News

  • Legislative Update Week Ending January 20 2017

    Seventy-eight percent of the prescriptions ordered by one Florida physician were for Schedule II drugs. For one beneficiary, this physician prescribed a 605-day supply of morphine, a 52day supply of oxycodone, a 460 - day supply of fentanyl, and a 34day supply of hydromophone. .While retirees won't be getting as much of an increase in their Social Security checks in 2020, the Part B premium, is expected to go up considerably more than it did this year. In 2019, most beneficiaries paid .50 per month more than in 201In 2020, however, the Medicare Trustees have forecast that Part B premiums will increase from 5.50 to 4.30 per month — .80 per month more—an increase of 6.5%. That's four times faster than the COLA. .Congress is now back in session but they will not begin considering new legislation for a few days. They are in the process of organizing for a new session and, of course, they will be involved in the electoral college process of electing a new President starting, but perhaps not concluding, on Wednesday. … Continued

  • Gridlock Fixing Social Security Disability Mean Benefit Cuts

    Instead of using the CPI-W or the "chained" CPI, TSCL has been advocating for an inflation index that we believe would actually result in a more accurate Social Security COLA. We favor the CPI for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E), which the BLS has been tracking &ndah; but not utilizing – for decades. This index has shown that the spending inflation for seniors averages about two-tenths of a percentage point higher than the rate at which the CPI-W increases. We estimate that a senior who retired with average Social Security benefits in 1984 would have received ,496 more through 2013 had the CPI-E been used. .What happens when Congress waits too long to address a Social Security funding crisis? Deeper benefit cuts, sudden tax increases, and glitches in the implementation of reforms that can lead to significant benefit inequities between people close to each other in age. Consider the case of the Social. Benefit Bulletin: June 2013 What Caused The Social Security Notch? .Where do you want to live and how will you get around? Do you plan to stay where you are, move to senior housing, or someday move in with family? Is it cheaper to rent or to buy? If you own a home, will your financial plan cover the annual maintenance and inevitable upkeep and repairs such as painting or replacing a roof? Will you have access to public transportation if you can no longer drive or afford a vehicle? Look for local workshops that review the types of housing options in your area for people over 60. … Continued

The Democrats are likely to use reconciliation to move President Biden's COVID-19 relief measure through Congress while sidestepping a GOP filibuster. .Some financial advisors say that there may be some tax advantages to taking money out now while valuations are lower. This information is not intended as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you contact the custodian of your 401(k) or your financial advisor and discuss a plan for your income needs and to explore potential sources of funds. .The good news is that both issues tend to be non-partisan. However, the bad news is that both cost a considerable amount of money, which means more federal spending. That's why the bills we support that would fix those issues have been tied up in committee for so long and have not been able to move through either the House or Senate. .Last week, the two leaders of the Republicans and Democrats in the Senate finally were able to reach an agreement on organizing the Senate for the next two years. An agreement was needed because each party has 50 Senators. Because of that, Vice President Kamala Harris, who is President of the Senate as provided for in the Constitution, will break any tie votes that may occur. That includes the vote to organize the Senate. .The announcement comes as the Super-Committee members consider how much savings should come from tax cuts versus spending cuts. If the committee cannot come to an agreement by the November 23rd deadline, across-the-board budget cuts will occur. .Trustees Release Annual Social Security and Medicare Reports .Catastrophic coverage stage (if you spend a total of more than ,100 counting all your prescriptions): .15 .The Social Security Administration maintains a special Earnings Suspense File of wage reports that don't match the name and Social Security number of those in Social Security records. According to data from the Social Security Administration, an average of 9,762,500 wage reports per year with invalid names or Social Security numbers were received from 2000 through 2007 for an average of .68 billion in wages per year. That much in wages would be worth more than billion per year in Making Work Pay tax credits in 2009 and 2010 if those trends continue. .But that's not all Congress must do before October The Secretary of the Treasury has warned that if Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling very soon the government will default on its bills sometime in October. The "full faith and credit" of the U.S. government is at stake here and the repercussions of a government default are not totally known but they could be disastrous.