News

  • Ask The Advisor July 2011 Advisor Feed

    By using reconciliation, it would mean there would have to billions of dollars cut from current spending programs, including Medicare. .Much of the debate over federal deficit reduction plans has been focused on overhauling Medicare and making changes to Social Security. But a major funding change is also under consideration for Medicaid, the federal and state program that covers medical care for lower-income individuals including seniors who also receive Medicare. As federal and state governments struggle to address Medicaid funding shortfalls, TSCL is concerned that Notch Babies, and the families who provide care for them, would be among those who would be hit the hardest by funding cuts. .What do you think of these proposals? TSCL wants to hear from you! Please take TSCL's 2017 Senior Survey. … Continued

  • Legislative Update July Advisor Feed

    Wages in the ESF since the end of 1999 grew by 3.20 billion to 5 billion, nearly doubling from 1.8 billion. In other words, it took 63 years to accumulate 1.8 billion in wages in the ESF. In the five most recent years, the amount of wages rose by 93%. This growth is illustrated in the charts in Tables 1, 2 and 3, which follow. .A new study by the Journal of the American Medical Association says that the Medicare Part D program could have saved roughly .7 billion in 2017 if doctors and patients had actively opted for generic drugs instead of brand name drugs. .To cover the projected cost, lawmakers included a reduction in funding to the Prevention and Public Health Fund, which was created by the ACA to support preventive care efforts, the management of chronic conditions, and developments in public health. … Continued

Warning: Scams prey on seniors and others .The measure has bipartisan backing in the Senate, as well as support from some moderate House Democrats. However, it is facing opposition from House leaders who say the legislation is a roundabout way to cut Social Security benefits. .The Effect of Economic Conditions Was Not Foreseen, and Therefore Could Not Have Been Intended by Congress .Vet services are estimated to cost at least 0 per year for dogs, and about 8 per year for cats, while many of us pay much more, even with so-called senior discounts. Diagnostic procedures can cost over ,000, while some surgeries can run in the thousands of dollars. .Because of the advanced ages of Notch Babies, the cost of correcting the Notch is falling every day. TSCL estimates (in 2006) that the cost of Notch Reform would be about billion, or slightly less than .75 billion per year over the next four years. The billion could be financed without taking additional money from the Social Security Trust Fund. This could be done through cutting wasteful pork barrel spending and reducing fraud and abuse in government programs. In fiscal year 2006 alone, lawmakers spent about billion in pork-barrel projects (8). That doesn't include what the government lost to improper payments, fraud, and abuse. The Government Accountability Office estimated that for fiscal year 2005 government agencies improperly spent more than billion (9). .Finally, the Social Security Fairness Act of 2017 (H.R.1205) gained two new cosponsors in Representative Walter Jones (NC-3) and Representative Tony Cardenas (CA-29), bringing the cosponsor total to 17If signed into law, H.R. 1205 would repeal the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) – two Social Security provisions that unfairly reduce the earned benefits of millions of teachers, police officers, and other public servants each year. .The following article is from "Kaiser Health News": .But as the StatNews article said, "… some people might remember the headlines of Moderna's and Pfizer's product offering greater than 90% effectiveness against Covid-19 and question J&J's announcement of 66% effectiveness. .Legislation passed in 1983 required all Members of Congress to pay into Social Security. That said, like all high-income workers, they only pay Social Security up to the maximum taxable wage, which in 2012 is 0,100. Thus Members of Congress pay no Social Security taxes on the additional ,900 they receive as salary. Since Members of Congress are high-income earners, they are also in line for the maximum tax break due to the payroll tax cut extension. The payroll tax rate has temporarily been cut by 2%, meaning Members of Congress will save ,002 in 2012.