Early in the summer, I spent an afternoon at one of two critical access hospitals in my district in Southeastern Ohio. It's a hospital with just 25 beds and an Emergency Department no larger than many families' kitchens. Still, every year the doctors and nurses there care for more than 2,000 inpatients and treat an astonishing 50,000 outpatients..July 15, 2011 The most likely deficit reduction proposals are also the most harmful to the nation's elderly, according to The Senior Citizens League, one of the nation's largest nonpartisan senior citizens advocacy groups. However, a few alternatives exist that would reduce the budget in less painful ways..Now, as we draw close to the end of the year, the window for Congress to take major action to lower prescription drug prices is beginning to close. Concern is growing that the prospects of a substantial drug price reduction bill may get lost in the politics surrounding the 2020 election. Legislation that would allow Medicare to negotiate the cost of prescription drugs is in the House, and a bipartisan bill that would cap out-of-pocket Part D costs at ,100 a year is stalled in the Senate. The whole effort is fiercely being fought by the pharmaceutical industry, and the outcome remains unclear..Why is it so Hard to Lower Prescription Drug Prices?.Nonetheless, TSCL will keep a close eye on the bill's movement in the coming weeks, since it could have a significant impact on the Social Security and Medicare programs. For updates, visit the Legislative News section of our website..A push in the House to give legal status to illegal immigrants is reviving some movement toward immigration legislation this year. But the effort is running into outspoken opposition, including that from TSCL's grass roots senior members and supporters. At issue is whether undocumented immigrants, who have used fraudulent Social Security numbers to get jobs, would be allowed to claim Social Security payments based on earnings under those numbers..Seniors like your husband who are 65 and older, and enrolled in Medicare, are not affected by the new health insurance coverage requirements that become effective January 1, 201But big changes are coming to health insurance coverage for about 62 million seniors age 50 through 64 who are not yet enrolled in Medicare..The .5 billion for VA health care improvements will now be paid for with savings elsewhere in the budget. However, one Democratic aide said the funds used to pay for the program were gimmicks that do not harm spending in vital programs..I have proudly introduced this important legislation every single Congress since coming to the House of Representatives in 201Despite having over 100 bipartisan cosponsors each Congress, the bill has unfortunately received little attention from House leadership. In September 2018, myself and my colleague, Rep. Garret Graves offered this bill as an amendment to the Family Savings Act, which was part of Rep. Kevin Brady's "Tax 2.0" package. Unfortunately, the amendment was ultimately defeated, but highlighting this important issue. It continues to be my priority.
