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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently announced that the standard Medicare Part B premium will be 8.50 in 2021, an increase of .90 per month from 4.60 in 2020. That increase, which I earlier feared would be considerably more, was restricted by legislation enacted last fall. But even with legislation to keep the Medicare Part B flat, the Part B premium still went up 2.6% over 2020, twice as much as the annual cost-of-living adjustment. This trend of Medicare costs increasing several times faster than Social Security benefits creates chronic headaches for retirees, as the Medicare Part B premium consumes a growing share of Social Security benefits.."Should Social Security's Cost-of Living Adjustment Be Changed?" National Academy of Social Insurance, April 2011..CMS Leader Confirmed by Senate.Do you suspect someone of committing disability fraud? Learn how to report fraud online at the Social Security Administration's Office of the Inspector General or call or write the Fraud Hotline..Medicare's extraordinarily high reimbursement rates for durable medical equipment like back braces and power wheel chairs have made it a particularly lucrative target for crooks and abuse billing practices. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently reported that an astonishing 66% of all durable medical equipment claims were improperly paid in the government's fiscal year 2012, costing Medicare more than billion..Social Security's combined Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance Trust Funds will be fully funded until 2035 one year later than was projected in last year's report. At that point, if nothing is done by Congress, Social Security would still have the funds to pay out 80 percent of scheduled benefits using tax revenues alone. The Trustees also estimated that Medicare's Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will be fully funded until 2026, at which point the program would still be able to pay out almost 90 percent of scheduled benefits using tax revenues..H.R. 2787, CPI for Seniors Act If adopted, H.R. 2787 would mandate the monthly formulation and publication of a consumer price index specifically for senior citizens for the purpose of establishing an accurate Social Security COLA for beneficiaries..The House of Representatives returned to work this week after the traditional August recess. The Senate, however, does not come back until next week..For more.H.R. 1553, Fair COLA for Seniors Act If adopted, H.R. 1553 would base annual Social Security cost-of-living adjustments on the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers.