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  • H R 1001 Notch Fairness Act

    TSCL opposes legislative efforts that would make today's seniors and those nearing Medicare-age pay higher costs for their Medicare coverage. .Instead, I am a strong supporter of the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers Act of 201This legislation would change the way the Social Security Administration calculates the Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) by switching from a CPI based on urban wage earners to a formula that would better reflect the spending of seniors. Unlike younger Americans, seniors spend a disproportionate amount of their income on medical expenses and it is crucial that we raise the Cost of Living Adjustment to keep up with the rising cost of medical expenses. .The nation's pharmaceutical industry has pushed back against the potential order, arguing that the United States should not shut itself off from a global supply chain. … Continued

  • Congressional Corner August 2015 2

    With over 1 million supporters, The Senior Citizens League is one of the nation's largest nonpartisan seniors groups. Located just outside Washington, D.C., its mission is to promote and assist members and supporters, to educate and alert senior citizens about their rights and freedoms as U.S. Citizens, and to protect and defend the benefits senior citizens have earned and paid for. The Senior Citizens League is a proud affiliate of The Retired Enlisted Association. .One widely-discussed proposal would limit the drop in benefits when a spouse dies to 75% of the couple's combined benefit. In the example above that would boost the widow's benefit by 0 per month to ,800. .Repealing Obamacare would affect several people that I know, including my sister who is getting treated for cancer. She can't afford to lose her insurance and we both are very stressed about what could happen. I'm wondering about Members of Congress. What sort of health insurance do they get? Who pays for their health insurance? … Continued

We encourage all Medicare beneficiaries, who wish to have the legal right to import less costly FDA-approved prescription drugs, to contact your Members of Congress. Ask them to pass the Pharmaceutical Market Access legislation, H.R. 328 (House) and S. 334 (Senate). .Home delivery is best suited for "maintenance" drugs, the type you take every day over the long term. You will still need to continue to use your drug plan's "preferred" retail pharmacies if you need a short-term or one-time prescription like an antibiotic. .The "lame duck" session of Congress began this week, and leaders in the House and Senate are hard at work on an omnibus measure that would fund the federal government through the remainder of the fiscal year. Passing an omnibus in December, according to House Appropriations Committee Chairman Harold Rogers (KY-5), would allow the new Congress to "get old business behind [it] and start off with a clean slate in January." .There are 1,313,935 active members/supporters. .In addition, U.S. Customs may be trying to clamp down on prescription drugs being shipped to American consumers from Canadian pharmacies. Although "reimportation" of prescription drugs from abroad continues to be illegal, Customs and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials have only intermittently seized shipments of Canadian drugs in the past. Canadian mail order pharmacies and drug-buying programs run by senior advocates reported earlier this year that the number of seizures has more than quadrupled recently. .Members of Congress remained in their home states and districts to continue the summer recess this week. They are expected to return to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, September 6th. In the meantime, most Members of Congress will be holding town hall meetings in their home states and districts, presenting constituents with excellent opportunities to have their most pressing questions answered. TSCL encourages its members and supporters to attend these events and to voice their concerns about important Social Security and Medicare issues like inadequate cost-of-living adjustments and skyrocketing prescription drug prices. .Lawmakers at Wednesday's Budget Committee hearing discussed potential solutions to the solvency challenge, including the Social Security 2100 Act (H.R. 860), introduced by Congressman John Larson (CT-1) and cosponsored by more than 200 House lawmakers. Congressman Larson, who testified before the committee members on Wednesday, outlined his Social Security reform proposal in detail. .TSCL Calls On Congress To Close The Loop Hole .Although law forbids work without authorization, immigrants use invalid SSNs to get jobs. When employers provide W2s in which the name and SSN do not match those in the SSA's records, the wage report is held in the Earnings Suspense File (ESF) until the discrepancy can be corrected, according to the Social Security Administration's Office of the Inspector General. This can occur even years later when a claim is filed for benefits.