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  • Category Issues Cola Articles Page 15

    However, current benefits, as we will learn today, are inadequate, unfair, and in many cases discriminatory, because of systemic economic inequities. .Doughnut hole or coverage gap stage: 5.76. .With a majority of seniors today depending on Social Security for at least half of their income over a 20 to 30 years retirement, TSCL opposes proposals that would cut the benefits of current retirees and those nearing retirement. We are continuing to monitor this proposal and waiting to see what legislation may develop. While TSCL believes that changes are needed to ensure that Social Security continues pay scheduled benefits, changes must be kept as small as possible, and phased in over as long a period as possible to allow for future retirees to learn about and adjust their plans. … Continued

  • Why Isnt There Any Cola Next Year When Medicare Costs Are Spiking

    It pays to compare your options, but you need to do this soon, before the Medicare Open Enrollment period ends December 7th. For help shopping for a new drug or health plan locate Medicare benefit counselors in your area. Visit the State Health Insurance Program website — https://www.shiptacenter.org. .According to a report in Bloomberg Government News, "Centrist Democrats in the House are pushing to shrink their party's health-care wish list to focus more on low-income Americans, a move backed by industry groups including dentists who say a narrower focus is better policy. .Even though I have good insurance, I wound up with ,260 in unexpected out-of-pocket costs after being referred to a specialist who ordered "a few tests." I later learned that most, if not all of the tests I was given were probably unnecessary, and not recommended by the physician groups, based on my medical history. The visit with my specialist lasted only 15 minutes. At check out I learned the doctor had ordered four high-tech tests including a CT scan. No explanation was given about what the doctor was looking for, why the tests were necessary, or how they would help, nor was I given the opportunity to go back and ask the doctor before leaving. Nothing abnormal was found in any one of them. While I'm grateful for that, the stack of bills I received later forced me to tap savings that I was hoping to count on for retirement. … Continued

Since passage of Medicare in 1965 all seniors received the same benefits for the same standard premium. But in 2003, Congress took the unprecedented step of passing legislation that required "upper-income" seniors to pay increased premiums for Medicare Part B. Forcing these seniors to pay more for the same Medicare benefits is known as the "means test." .In 2017, there was a tiny 0.3% COLA and raising Sally's benefit from ,000 to ,00But in 2017 the Medicare Part B premium took a stiff jump to Once again, because the COLA was so low, Sally's share of the Medicare premium was adjusted downward so that her Social Security benefit would not be reduced. However, virtually all of her .00 per month COLA was put toward the increased Part B premium, and today Sally pays a monthly Part B premium of 7.90. .What do you think? Take TSCL's 2014 Senior Survey. .First, four new cosponsors – Representative Darren Soto (FL-9), Representative Grace Napolitano (CA-32), Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40), and Representative Grace Meng (NY-6) – signed on to the Nursing Home CARE Act (H.R. 4704), bringing the total up to nineteen. If adopted, the bill would protect Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries by more quickly codifying emergency preparedness rules for nursing home facilities that receive funding from the federal government. .Medicare part B was not paid for by increasing taxes but is paid for by borrowing money. So were the tax cuts that the President supported, and Congress passed in 2017. .If adopted, the bill would strengthen and reform the Social Security program responsibly, without enacting any benefit cuts for older or disabled Americans. Among other things, it would: boost Social Security benefits by 2 percent, protect against inflation by basing cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) on the CPI-E, create a new minimum benefit set at 125 percent of the poverty line, and cut taxes for over 12 million Social Security beneficiaries. .Congress this week was sort of the entire U.S. in miniature form. The Senate came back to town to conduct business, but not all Senators agreed with that. Most Senators followed the rules for wearing face masks, but not all. Not all committee hearings were attended by all the members. Most Senators were careful about following the protocols that have been recommended by health care professionals, but not all. ."Let's have some discussion about what the government would actually be measuring," Johnson says. "It would not be direct measurement of the growth in the costs of specific goods and services as is the case under the conventional CPI," she says. "Yet that's what most people think of when we talk about inflation," she says. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the chained CPI measures the amount of additional resources that an individual would need to maintain the same standard of living this year as last year. "That's not the same thing, especially for people dependent on fixed incomes," Johnson notes. .Changes in your earnings: Did you report increases in salary or commissions? You need to keep Social Security informed of higher earnings in order for your benefits to be accurately withheld.