It would permanently set the Social Security Administration's administrative funding at 1.5 percent of overall benefit payments, more than doubling the funding that the administration currently receives. .As a result of the agreement, Senator Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) switches places with Senator Mitch McConnell (R- Ky.). Schumer now becomes the Senate Majority Leader and McConnell becomes the Senate Minority Leader. .Regrettably, this uncertainty persists during the on-going deficit reduction discussions. Those who received services paid for by Medicare will not be affected by the automatic budget cuts due to the failure of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to reach a compromise. Nevertheless, I am concerned that providers are not also shielded from those cuts. That is why I am co-sponsoring H.R. 3519, legislation to protect Medicare providers from the 2 percent cuts that were part of the Budget Control Act of 2011. .On Wednesday, the budget conference that was created in last month's deal to raise the debt ceiling and re-open the government met publicly for the first time. Each of the twenty-nine members – including seven House members and all twenty-two members of the Senate Budget Committee – made opening statements to establish their positions. As expected, many of the conferees seemed split along party lines on Wednesday, but each of them stressed a strong desire to reach an agreement. .The report found at least 6.5 million active Social Security numbers belonging to people who are now at least 112 years old. While people are living longer these days, they're not living that much longer. According to a story by Stephen Ohlemacher of the Associated Press, as of last fall there were only 42 people known to be that old in the entire world. .Deciding when to file is the biggest decision you face. Social Security benefits are calculated using a formula called the primary insurance amount, or PIA. Seniors who wait to start receiving Social Security until their full retirement age (currently 66) receive 100 percent of PIA; taking benefits at 62, the first year of eligibility, gets them 75 percent of PIA. By waiting until age 70, they'll receive 132 percent of the PIA – nearly double the monthly income for the rest of their lives. Those benefits are enhanced by an annual cost-of-living adjustment, which is added back in for any years of delayed filing. .In order to learn more about what services you are eligible for under Medicare, call 1-800-MEDICARE ( 7), a State Health Insurance Assistance Program counselor at your Area Agency on Aging, or your Member of Congress. .However, we believe Congress can and must do more to reduce prescription drug prices. In the months ahead, we will continue to advocate for legislation like the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act (S. 41, H.R. 242), the Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act (S. 469, H.R. 1245), and the Improving Access to Affordable Prescription Drugs Act (S. 771, H.R. 1776). ."TSCL's concern is not over taxes collected under valid Social Security numbers," Cates says. "Our concern is over the use of earnings under invalid or fraudulent Social Security numbers to determine benefits," he explains. Earnings reported under invalid numbers most often occur when noncitizens work without legal authorization. But due to a loophole in current law, Social Security uses all earnings to determine benefits, even those from jobs worked under invalid and fraudulent Social Security numbers. Social Security thus pays benefits for the rest of the individual's life that may be based at least in part, on work under invalid Social Security numbers. TSCL believes this policy rewards people for document fraud.