This includes people who have delayed the start of Social Security benefits, and all people who are billed for Medicare. According to a report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, in 2013, about half of all people on Medicare who don't yet receive Social Security had incomes below ,000.