"If Congress adopts the more slowly-growing ?chained? CPI to calculate COLAs, that would cut the growth in average benefits, about ,100 per month today, by about ,742 over a 25-year retirement," states Larry Hyland, Chairman of TSCL. The benefit reductions compound over time, hitting the oldest the hardest. "By the time age 62 retirees with average benefits today reach age 84, their monthly benefits would be about 8 lower than they would receive using the current COLA methodology," Hyland says. .Last week, in a last ditch attempt to try and come up with new legislation, Secretary of the Treasury Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Meadows met with the leaders of the House and Senate see if they could reach a compromise. They could not. One of the big reasons was the overall cost of the legislation and in the amount of money that would be given to those who are unemployed because of the pandemic. ."If you want to save money on health and prescription drug plans, it's more important than ever to compare and switch now during the fall Medicare Open Enrollment period which ends December 7th," Cates says. Free, unbiased, one – on – one counseling is available through State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIP), many of which operate through local agencies on aging. .This week, two new cosponsors – Representatives Michelle Lujan Grisham (NM-1) and Mike Coffman (CO-6) – signed on to the Credit for Caring Act (H.R. 4708), bringing the cosponsor total up to five. If signed into law, the bill would provide eligible caregivers with a new tax credit equal to 30 percent of all expenses greater than ,000, and capped at ,000 per year. ."Maybe the economic value of the COVID vaccine is a trillion — and even if the expense to the company was a billion, that's 1,000 times return on investment," said Schulman. "No economic theory would support that." .While the other two rulings went against the Trump Administration, this one was a win on a key piece of Trump's health-care agenda at the end of his administration. .To avoid significant cost increases and unexpected benefit cuts next year, TSCL encourages its members and supporters to examine all MA plan offerings closely before making a selection or allowing a plan to automatically renew. The open enrollment period ends on December 7th, and coverage begins on January 1st. In the meantime, TSCL will continue to monitor the status of the MA program and advocate for legislation like the Medicare Advantage Participant Bill of Rights Act, which would protect MA enrollees from unfair and abrupt changes to physician networks. .Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who was the Senate Majority Leader at that time, refused to even bring the bill up for a vote on the Senate floor. .When support for correcting the Notch reached a head, Congress established a 12-member commission to study the Notch and issue a report. No member appointed to the Commission, however, was on record as supporting the correction of the Notch disparity. On the other hand, a number of members, including the chairman, were on record as opposing such action. The Commission issued its report on December 29, 1994, concluding that "benefits paid to those in the Notch years are equitable, and no remedial legislation is in order."