News

  • Legislative Update For Week Ending May 23 2014

    In the days and weeks ahead, The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) will closely monitor the movement of S. Con. Res. 3 since a repeal of the Affordable Care Act will impact older Americans in several ways. For instance, progress that has been made to close the Medicare Part D prescription drug "doughnut hole" will be reversed, and the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund that finances Medicare Part A will lose a critical stream of funding created by the law. Throughout the 115th Congress, TSCL's legislative team will continue to advocate on Capitol Hill for legislation that would reduce any negative impacts on the Medicare program. .The SNAP Simplification for the Elderly Act (H.R. 4521) gained one new cosponsor in Representative Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02), bringing the new cosponsor total up to 20. If enacted, H.R. 4521 would streamline the application process for senior citizens to receive help from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The bill would also encourage collaboration between local Social Security offices and the SNAP programs to help seniors at risk of hunger enroll in both benefits simultaneously. .But if mature workers are not working and earning, they can't make critical life investments in themselves, their families, and their futures. … Continued

  • Category Tips For Seniors Feed

    The CPI-W gives less weight to medical care and housing costs — two categories that have climbed by more than 7 percent and almost 5 percent, respectively, over the past 12 months — and more weight to gasoline, which has deeply plunged over the past year. Older Americans tend to use more medical services and spend more of their budgets on housing than younger workers. Because the CPI-W excludes the spending patterns of people over the age of 62, it does not include things like rising Medicare premiums, which are one of the fastest growing costs in retirement. .Your husband would need to apply for Social Security disability benefits to learn if his medical condition meets the Social Security Administration's definition of disability. But before getting started, it's important to understand your choices, since your husband is also old enough to start Social Security retirement benefits. .This week, lawmakers in both chambers voted to approve a temporary spending bill to fund the government past September 30th. In addition, The Senior Citizens League's (TSCL's) legislative team met with several Members of Congress and their aides, and two key bills gained support. … Continued

There are 1,313,935 active members/supporters. .Someone else is working using your Social Security number: If you still can't determine the cause of Social Security's overpayment claim, check your earnings record with the Social Security Administration for accuracy. Identity theft is soaring and earnings from persons unknown may show up on your work record without your knowledge. It's important to correct your record if this happens to you. If this is the case, in addition to checking your records with Social Security, you will need to contact the IRS. Otherwise, the IRS may send you a notice stating that you failed to report everything you earned and that you might owe taxes. .New 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 on Monday? .The Social Security Administration maintains an "earnings suspense file" which tracks wages sent in by employers, for earnings that cannot be posted to individual workers' records because there is no match for the name and Social Security number. The Congressional Research Service reports that wages represented in the earnings suspense file currently amount to approximately 0 billion. According to Social Security Administration Inspector Patrick P. O'Carroll, "We believe the chief cause of wage items being posted to the earnings suspense file instead of an individual's earning record is unauthorized work by noncitizens." .This week, lawmakers in the House and Senate adjourned for a week-long recess. In addition, The Senior Citizens League saw three key Social Security and Medicare bills gain support in the House. .Now, the government of Canada is banning drug manufacturers and distributors from shipping any Canadian drugs that might be at risk of shortage to the United States. .We have been reporting recently that unless Congress passes new legislation soon there will be significant cuts in Medicare payments to health care providers, such as doctors and hospitals. If that happens it is quite possible those patients covered by Medicare would likely face negative consequences with regard to their health care. .What's Missing From Your 2015 Social Security Check? About 3 Says The Senior Citizens League .Two new pieces of legislation in addition to H.R.1565 (see above) have been introduced to stop these kinds of scams.