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  • S 2552 Medicare Advantage Participant Bill Of Rights Act

    After leaving major decisions on Social Security and Medicare cuts to the New Year, Members of Congress are returning to pick up their debate over entitlements and taxes. With the looming insolvency of the Social Security disability program just two short years away, Congress will be forced to take action to re-set program funding at some point soon. When that happens, cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) cuts could be used to shore up the program. .Ensuring that governmental bodies live up to any commitment made to senior citizens. .Nationwide, the picture is equally bleak, with more than 60 million Americans at risk of losing access to the rural hospitals that serve their families. What's worse – in order to prevent rural hospitals from closing under a Medicare-for-all regime, Medicare would have to increase hospital payments up to 60% higher than current Medicare rates. … Continued

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    In recent years, conversations about Social Security reform focused on the need to save funds by cutting benefits. While some lawmakers on Capitol Hill still favor an increase in the retirement age and a reduction in cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs), others have shifted the debate towards a growing retiree savings "crisis" and calling for expanding benefits instead. Three bills in particular would strengthen and modernize the Social Security program while making benefits more generous for all recipients, but especially for those who rely on them the most. These bills have won the support of many in Washington – including The Senior Citizens League: .Throughout the hearing, the "big dog" in the room – as one witness referred to it – was the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR). Each of the witnesses urged the Subcommittee Members to replace the current Medicare physician payment formula with a new model, saying that there's simply too much uncertainty surrounding the SGR. Though most seemed to agree, the price tag of repealing the SGR is daunting and the process of re-writing a billing system with 8,000 different codes will certainly take time. .TSCL is fighting the plan to chain COLAs and believes seniors need a COLA that more adequately protects the buying power of their Social Security benefits. "Members of Congress are more likely to re-think voting for legislation when they see a large number of seniors are adamantly opposed to cutting COLAs," says Hyland. To learn more about proposals that would affect your Social Security benefits, get tips on reducing your Medicare costs, and sign up for TSCL's free online newsletter The Social Security & Medicare Advisor, visit TSCL at . … Continued

Second, six new cosponsors signed on to the Social Security Fairness Act (S. 521, H.R. 141), bringing the cosponsor total up to thirty in the Senate and 163 in the House of Representatives. The new cosponsors are: Senator Dianne Feinstein (CA), Senator Kyrsten Sinema (AZ), Representative Colin Allred (TX-32), Representative Elaine Luria (VA-2), Representative Susan Davis (CA-53), and Representative Sean Casten (IL-6). ."TSCL strongly believes that earnings under invalid SSNs should be also be invalid for entitlement to benefits," says Hyland. "Document fraud, identity theft and violation of immigration law should not be rewarded with Social Security benefits, especially as Congress considers cutting Social Security cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs)," he states. To learn more and find out how much you could lose by COLA cuts, visit http:// /chained-cola-calculator/. To learn more, visit . .The Notch Fairness Act, which was introduced by Rep. Mike McIntyre (NC-7) in March, would provide compensation to Notch babies, or those born between the years 1917 and 192Just years before they were set to retire, these individuals learned that they would have significantly lower benefits than they originally anticipated. TSCL feels that this is an inequity that was brought about because of the Social Security Act Amendments enacted and signed into law in 1977. .This week, the Social Security Administration implemented an online security policy that unexpectedly locked many beneficiaries out of their online accounts. In addition, lawmakers in Congress continued their seven-week summer recess. .TSCL Believes New Policy Would Add To Growing Social Security Woes .You should still take steps to protect yourself and others in many situations, like wearing a mask, staying at least 6 feet apart from others, and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces. Take these precautions whenever you are: .SSA Announces 2019 Social Security COLA of 2.8 Percent .The cost of additional coverage varies significantly. There are pros and cons that need to be weighed for the type of selection you make for your additional coverage. For example, you should ensure that your Part D or Medicare Advantage plan is selected based on the drugs you take, and the doctors and hospitals you actually use. (A Medicare benefits counselor will check this information for you on the Medicare website.) While the cost of this additional coverage varies, the coverage offered may be identical, and that is why we recommend getting help from a SHIP counselor, who can help you find coverage to keep your costs to a minimum. Medigap insurance, for example, costs more for the premium, but you would have minimal out-of-pocket costs. On the other hand, you might pay less for the premium of a Medicare Advantage plan, and perhaps get some additional benefits like vision care, but you would have co-pays or co-insurance for each service. In Central Virginia, for example, a Medigap G policy may be found for about 0 per month, and roughly per month for the drug plan (or even less). .In addition, one new cosponsor – Rep. Jared Nadler (NY-10) – signed on to the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R. 973) this week, bringing the total up to 15The bill, if signed into law, would repeal two Social Security provisions – the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) – that unfairly reduce or eliminate the earned Social Security benefits of millions of retired teachers, firefighters, police officers, and other state or local government employees each year. TSCL believes the two provisions must be repealed as soon as possible so that public servants receive the retirement security they have earned and deserve.