Health Reform Perspective After Five Years Public Opinion On Health Law Remains DividedMedicare has begun a major program change that affects diabetics who get supplies home delivered and other seniors who rent medical equipment like home oxygen gear and wheel chairs. The program is intended to help seniors save money when they buy supplies and rent equipment, but TSCL believes it is more likely to first cause confusion and surprise unanticipated costs until patients figure out the new system..Women who receive Social Security benefits outnumber men who do by almost 18%, according to data from the Social Security Administration. While women tend to outlive men, the average benefit received by women is 26% lower than the average benefit received by men..H.R. 1030 has been referred to various committees including the House Ways and Means Committee for further consideration. In an effort to be of all possible assistance to you, I have taken the liberty of sharing your support for this legislation with my colleagues on the committee. As they continue to review the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers Act, you can be sure they will keep your views in mind. … Continued
For Medical Professionals Library Services Library Outreach ServicesCOLAs became automatic with the one that became payable on July 1, 1975 and continued to average 8.7% annually from 1975 through 198Then the bottom seemed to fall out. From 1983 through 2009 COLAs averaged 3.1%. From 2010 to Do you see a pattern here? I do. We may never know the full details, but what we do know is that our government economists at the Bureau of Labor Statistics changed the way they measured price changes. The Consumer Price Index Handbook of the Bureau of Labor Statistics contains an extensive list of ongoing changes to their methodology in measuring price change. Since the 1980s the BLS has implemented 30 changes, and many of those changes reduce the measured rate of inflation. That in turn means slower growth in Social Security benefits over time..Lawmakers Reach Deal to Avert Fiscal Cliff.While restricting a potential Part B spike in any given year is good news for beneficiaries, the problem itself isn't going away any time soon. "Unless Congress acts to boost Social Security benefits and finds a better way to adjust benefits for growing Medicare costs, this problem will continue occur with greater frequently in the future," says Johnson. "This approach of imposing future premium repayments doesn't fix the problem - it's like a payday loan. It just makes the premiums grow faster later, and the problem is triggered again the next time when COLAs are extremely low," Johnson says. The Senior Citizens League is working to get legislation introduced that would provide an emergency COLA of 3 percent in 202To learn more, visit. … Continued
