"'We find no indication that these reductions in demand affect only ‘low-value' drugs; on the contrary, those at the highest risk of heart attack and stroke, who would benefit the most from statins and antihypertensives, cut back more on these drugs than lower-risk patients.'" .The alternative to this approach is control by a board of unelected bureaucrats known as the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). This board will consist of 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats empowered to make decisions about what kind of care people on Medicare can receive. I am greatly concerned that this board is being given way too much authority to determine what benefits are covered and how much physicians are paid. This commission's sole intention will be to determine whether Medicare is spending more than is budgeted and, if so, to offer "fixes" to cut back on Medicare spending that would then be fast-tracked with very little opportunity for Congressional input. President Obama's former Budget Director Peter Orszag called IPAB "the single biggest yielding of power to an independent entity since the creation of the federal reserve." I believe the best way to control costs in Medicare is to increase choice and competition, not cede control of health care decisions to a board of 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats. .According to a report from Kaiser Health News, the skepticism is "Because whether it's sharing the credit for a legislative victory with the other party or running afoul of the powerful pharmaceutical lobby, neither Democrats nor Republicans are sure the benefits are worth the risks, according to several of those familiar with the debate on Capitol Hill. .This week, one new cosponsor – Rep. Adam Kinzinger (IL-16) – signed on to the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R. 973). The cosponsor total is now up to 13If signed into law, the bill would repeal two federal provisions that unfairly reduce or eliminate the earned Social Security benefits of millions of teachers, firefighters, peace officers, and other state or local government employees each year. TSCL enthusiastically supports the Social Security Fairness Act, and we were pleased to see one new cosponsor sign on to it this week. .One further reason for the growth is undoubtedly the growth in the primary beneficiary rolls, upon which the benefits of ANP dependents and survivors are based. According to the Inspector General, older non-citizens workers are now at the age and have worked in this country long enough to be potentially eligible to file claims for retirement or disability. The Inspector General has also said that those who worked using invalid, or non-work Social Security numbers issued prior to January 1, 2004, did not need valid work authorization in order to file a claim. Under current law the Social Security Administration uses all earnings, including those for illegal work, to determine entitlement to benefits. ."While there's nothing unlawful per se about rushing to enact policy in the final days of a presidential administration (indeed, it's a time-honored tradition), executive branch officials may not circumvent clear legal requirements in the eleventh hour to achieve goals they couldn't accomplish in the normal course," he said. .The Social Security Administration recently called a halt to a controversial effort to collect debts that were more than 10 years old. For the past three years the government has confiscated tax refunds of hundreds of thousands of taxpayers, claiming an overpayment of Social Security benefits, even though it had little or no proof, and few exact details, according to media reports. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, Senator Charles E. Grassley (IA) said that government agencies were apparently "not properly notifying individuals or allowing them to inspect records of the debt they supposedly owe, which are violations of the law." .What do you think? Seniors are invited to participate in TSCL's annual 2014 Senior Survey. For a free 8-page special issue of TSCL's Best Ways to Save, send to cover postage and handling with your name and address to The Senior Citizens League, 1001 N. Fairfax St. 101, Alexandria, VA 22314. .And no matter what critics may say about the dire finances of the Social Security, the government can find the money for Notch Reform simply by cutting waste, fraud and abuse. The General Accountability Office reported earlier this year that government agencies made over billion in improper payments in fiscal year 200Forty-five billion would more than pay for a Notch settlement. TSCL estimates the cost of the Notch Fairness Act to be around billion.