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    Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (TX-8) said in a statement on Tuesday evening: "We are pleased with the progress we are making and we remain on schedule to take action and approve a bill at our Committee beginning next week." Ranking Member Richard Neal (MA-1), however, urged Republicans on the Committee to slow down. In a letter to Chairman Brady, he said: "I write to urge you in the strongest possible terms to slow this tax reform process to a pace that will allow for reasonable, informed deliberation." .Foster testified before our committee that changes included in the health care law will cut funding for hospitals, skilled nursing homes, diagnostic labs and many other services by more than half the levels under prior law. In addition, future Medicare payments will be considerably below the current relative level. These rates would cause a significant number of providers to leave the market. .Second, one new cosponsor – Representative Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) – signed on to the Improving Access to Affordable Prescription Drugs Act (H.R. 1776). The cosponsor total is now up to twenty-three. If adopted, this comprehensive bill would require the federal government to negotiate lower Medicare Part D prices, allow the importation of prescription drugs from Canada, and cap monthly prescription drug expenses at 0, among other things. … Continued

  • Legislative Update Week Ending June 5 2015

    In our meetings this week we were pleased to learn that the members of Congress whose offices we visited plan on once again co-sponsoring the Notch bill. We also were very encourages to learn that there is a new bill that would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision that has the best chance in years of moving out of committee and forward to the full House of Representatives for a vote. .The Senior Citizens League enthusiastically supports the six bills listed above, and we were pleased to see support grow for them this week. For more information about these and other TSCL-backed bills, visit the Bill Tracking section of our website. .Recent healthcare cost data have the experts perplexed. According to a new analysis from actuaries of the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services, national healthcare spending in 2011 grew at just 3.9 percent. This is the third consecutive year it's grown so slowly, making it the slowest pace in the more than 50 years such data have been tracked. Federal officials don't know for sure if it's a temporary fluke due to prolonged recessionary effects, or part of a long-term trend. … Continued

As a result, experts have been saying that even people who have been vaccinated should continue to wear masks and keep their distance from others. .Unless something is done, TSCL calculates there may be no COLA for next year. .Failure to balance between price and services. Assisted living and continuing care communities can be very expensive and more people are living longer in these facilities. It's important to make finances last while maintaining access to the best care. When exploring options, don't be afraid to look into facilities in areas that have lower costs of living, even if you won't be able to visit with your family every single day. What you give up in fancy features, you may trade off with more affordable rents, and service fees, more personal attention, while still getting high standards of care. .Why does decision making have to be so hard? How much time is the right amount to spend on thinking things over? Can you even name anyone who never made a bad decision? We can't either. .As a representative of thousands of senior citizens in Western Pennsylvania, and as a senior myself, I strongly believe that all Americans should be able to enjoy their golden years without financial or medical hardship. Retirement should be a time of great reward and good health, not unnecessary anxiety. As a member of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security, it has been a priority of mine to work on policies that protect Social Security and ensure its long-term viability for all Americans who have paid into the system. Over the past several years, I have proudly worked with fellow legislators on both sides of the aisle to craft specific policy solutions that will benefit seniors everywhere. .The 30 percent of beneficiaries who are not protected by hold harmless include: .Social Security arose again at the hearing when Committee Member James Clyburn (SC) commented on the payroll tax cap, which is currently set at 6,800. He suggested that the cap be raised to cover 90 percent of income – as it did in the early 1980s – in an effort to restore the program to solvency. Some Members scowled disapprovingly at this proposal and it is still unclear whether the Committee will even touch Social Security, but if they do, this option could appear on the short-list. Clyburn asked Barthold to research the potential effects of raising the wage cap and to report back to the Joint Committee. .In normal political times neither party would allow Medicare to be cut. But because of our current highly partisan times, it would require ten Republicans to join with Democrats to stop the cuts to Medicare with new legislation if reconciliation were used. .At the same time, new claims for Social Security benefits are growing, as many older workers who have lost jobs file for Social Security benefits earlier than planned. The combined impact increases pressure on Social Security to address solvency issues. A future solvency option supported by more than 72 percent of The Senior Citizens League's survey participants is to apply the Social Security payroll tax to all earnings, instead of just the first 7,700 in wages. The survey was conducted from mid - January through April of this year.