News

  • Medicare Advantage Insurers Overcharged Medicare By Nearly 30 Billion

    Thousands of nursing homes across the country have not been checked to see if staff are following proper procedures to prevent coronavirus transmission, a form of community spread that is responsible for more than a quarter of the nation's Covid-19 fatalities. .Over the years, there have been many bills, some with large numbers of co-sponsors, to fix the Notch. Most of the proposed legislative "fixes" provided improved monthly benefits. "Notch Reform" bills encountered strenuous opposition. Objections centered on the lifetime cost of providing those benefits. In 1992, one widely-supported piece of legislation was estimated to cost 0 billion (including interest lost to the Social Security Trust Fund) through the year 2020. In addition, it was argued that the cost would cause the Social Security Trust Fund to become insolvent even sooner than projected. .(Washington, DC) – The upcoming Supreme Court Case on immigration could have significant consequences for Social Security and Medicare, says a report , released today by The Senior Citizens League (TSCL). The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments April 18th on President Obama's executive action on immigration. The president's immigration policy changes would allow an estimated 5 million undocumented immigrants, including parents of U.S. citizens or lawful residents, to obtain temporary deferral of deportation, work authorization and potential access to Social Security and Medicare benefits. … Continued

  • New Obama Administration Policy Provides Path To Social Security Based On Illegal Work

    You can depend on TSCL to be in the middle of the fight to secure Social Security and Medicare and make sure we all receive the benefits we depend on and that we have already paid for during our working years. .Here's an example of how it might work: Let's say your husband was entitled to a benefit of ,400 or ,450 per month. Since he was at his full retirement age there are no reductions. You learn that your full retirement age benefit at age 66 would be about ,195, and by age 70 it grows to about ,640. In this case taking a reduced widow's benefit now and letting your own benefit grow due to the delayed retirement credit may potentially work as long as your earnings don't completely offset your benefits. .That leaves Grassley with a ticking clock to build enough support for his proposal to get it through the Senate and to convince House leaders to take it up as well. House leadership has its own signature drug pricing measure that is closer to Trump's own order than Grassley's bill. … Continued

On Wednesday, the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee held a hearing focusing on a number of Medicare provider payment provisions that are set to expire at the end of this year. The Subcommittee heard from an expert panel of witnesses, which included Richard Umbdenstock, President of the American Hospital Association, and Robert Wah, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the American Medical Association. .TSCL is very supportive of the PRIME Act, since we believe that the failure to manage fraud results in higher taxes for all and higher premiums for Medicare beneficiaries. In addition, at a time when many deficit hawks are considering cuts to programs like Medicare and Medicaid, we believe it is critically important to ensure that scarce program dollars are being spent properly. TSCL looks forward to working with the sponsors of the PRIME Act to help build support for it, and we are hopeful that Congress will pass it into law by the end of the 113th Congress. .The average CEO in the sample would pay enough Social Security revenues to cover the entire benefit of 45 retirees with an average benefit of ,800 for a year, or, boost the COLA of 22,428 retirees with average benefits in the first year. .Once again, the question among some is whether it is allergies or Covid or something else. .House Leaders Propose ACA Replacement .While Congress continues to discuss similar changes to the Social Security benefit formula today, Notch Reform remains a legislative priority for TSCL. TSCL estimates that 2.7 million Notch babies and their spouses or widows would benefit from passage of The Notch Fairness Act. The legislation would provide Notch Babies, born 1917 through 1926, ,000 payable in four annual installments, or an improved monthly benefit. Representative Mike McIntyre (NC-7) introduced the legislation in the House where it has 17 cosponsors, and Senator David Vitter (LA) has introduced a corresponding bill in the Senate. TSCL continues to work for passage. .Since 2000, COLAs have increased Social Security benefits by a total of 55%, yet typical senior expenses over the same period grew by 101.7%. The average Social Security benefit in 2000 was 6 per month. That benefit grew to ,262.40 by 2021 due to COLA increases. However, because retiree costs are rising at a far more rapid pace than the COLA, this study found that a Social Security benefit of ,645.60 per month in 2020 would be required just to maintain the same level of buying power as in 2000. .TSCL believes much more stringent measures are needed to protect Social Security and SSI programs from document fraud. TSCL supports legislation that would ban the use of unauthorized earnings for determining entitlement to Social Security benefits. In addition, TSCL supports stronger penalties for the use of fraudulent documents for obtaining federal benefits, including SSI. .That's sensible, practical – and fair. It asks those who have benefited most from wealth inequality to pay their proper share of payroll taxes.