News

  • President Will Not Propose Lowering Drug Prices In His Budget

    However, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) refused to bring the bill up in the Senate for debate or a vote. As a result, Congressional leaders have been struggling over the past few weeks to come up with legislation to deal with those issues to help those Americans who have been hurt so badly by the virus and the horrible economy that has resulted. .Co-pays and coinsurance: This refers to the portion of the cost of services that you pay out-of-pocket. Co-pays are a fixed amount that you will pay for each service. For example, in a Medicare Advantage plan, you may be billed a co-pay of to see a primary care physician and to see a specialist. On the other hand, coinsurance is a variable amount. It is a percentage of the cost of the service. Theoretically if the total cost of the service is ,000 and you pay 20% coinsurance, your cost could be about 0. Under Medicare Advantage your health plan negotiates the cost of service, thus you would want to call your plan to get an idea what your total out-of-pocket costs would be, and whether your provider is a preferred provider. Under most Medigap policies, the Part B co-insurance cost is covered in large part, but there still could be some "excess charges" that you pay out of pocket. .What To Do When You Can't Afford Your Drug Costs … Continued

  • Ask Advisor November 2017

    The new guidance is as follows: .President Delivers State of the Union Address .This week, one new cosponsor – Rep. David Loebsack (IA-2) – signed on to the Preventing and Reducing Improper Medicare and Medicaid Expenditures (PRIME) Act (H.R. 2305). The total is now up to sixty-two. If signed into law, the PRIME Act would take a number of steps to comprehensively prevent fraud, waste, and abuse within the two programs – a problem that TSCL believes must be addressed in order to ensure that scarce program dollars are being spent properly. … Continued

The so-called "Buy American" order could represent a seismic shakeup of the drug industry: No one knows exactly how much of the American drug supply chain is produced abroad, but some experts say that up to 90% of critical generic drugs are made at least partially abroad. ."The ability to withstand major downturns in the economy is particularly important in retirement, yet extraordinarily difficult for today's retirees and those nearing retirement," says Johnson. "There are a number of factors that are reducing available retirement income from traditional sources," Johnson says. .Set up a healthcare worksheet with your basic expenses. That can include Medicare premiums for Part B (deducted from your Social Security), Medicare supplement premiums and Part D premiums OR Medicare Advantage premiums. You also need to include deductibles, out-of-pocket co-pays or co-insurance. In addition, include the costs for premiums or out-of-pocket costs for services that Medicare does not cover, including dental, vision and audio. Include the cost of glasses and hearing aids and batteries if you use them. .The Social Security report projected the combined reserves of the Old Age, Survivor and Disability trust funds would be depleted in 2035, resulting in across-the-board benefit cuts of about 21% unless Congress stepped in before then. .Sources: "How Much ‘Skin In The Game' Is Enough?", Kaiser Family Foundations, June 201"Measuring Price Change For Medical Care In The CPI," Bureau of Labor Statistics, accessed March 3, 2012. .This week, TSCL endorsed one new bill sponsored by Congressman Eliot Engel (NY-16) – the Guaranteed 3 Percent COLA for Seniors Act (H.R. 3588). If signed into law, the bill would base Social Security cost-of-living adjustments on an inflation index specifically for seniors, and it would guarantee a minimum increase of 3 percent each year. .Congressmember Karen Bass is serving her sixth term in Congress. She represents Culver City and parts of Los Angeles. .The U.S. has already hit the most recent debt limit on March 2nd, just one month after the government shutdown ended. The U.S. Treasury is currently using "extraordinary measures" to temporarily keep the federal government funded, but the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the Treasury will run out of cash near the end of the fiscal year (September 30, 2019) unless Congress takes action. .This week, two new cosponsors – Representatives Michelle Lujan Grisham (NM-1) and Mike Coffman (CO-6) – signed on to the Credit for Caring Act (H.R. 4708), bringing the cosponsor total up to five. If signed into law, the bill would provide eligible caregivers with a new tax credit equal to 30 percent of all expenses greater than ,000, and capped at ,000 per year.