News

  • Legislative Update For Week Ending October 4 2013

    It's time to address our real problems -- growing inequality and our looming retirement crisis. I have sponsored legislation that would apply the payroll tax to earned income above 0,000 and to investment income. This would extend Social Security's solvency for the next fifty years, and allow us to increase benefits to meet the elderly's higher living expenses. .TSCL agrees with Congressman Duncan, and we enthusiastically support the CPI for Seniors Act. In a letter of endorsement, Art Cooper – Chairman of TSCL's Board of Trustees – wrote: "Unfortunately, years of record-low COLAs like this one – including multiple years of zero 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, and we look forward to informing our members and supporters about your efforts on Capitol Hill." .If you start benefits sooner than age 66 and continue to work, you are subject to Social Security earnings restriction rules. Earn more than the annual exempt amount and Social Security will withhold some or all of your earnings. In addition, once you start benefits, your income may subject a portion of your Social Security benefits to tax. … Continued

  • Category Tips For Seniors Healthcare

    We end the update this week with some hopeful news regarding Alzheimer's disease. According to a report from National Public Radio, there is evidence that vaccines that protect against the flu and pneumonia may actually protect people from Alzheimer's, too. The evidence comes from two studies presented last Monday at this year's Alzheimer's Association International Conference, which is being held as a virtual event. .If adopted, H.R. 1170 would strengthen and expand the Social Security program by providing beneficiaries with a monthly benefit boost, basing cost-of-living adjustments on the CPI-E, and setting the Special Minimum Benefit at 125 percent of the poverty line. It would also apply the payroll tax to all income – including investment income – over 0,000. .Finally, one new cosponsor – Rep. Ted Yoho (FL-3) – signed on to the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R. 1795), bringing the total up to one hundred and seventeen. If signed into law, the bill would repeal the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) – two federal provisions that unfairly reduce the earned Social Security benefits of millions of state and local government employees each year. … Continued

Our legislative team was pleased to see the Protecting Seniors' Access to Medicare Act advance out of the Ways and Means Committee this week, and we will be sure to monitor its progress as it moves to the House floor. Leaders expect it to be taken up during the week of June 15th, and it is expected to pass there with bipartisan support as well. For updates on the status of H.R. 1190, visit the Legislative News section of our website. .How much would chaining the COLA cost you? Use TSCL's new Chained COLA Cut Calculator to calculate your loss. .PhRMA, the drug industry's lobbying group, called the bill "the wrong approach to lowering prescription drug prices" and said it "imposes harmful price controls in Medicare Part D." But with drug prices for many brand and specialty drugs running into the hundreds and even thousands of dollars for a single fill, TSCL believes that restricting the rate of increase on prescription drugs, and capping out-of-pocket costs, could help save lives and improve the health of older Americans. .More than ever before, it is critical that seniors make their voices heard on Capitol Hill. In the past two years, countless proposals to cut Medicare and Social Security benefits have been backed by deficit hawks in Congress. Recent plans have called for lower cost-of-living adjustments, increased Medicare means testing, a higher retirement age, and even the phasing out of Medicare altogether. The stakes are high for seniors, and with a critical election just months away, every voice counts. The stacks of petitions that our members signed were delivered along with a personalized letter addressed to each Member of Congress. The letters expressed appreciation to those who have already signed on as supporters of the key issues. To those who have not, however, they conveyed a powerful and urgent message and served as a call to action. .Beneficiaries are telling other Mexicans about the Social Security benefits. .Reduce the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that beneficiaries receive once they become eligible for benefits. .For many lawmakers and citizens, this news was disturbing but not surprising. This is exactly why Republicans are demanding that we stop raiding the current program and reform of the system for future generations. Doing nothing is not an option. The status quo will mean the end of Medicare as we know it. Yet instead of putting forth new ideas to reform the program and use the savings to shore up Medicare for future generations, Democrats transferred 0 billion out of Medicare to fund their latest entitlement program, the massive health care law. .If signed into law, S. 960 would base Social Security cost-of-living adjustments on the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E) and gradually phase out the cap on income subject to the payroll tax. .This legislation would require the Federal Trade Commission to update its website to include a searchable database of scams targeting seniors. It would have to work with media outlets and law enforcement to distribute the information. The FTC also would be required to send Congress a report with policy recommendations to prevent scams targeting older individuals, especially during national emergencies.