Plan for health changes as you age. What are the chances of developing a chronic condition, like asthma, diabetes or high blood pressure later in life? It's a good idea to set aside a portion of your retirement savings for healthcare emergencies and health changes as you age. One way to figure this is by using the out-of-pocket maximum limits on your health plan and Part D coverage. For example, having an emergency healthcare account of at least ,450 set aside for a senior in reasonable health in 2013 is a smart idea. If you are in a health plan that has a maximum annual out-of-pocket limit, you will want to try to have at least that much set aside every year (that may be about ,700 in 2013, for example). Your Part D out-of-pocket maximum in 2013 is ,750. .Prevent a 50 percent Medicare premium hike from taking effect. According to the Medicare Trustees, an estimated 15 million Medicare beneficiaries will be hit with Part B premium hikes of 50 percent next year, along with increases in deductibles. TSCL believes that the abrupt and dramatic increase must be prevented, and we hope Congress will pass legislation like the Protecting Medicare Beneficiaries Act (S. 2148) or the Medicare Premium Fairness Act (H.R. 3696). .Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (AL) told reporters this week that a government shutdown later this month is a real possibility. He said: "This could make us all come together or it could drive us further apart. We don't know yet … I've been here on Christmas Eve." .As we all know, senior citizens are the most likely to be hospitalized or die from the Covid-19 virus -- by a wide margin. .TSCL (TREA Senior Citizens League) consists of vocally active senior citizens concerned about the protection of their Social Security, Medicare, and veteran or military retiree benefits. TSCL was first established as a special project of The Retired Enlisted Association (TREA). On January 1, 1995, TSCL became an independent 501[c][4] citizens' action organization. .Lower spending on prescription drugs. Under our current Medicare system, experts warn that Americans are taking too many unnecessary drugs for dubious reasons. A value-based system would tie the price of prescription drugs to its value in the treatment of the patient. For example, patients with high blood pressure would receive their blood pressure medications for the lowest price or even no co-pay. Value-based systems could lead to reducing the number of unnecessary prescriptions and over-the-counter medications that patients take, while improving their health. .What Are The Ten Fastest Growing Senior Costs? .At this time, the FDA has authorized one COVID-19 self-test to be completely used and processed at home. You will risk unknowingly spreading COVID-19 or not getting treated appropriately if you use an unauthorized test. .This year, we challenged our members to be more vocal than ever about their Social Security and Medicare concerns, and our expectations were surpassed to say the least! Our members signed an unprecedented 1,504,372 petitions, and in April, we boxed them up, trekked to Capitol Hill, and delivered them by hand to the offices of each Representative and Senator in the U.S. Congress.