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  • Will The Government Shut Down In 10 Days

    The fraudsters enlist unscrupulous doctors to approve the test and the doctor receives a kick back from the recruiting company for each prescription. Medicare receives a bill that can range from ,000 to ,000. Victims have later reported that they did not even know the doctor who prescribed the test. Law officials warn that health fairs, senior centers and even church events are magnets for the scam, where recruiters take cheek swabs for genetic testing and collect Medicare numbers. .If adopted, H.R. 1170 would strengthen and expand the Social Security program by providing beneficiaries with a monthly benefit boost, basing cost-of-living adjustments on the CPI-E, and setting the Special Minimum Benefit at 125 percent of the poverty line. It would also apply the payroll tax to all income – including investment income – over 0,000. .Call your local State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) and ask for free counseling from a Medicare counselor. You can find local contact info here: https://www.shiptacenter.org. Many of these programs operate through local agencies on aging or senior services departments. Counselors can help you over the phone from home. … Continued

  • Congressional Corner February March 2018

    Sources: "Home Is Where The Money Is For Medicare Advantage Plans," Fred Schulte, Center For Public Integrity, June 10, 201"Medicare Advantage 2016 Data Spotlight: Overview of Plan Changes," Kaiser Family Foundation, December 2012015 Medicare Trustees Report, July 22, 2015. .More than 50% of older households surveyed by the National Institute on Aging say that they have at least one adult child living within 10 miles. But retirement housing and care plans can go awry when an adult child needs to relocate — most often because of a job. .TSCL's Endorsement Sought for Social Security Bill … Continued

President Trump recently released a proposal that could change the way drugs are sold in the U.S. Patients have been forced to pay out-of-pocket costs based on the rising list price of drugs. The proposal would require that often-secretive discounts or rebates, received by pharmacy benefit managers from drug companies, would have to be credited at the pharmacy when a patient fills a prescription. For patients who need expensive drugs, out-of-pocket costs are likely to go down. .The judge's order stops the implementation of the rule until the completion of the notice and comment process. .Financial losses in real estate and retirement accounts of the Great Recession of 2008 have left today's retirees and Baby Boomers with far less home equity and assets to draw from in retirement, even though seniors are living longer. Retirements are spanning 25 and even thirty years, but today's seniors are going into retirement with little savings. A recent Harris poll found that 22 percent of retirees age 65 and older say they have none of their retirement savings left. These people are completely dependent on Social Security and other family members. .Low-income beneficiaries who receive Medicaid in addition to Medicare. State Medicaid programs pay the Part B premiums for people who qualify due to low income and resources. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, there are approximately 10 million dually - eligible beneficiaries representing about two-thirds of those who are not protected by hold harmless. .Now, the Associated Press has reported that one administration official has said the odds are 75-25 that the program will not happen at all. .The new low comes as COLAs have flat-lined over the past seven years, averaging just 1.2% — less than half the 3% average over the two decades prior to 20The long-term financial impact on anticipated retirement benefits is significant and growing, says TSCL's Executive Director, Shannon Benton. "People lose the effect of compounding when benefit raises are at these extreme lows," she explains. "That reduces the Social Security income that retirees may have been counting on over their retirement." .Eight Questions You Should Always Ask Your Doctor .The battle between spending cuts versus revenue increases continues to be the largest point of contention between the two sides. Democrats are pushing a one-to-one ratio, contending that Congress has already outlined enough spending cuts in the debt limit increase law. If the Super Committee cannot come to a compromise by the deadline, mandated across-the-board budget cuts will occur. .No change to 401(k)s or IRAs: Prior to enactment, concerns were high that tax reform would restrict the amount of pretax contributions working people could make to workplace retirement accounts. Congress did not do this, and the tax rules affecting these accounts, for the most part, remain the same.