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Increase Social Security's minimum benefit so that workers who pay into Social Security for 30 years can retire at 62 or later and have benefits above the federal poverty line.."The 6.7 percent increase in the Part B premium is the largest since 2006 for a year in which a COLA is payable," Johnson says. There have been bigger jumps in Part B premiums as recently as 2016 and 2017, but those were two years in which there was no or almost no COLA paid. This situation can cause unusually high Part B premium spikes..Investigate national and community charitable programs and organizations. An excellent guide to Prescription Drug Assistance Programs is available from The American Cancer Society. Even if you don't have cancer, the information is pertinent to all drug assistance programs. For more information call or download the publication..Abusive high interest rates offered to high-risk borrowers who are most likely to default. Does the lender suggest a loan because of "bad credit or no credit?" To qualify for the lowest loan costs, borrowers earn low interest rates with good credit histories. Stay clear of dealers and lenders who promise to put you behind the wheel regardless of your credit..If you have not been offered affordable insurance through your employer, you are not receiving Medicare, and you purchase your own health insurance coverage, you may be among those who have the most to gain from shopping for health insurance on the new health insurance exchanges. Depending on your income, you may be eligible for new premium subsides that would cover part of the cost of your health insurance premiums. The exchanges are now open for comparing health insurance coverage that becomes effective January 1, 2014.."When we raise prices, they mess with people's ability to make good decisions about their health," said Ziad Obermeyer, co-author of the study and associate professor of health policy and management at the University of California at Berkeley. "Those decisions lead to more people dying - health costs need to be priced into these cost-sharing policies.".But she worries how she will manage another year with no net increase in her benefits. "This isn't right," she says. "Congress isn't looking out for the interests of seniors," she adds. "I'm going farther and farther into poverty.".Neighborhood, and safety concerns. Does your friend still feel safe living alone? Are there suspicious strangers stopping by asking for jobs like yard work or repaving her driveway? People who live alone are frequent targets of scam and thieves..Even though the rate of inflation is dropping, a proposal that would switch to a more slowly-growing CPI to calculate COLA continues to be pushed by proponents on both sides. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the "chained" CPI would reduce the federal budget deficit by more than 0 billion in the first ten years. It would do so by cutting the growth in a host of federal benefit programs, including military retirement in addition to Social Security, as well as increasing revenues if used to index the tax code.