Health reform issue brief coverage implications of policies to lower the age of medicare eligibility

A new study has found that it is more than prices that are high when it comes to so many prescription drugs. According to Modern Healthcare newsletter, "A .40 increase in out-of-pocket costs per prescription was associated with a 22.6% drop in consumption and a 32.7% increase in monthly mortality rates, an analysis of more than 358,000 relatively healthy 65-year-old Medicare beneficiaries found.".Your employer has more than 20 employees..A controversial "Medicare" tax on net investment income that was signed into law shortly after passage of the 2010 Affordable Care Act is expected to once again come under debate according to The Senior Citizens League. "During the battle over The Affordable Care Act, a new source of funding - a 3.8% Medicare Net Investment tax was enacted - presumably as means to strengthen Medicare funding," says Mary Johnson, a Medicare policy analyst for The Senior Citizens League. "But the truth is those revenues, which the Joint Committee on Taxation estimates to be .5 billion for 2021, never actually made it into the Medicare Part A Trust Fund," she says.".A government shut down, while causing some problems, isn't as bad as breaching the debt ceiling. That's known as a "technical default," as some government obligations won't be met on time depending on how long the stalemate lasts. The Treasury Department would have to rely on whatever cash is left on hand and daily revenue inflows..CBO Scores BCRA, Leaders Postpone Vote.By Representative Josh Gottheimer.It also depends on the willingness of the American people to get the vaccine shot. Right now, there seems to be a reluctance among people because of, among other things, the uncertainty about the safety of a vaccine that has been rushed to market. It is a special concern for seniors because they do not often respond as well to medicines, including vaccines, as younger people do..Medicare's annual Part D Open Enrollment. Case in point: My client had.Such a minimum guarantee would go a long way to protect beneficiaries in years when there is no COLA. Had such a 3% minimum COLA guarantee been in effect since 2009, the average benefit of ,075 in 2009 would be 5 per month/ ,580 year higher today - about 18%. A minimum COLA would also eliminate the problem of benefits remaining flat for years, at a time during periods when Medicare Part B premiums increase more than the COLA raises benefits.

Redistricting Redistricting Technology What To Think About As The Next Cycle Approaches
According to STATnews, "Amid intensifying anger over the rising cost of medicines, a key piece of data has been missing from the debate - the actual prices after accounting for rebates and discounts offered by drug makers to payers. Now, a new analysis has come up with some numbers and the results are illuminating: Over a recent 11-year period, net prices for hundreds of drugs rose 60%, which was 3.5 times the inflation rate..On Wednesday and Thursday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a two-part hearing to address bipartisan concerns about stabilizing the ACA's individual market, which insures around 18 million Americans many of whom are young retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare. In his opening statement, Chairman Lamar Alexander said he believes the best way to stabilize the marketplace, decrease premiums, and make certain that health insurance is available in every county would be to continue cost sharing reduction payments and increase the Section 1332 state waiver program..The members of Congress still cling to that particular tradition even though by the time they come back to town in September they have less than a month to complete their work to fund the federal government for the new fiscal year which begins October If they were able to get their work done on time like they used to the August recess would make more sense. … Continued

Redistricting Census And Redistricting Profiles
12 Ways Seniors Would Get Less, Pay More.[v] Social Security Administration email, February 24, 2013..In late December of last year, the federal government reluctantly turned over to TSCL the first public copy of the controversial Totalization Agreement with Mexico after TSCL was forced to file two federal lawsuits under the Freedom of Information Act to gain access to the documents. The agreement has not yet been signed by the President or sent to Congress for final review. … Continued

News