News

  • Best Ways Save Februarymarch 2017

    TSCL Meets with Members of Congress .Americans are anxious to get back to normal after over a year of being limited in their activities because of the pandemic. For many seniors, as well as others, that includes vacationing, and vacationing includes trips on cruise ships. .Legislation was introduced in the last Congress to remedy the new benefit reductions affecting people born in 1960— "The Social Security COVID Correction and Equity Act," introduced by Representative John Larson (CT-1), and the "Protecting Benefits for Retirees Act," introduced by Senators Tim Kaine (VA) and Bill Cassidy (LA). The Senior Citizens League strongly endorses legislation that would fix not only this notch but also provide permanent protection from this sort of recessionary reduction for past and future retirees as well. … Continued

  • Legislative Update For Week Ending September 13 2019

    Last week White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows announced that President Trump would soon be signing three executive orders regarding prescription drug prices. While he did not provide any further information the Washington Post published an article about what one of the orders is likely to be. .A powerful Congressional deficit reduction "super committee" is working on a plan, due by Thanksgiving, to lower the federal deficit by at least .2 trillion. "TSCL is deeply concerned that a change to a more slowly-growing 'chained' consumer price index (CPI) which is used to calculate the annual COLA boost may be part of the plan," says Larry Hyland, Chairman of TSCL. The proposal to switch to the chained CPI was given serious consideration in the closed-door debt limit meetings by Congressional leaders and President Obama earlier this summer. Switching to the chained COLA was proposed by two prominent deficit reduction commissions and has received support from both Republicans and Democrats. .Accurate earnings estimates: It's important to accurately estimate your earnings. If you worked for someone else, Social Security will need your gross earnings prior to deductions for taxes. In addition, Social Security counts when the wages are earned, NOT when they are paid. This includes accumulated sick or vacation pay and bonuses. … Continued

Finally, two new cosponsors – Representative Daniel Lipinski (IL-3) and Representative Glenn Grothman (WI-6) – signed on to the CREATES Act (H.R. 2212), bringing the total up to twenty-five. The CREATES Act, if adopted, would increase competition in the prescription drug industry by encouraging generic and biosimilar drug manufacturers to introduce their products to the market more quickly. .Sources: "Verifying Eligibility for Certain New Tax Benefits Was A Challenge for the 2010 Filing Season," Treasury Inspector General, September 30, 2010, Ref. No. 2010-41-128 .The Social Security Safety Dividend Act (H.R. 67), introduced in the House by Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18), would give Social Security beneficiaries a 0 payment during years in which no cost-of-living adjustment is payable. If signed into law, it would provide much-needed financial support to older Americans in years like 2016, when there was no COLA. In a letter of endorsement, Art Cooper – TSCL's Chairman – wrote: "Years of record-low COLAs will have a devastating impact on the long-term adequacy of Social Security benefits for more than 59 million beneficiaries … Your bill would go a long way in ensuring the retirement security older Americans have earned and deserve." .Alexandria, VHow much will the Social Security cost – of – living adjustment (COLA) boost your benefits? "Probably not enough to prevent a loss of benefit buying power," says Ed Cates, Chairman of The Senior Citizens League (TSCL). The Social Security Administration recently announced that beneficiaries would receive a 1.7 percent COLA effective January 2015, making the sixth consecutive year of exceptionally low growth in benefits. With the average Social Security payment hovering around ,200 per month, the COLA would boost benefits by around .00. .In fact, generic medicines represent around 90 percent of all prescriptions dispensed in the U.S., and we depend on China for 80 percent of the core components to make our generic medicines. .Both retirees and the disabled spend a very significant portion of their incomes on healthcare costs. For many, health insurance premiums are the most significant expense that they incur every month. That includes what the government automatically deducts for Medicare Part B, and what individuals shell out for a Medicare Advantage plan or Medigap policy, and Part D drug plan. According to a policy brief from the Kaiser Family Foundation, premiums account for the largest share of Medicare beneficiaries' out-of-pocket health spending. Four-in-ten Medicare beneficiaries spend more than 10 percent of their income on premiums alone. To get a better idea of what the government does track, here's a list from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The BLS has classified all expenditure items into more than 200 categories, arranged into eight major groups. Major groups and examples of categories in each include: .However, experts say the actual cost of living for Social Security beneficiaries is rising and their quality of life is falling. Social Security recipients have lost nearly a fourth of their buying power over the last 15 years, according to the Senior Citizens League. .Source: "Spouses Eligible For Higher Retirement Benefits," Office of the Inspector General, Social Security Administration, March 2014. .The billion could be financed without taking money from the Social Security Trust Fund. One way is through reduction of pork barrel spending and government waste. In the fiscal year 2001 budget alone, pork "watch-dog" Senator John McCain (AZ-R) estimated that the government would spend a record billion in pork-barrel projects.