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The Social Security Fairness Act, if signed into law, would amend the Social Security Act by repealing the government pension offset and the windfall elimination provision. TSCL believes that these two provisions unfairly reduce the earned Social Security benefits of millions of teachers, firefighters, peace officers, and other state or local government employees each year. We were pleased to see support grow for the Social Security Fairness Act this week..Retirement accounts allow your savings to grow tax-deferred, but the rules change when you turn age 70 ½. At 70 ½, traditional IRAs require the owner to take required minimum withdrawals and you can't contribute any more savings. But you can still continue to put money into other types of retirement accounts, including Roth IRAs and some types of 401s, as long as you have earnings from jobs..Roughly one - half of all retiree households report that a portion of their Social Security benefits are subject to taxation, according to recent survey results from The Senior Citizens League. "This is a tax that was estimated to affect just 10 percent of Social Security beneficiaries when it was first enacted in 1983," says Mary Johnson, a Social Security and Medicare policy analyst for The Senior Citizens League..The August recess is a tradition that dates back to the early days of our republic when there was no electricity and, therefore, no air conditioning. Washington was so hot and miserable in August that the members of Congress wanted to get out of town and go somewhere cooler. Even though the weather in Washington is still hot and miserable in August, the excuse to leave town is no longer valid because of air conditioning, of course..The decision can be abrupt and arbitrary. A home health worker tells you, "Your husband isn't getting any better, we've done all we can do, and now we can't continue services, because Medicare isn't going to pay for it.".Many seniors in our community struggle month to month to make ends meet on budgets that just can't cover today's high cost of living. Today's troubled economy is leaving the elderly in a financial pinch, particularly since a large majority of senior citizens rely on Social Security benefits as their main source of income..This is a problem that affects retirees enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans much more so than those who have Medigap supplemental coverage which allows enrollees to see any provider that accepts Medicare. To reduce the costs of care, and to keep premiums low for consumers, Medicare Advantage plans contract with doctors and hospitals to create networks. Cost is a predominant concern and, in the process, plans create networks that exclude higher cost providers..What to Do When Your Doctor Prescribes an Expensive Medication that Your Insurance Doesn't Cover.Congress made a big deal over "No Budget No Pay" earlier this year. But what happened since? Was a budget ever passed? Is Congress getting a paycheck this year?