In a letter of support, Art Cooper – Chairman of The Senior Citizens League's Board of Trustees – wrote: "The Senior Citizens League's supporters – most of whom are enrolled in the Social Security program – question why Congress has not yet acted to address the funding challenges of the Social Security Administration in order to ensure the service that beneficiaries have earned and deserve … As such, The Senior Citizens League salutes you for introducing the Social Security Administration Fairness Act." .Call on your Member of Congress and urge them to sign on in support of the Medicare Physician Payment Innovation Act, and in doing so stand up for millions of American seniors who depend on their access to their doctors and healthcare providers for everyday and lifesaving care. .Chen cited two international flights from earlier stages of the pandemic where infection rates varied depending on mask use. On the first flight, no passengers were wearing masks, and a single passenger infected 14 people as the plane traveled from London to Hanoi, Vietnam. On the second flight, from Singapore to Hangzhou in China, all passengers were wearing face masks. Although 15 passengers were Wuhan residents with either suspected or confirmed cases of COVID-19, the only man infected en route had loosened his mask mid-flight and had been sitting close to four Wuhan residents who later tested positive for the virus. .Congressional inaction on the debt ceiling is a growing concern of TSCL's for several reasons. If a default on the federal debt occurs, Social Security benefits would likely be delayed, and millions of seniors living on fixed incomes would suffer financially. In addition, doctors who treat Medicare patients would likely see postponements in their reimbursements from the federal government, and access to quality medical care would be jeopardized for beneficiaries. .These higher Medicare Part B premiums in turn contributed to flat growth in Social Security benefits in subsequent years — even when a 2 percent COLA became payable two years later in 201The Medicare Part B premium took the entire 2 percent COLA for about half of all beneficiaries according to a survey by The Senior Citizens League. .Although President Trump promised during his campaign not to touch Social Security, "it's unclear how he would view slowing the growth in Social Security benefits by this type of technical change," Johnson observes. "Make no mistake, no matter what sort of ‘improvement' lawmakers may try to call it, getting less money from Social Security is a cut," she states. .If Congress considers cuts to the COLA, changes in the benefit formula and increases in the retirement age, special attention will be needed regarding when changes would become effective and how they would be phased-in. The recession is already having a significant impact on the growth of Social Security benefits. If Congress cuts benefits, or reduces the growth in benefits during this slow recovery, it will likely produce a long lasting double-whammy effect for retirees. .According to the Urban Institute, parents who take paid leave one time would see a 3.2 percent cut in their future Social Security benefits, and parents who take paid leave two times would see a benefit cut of around 5.5 percent. Those who take four paid leaves would see permanent Social Security benefit cuts of around 10 percent in retirement. .Last year Congress considered a major Medicaid overhaul that would transition the program from one that covers qualified applicants whose incomes are low enough, to a system that provides a fixed per capita payment or block grant to states. The Congressional Budget Office estimated this change would cut federal spending on Medicaid by more than 25% over the next decade. Despite lawmakers' failure to enact the change to Medicaid last year, some lawmakers in Congress and president Trump may try again this year.