News

  • Legislative Update May 2014

    "Super Congress" Holds First Hearing .72% support applying the Social Security payroll tax to all earnings (instead of capping the amount of wages to be taxed at 2,800), a move that would reduce Social Security's long - term deficit by as much as 73%. ."'I don't anticipate that anything gets there before Election Day,' Chief of Staff Mark Meadows told reporters Wednesday. ‘I think that was a concern that there might have been a look that this was done for a political motivation. That's not the case.'" … Continued

  • New Concern About Cuts To Medicare

    The Mayo Clinic has put out the following information as a way of helping you decide what it is that you may be suffering from. You are advised that if your symptoms are the same as in the past you are likely suffering from allergies again. But if there is any variation you should get tested for Covid. And if you have any doubt, getting tested for Covid is probably the right thing to do, especially if you have not been fully vaccinated. .The debts in question involved cases decades old, and debts many taxpayers never even knew about — for benefits that were paid to their parents or guardians when they were children. If an overpayment is made on behalf of a child (such as survivors benefits) the child could be held liable years later as an adult. .Medicaid is the largest payer of long-term support services such as home care for the elderly, but states are not required to participate in the home and community-based program. … Continued

The Senior Citizens League enthusiastically supports S. 2553, S. 2387, and S. 974, and we will continue to advocate for their passage on Capitol Hill in the months ahead. For more information about these and other bills that have been backed by The Senior Citizens League, visit the Bill Tracking section of our website. For frequent progress updates, follow TSCL on Twitter. .According to an analysis by Johnson, the impact of switching to the more slowly - growing "chained" CPI would compound over time, with the deepest cuts accruing after people had spent 25 or 30 years in retirement. After 25 years, benefits would be cut by about 4.6 percent, and by 5.5 percent after 30 years. For someone with average benefits of ,245 in 2017, benefits would be 0 per month lower from using the chained CPI after 25 years, and 6 per month lower after 30 years, the analysis found. .When shopping for an immediate fixed annuity you need to look for how much monthly income your investment will buy, and the safety of your insurance company. Here are some points to consider from Steve Vernon, a retired consulting actuary, and author of Money for Life: Turn Your IRA and 401(k) Into a Lifetime Retirement Paycheck. .Your Survey Responses are Helping to Change Attitudes About Social Security .Downsizing doctor networks is one way that Medicare Advantage insurers are dealing with the sizable cuts. Some insurers have also begun to increase premiums and out-of-pocket costs that enrollees pay. Austin Pittman, President of UnitedHealth, told the Wall Street Journal: "It's no secret that we are under substantial funding pressure from the federal government … That's what's driving our actions." .Congress and President Obama are battling over the federal budget, but supporters in Congress aren& 8217;t about to forget Notch Babies. The Notch Fairness Act bills (H.R. 155) and (S.90) were introduced by Representative Mike McIntrye (NC-7) and Senator David Vitter (LA). They were among the first bills to be re-introduced in. TSCL Continues Working For Notch Reform TSCL has not given up our goal of Notch reform. In recent months we have been working with long-term Notch reform allies in Congress to ensure that Notch Babies& 8217;, needs are protected from deficit reduction plans that would affect people who are currently retired. .When he issued the orders President Trump gave the drug industry until Aug. 24 to find a suitable alternative to one of his drug pricing plans. He also announced that he would be meeting with drug company executives last Tuesday to begin discussions about a different plan. .Lawmakers compromised on the policy parameters of a long-term solution more than a year ago, but since then, they have been unable to come up with an offset to cover the cost of the 4 billion package. This week, Rep. Tom Price (GA-6), Chairman of the House Budget Committee, said, "We spend .6 trillion a year in this town – to come up with a pay-for ought to be relatively easy. There are things we have used before. There are areas in federal pensions … and rescission money that's available out there. We ought to be able to find some resources to pay for this patch." .This week, TSCL's Board of Trustees traveled to Washington, D.C. for their first meeting of the year. TSCL's all-volunteer Board of Trustees includes the following members: Edward Cates, Chairman; Tom O'Connell, Vice-Chairman; Charlie Flowers, Secretary; John Martinez, Treasurer; Michael Gales, PAC Treasurer; Rick Delaney, President and Liaison of The Retired Enlisted Association; and Larry Hyland, Immediate Past Chairman of TSCL.