News
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March 2014 Virtual Strategy Magazine
Our nation is in a hyper-partisan period as the November elections approach. In this environment it becomes tricky when reporting about issues that affect you and other TSCL supporters because the issues are so often intertwined with politics. .With that in mind we remind you that the Federal Trade Commission has warned that anybody offering a chance to jump ahead on the statewide priority list for a vaccination in exchange for money is a scammer. .Budget Cuts Taking Toll on Congressional Staffs … Continued
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H R 3761 Seniors Deserve A Raise Act
This week, President Obama delivered his State of the Union Address, and talks to repeal and replace the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula for doctors who treat Medicare patients seemed to have stalled. ."Income-Relating Medicare Part B and Part D Premiums: How Many Medicare Beneficiaries Will Be Affected?" Kaiser Family Foundation, Publication No. 8126, December 2010. ."Because earnings are used to determine entitlement, the portion of earnings from jobs worked prior to legal authorization poses a substantial long-term liability to the Social Security Trust Fund," Cates says. In order to improve Social Security solvency, Congress is expected to consider cutting Social Security benefits, perhaps significantly, at some point in the future. "This policy that ‘pays benefits based on work while in the country illegally raises questions as to whether individuals who worked without authorization and committed document fraud will benefit at the expense of others who paid in under valid SSNs," Cates notes. … Continued
In coming years, growing program cost pressures could mean that some illegals may benefit from the use of invalid and fraudulent Social Security numbers at the expense of others who worked and paid into the system legally. TSCL's new 2014 Senior Survey found that 87 percent of respondents favor prohibiting payment of Social Security benefits calculated on earnings from unauthorized work by illegal immigrants. TSCL supports legislation that would prohibit earnings under invalid and fraudulent Social Security numbers from use in determining entitlement to Social Security benefits. .According to an article in The Hill, a Washington, D.C., newspaper that covers legislative matters in Congress, it just might happen. .Today's seniors have spent a lifetime paying into benefit programs like Social Security. They did so under the assumption that those programs' benefits will be there for them when they need them. All too frequently, though, illegal immigrants are reaping benefits without first paying their fair share into the program, and those who paid into Social Security fear that expected benefits will not be available when the time comes. ."Public health officials were quick to tout J&J's data as a strong result, particularly given that regulators initially said a vaccine would only have to be 50% effective to be authorized. A vaccine that is 66% effective is an incredibly powerful tool in fighting respiratory viruses, they stressed. ‘We would be celebrating a seasonal influenza vaccine with 60% efficacy,' Jay Butler, the deputy director for infectious diseases at the CDC, told reporters. ."Our example just looked at the salaries and performance pay of just 20 CEOs," notes Johnson. "According to the Social Security Administration, there will be 12 million people who earn above the taxable maximum in 2018," she adds. .TSCL enthusiastically supports S. 2011, H.R. 2575, H.R. 991, and H.R. 1205, and we were pleased to see support grow for each one this week. For more information about these and other bills endorsed by TSCL, visit the Bill Tracking section of our website. .Social Security benefits are one of the few sources of retirement benefits to be adjusted for inflation. The intention is to protect the buying power of benefits when prices increase. But retirees frequently notice that over time their Social Security benefits don't buy as much as they used to. This happens when the annual COLA doesn't keep pace with the increases in costs typically experienced by older and disabled beneficiaries. .Initial Coverage Period: During this stage of coverage you pay a co-pay or co-insurance of 25% of the cost of covered drugs, and the plan pays 75%, up to a total of ,005 (beneficiary) and ,015 (plan). This includes any applicable deductible. Your plan's full retail drug cost, not your co-pay, is what counts toward entering the coverage gap. Your co-pays or True Out-of-Pocket costs (TrOOP) count toward exiting the coverage gap and qualifying for catastrophic coverage. .Last year a premium support plan that passed in the House prompted a firestorm of opposition from seniors and critics concerned that the plan cut federal spending too much — shifting too great a portion of costs -- and would make Medicare unaffordable for beneficiaries. But premium support itself is nothing new, nor would it "end Medicare as we know it." To the contrary, seniors already know it, and like it. Medicare operates two premium support programs — Medicare Part D, and Medicare Advantage.
