News

  • Frequently Asked Question July 2021

    TSCL enthusiastically supports H.R. 2745, H.R. 3118, and H.R. 1795, and we were pleased to see support grow for each of them this week. ."'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.'" .Advocates who help retirees enroll in these programs say that, even if your income is slightly above the eligibility limits, you might still qualify because certain types of income and assets may not be counted. … Continued

  • 2014 Legislative Update August 2014

    " ‘If it comes to getting my family members vaccinated, and all that's available is J&J or Novavax, I'd tell them to take it,' said Robert Hancock, president of the Texas College of Emergency Physicians." .TSCL has received a growing volume of email from seniors who say their new Part D or Medicare Advantage plan isn't all it's cracked up to be. Many of you complain of higher-than-expected costs, and quite a few asked how you could drop your plan. Selecting the right Medicare supplement or Medicare Advantage plan is highly complicated. The system has stymied almost everyone who works with it, Medicare advocates, pharmacists, insurers, and — especially — government employees. How can the average senior be expected to figure it out? .Congress recognized that benefits would be lower under the new benefit formula provided by the 1977 law changes, but they sought to address the problem of abrupt benefit cuts for those nearing retirement (3). Congress provided a "transitional benefit formula" to phase in the changes for those who would become eligible for Social Security within the first five years of the changeoverЧthose born from 1917 through 192This group of retirees had their benefit calculated two waysЧunder the new benefit formula and under the transitional benefit formula and they received the higher of the two benefits. According to a comprehensive economic analysis by noted economist John Haldi, Ph.D., the transitional benefit formula, however, had significant flaws and in almost every case failed to provide any benefit protection (4). Thus, benefits were sharply and rapidly reduced. … Continued

Often, consumers don't even know they signed such an agreement because the clauses are buried in the fine print. .I'm 63, married, and recently earned about ,000 a year until I got laid off in March. My wife is younger but only receives a small income from providing part-time day care services. We don't have any savings. I'm not receiving any Social Security now. Can I receive Social Security benefits and get unemployment benefits? .Policy experts question how patients will make up postponed care (some services can't be made up) and the degree to which delays in getting care will have adverse health consequences. Both of these concerns suggest that another type of surge for hospitals—the aftermath of postponed care — may be coming next. Cutting hospital reimbursements now could potentially limit access to care when Medicare beneficiaries need it the most. .Look, nobody gets wealthy off of Social Security. It's a subsistence level program. .This week, President Obama released his fiscal 2015 budget blueprint. In addition, The Senior Citizens League's (TSCL's) Board of Trustees traveled to Capitol Hill to meet with four lawmakers and their top aides, and TSCL saw . .SSA Rescinds New Online Security Policy .A few weeks after a 90-year old woman was moved into an assisted living facility, her daughter was surprised to be told that her mother was a good candidate for hospice. The move to assisted living was only intended for help with her mother's daily care, and her. Another Banner Year For Medicare Fraud? , editor .To learn more about your enrollment deadlines for Medicare visit www.Medicare.gov. .This week, one new cosponsor – Rep. Elijah Cummings (MD-7) – signed on to the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E) Act (H.R. 1030), bringing the bill's total up to twenty-five. If signed into law, the CPI-E Act would base the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) upon the spending patterns of seniors. Currently, it is based upon the way that young, urban workers spend their money – a method that underestimates the spending inflation that seniors experience. A study conducted by TSCL this year found that seniors have lost 31 percent of their purchasing power since 2000 – a clear sign that the current COLA is growing too slowly.