With no increase in Social Security benefits over the past two.–A majority of older voters think Social Security should be strengthened, but are opposed to cutting benefits, says a national survey by The Senior Citizens League. The new national survey found that older voters favor some changes that provide the program with more revenue, and provide retirees with modestly higher benefits in the future. According to TSCL's 2016 Senior Survey, 71 percent of older voters think Social Security should be expanded to provide modestly higher retirement benefits and more fair cost of living adjustments. An analysis for TSCL estimates that if COLAs were indexed using a "senior" consumer price index - the government's Consumer Price Index for the Elderly - Social Security recipients would receive a 1.3 percent increase instead of an estimated 0.2 percent COLA in 2017.."Like health care legislation to repeal and replace Obamacare, Social Security and Medicare reform proposals could become the center of a nasty political tug-of-war," Johnson says. TSCL works to protect retirement security and to promote better adequacy of both Social Security and Medicare benefits. To learn more, visit..Medicare Part B premiums are getting set to make one of the biggest jumps in 14 years, according to new analysis from The Senior Citizens League. While the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment will increase benefits by 1.6 percent in 2020, Medicare Part B premiums are climbing by 6.7 percent, "more than four times faster than the COLA," says Medicare and Social Security policy analyst, Mary Johnson..Is Congress Getting A Paycheck This Year?.Was your surgery for an inpatient or outpatient procedure? Even when you spend one or more nights in the hospital, that doesn't automatically make you an inpatient. Ask your hospital or facility's billing department. Whether the service is provided as an inpatient or outpatient is important, because it will be billed differently. If your elective surgery was an outpatient procedure and your anesthesiologist billed it as an inpatient service, or vice versa, then Medicare or your health plan may reject the bill. If an error was made, ask your anesthesiologist to correct the bill and resubmit it..This week, the House Ways and Means Committee held a four-day markup to work on comprehensive tax reform legislation called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The bill, which was released by Republican leaders in the House last Thursday, would consolidate the existing individual tax brackets from seven to four, double the standard deduction for taxpayers, permanently reduce the corporate tax rate, cap home mortgage interest deductions, and limit deductions for state and local taxes, among many other things..According to Rep. Valadao, approximately 13 million Americans experienced some form of identity theft in 2014, resulting in a loss of billion. Upon introducing it, he said: "The fact that this crime affects children, seniors, and veterans makes it even more imperative that the federal government does everything in its power to prevent identity theft.".Even if Congress is not able to pass all the funding bills by the end of the fiscal year on September 30, we doubt there will be a government shutdown. It is most likely they will pass as many "continuing resolutions" as they need, as they have done in the past, to avoid a shutdown.

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But the promise of Medicare is in jeopardy today because some in Washington have misguided priorities. A proposal put forth by Congressman Paul Ryan that I was proud to vote against earlier this year, would end the Medicare guarantee by turning the traditional program into a handout for private insurance companies..TSCL's Senior Survey also asks questions to learn how seniors think Congress should reduce the deficit. Should Congress focus on policies that create jobs, spending cuts, revenue increases, or a combination of approaches? Major reductions to Social Security benefits and proposals to make seniors pay a bigger share of their Medicare costs form the basis of the most widely - debated deficit reduction plans. "Experts in the know say it's not a matter of 'if' Medicare and Social Security will undergo major changes, but 'when'," Hyland notes. "But seniors' answers are important because older voters could decide the next election," Hyland says. TSCL will be sharing results of the 2012 Senior Survey in meetings with Members of Congress..No: 70% … Continued

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TSCL is working with Members of Congress for enactment of legislation in both the House and Senate that would require Medicare to negotiate drug prices on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries. Recently TSCL launched a nationwide grassroots effort to urging Americans to contact Members of Congress to protest how big drug companies are getting away with steep prices on drugs, and to urge them to enact legislation that would make Medicare responsible for negotiating drug prices. Join the effort, sign our petition!.At the Social Security Subcommittee's hearing, the focus was also on three specific proposals: cutting the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment by adopting the "chained" Consumer Price Index, raising the eligibility age, and increasing the cap on income subject to the payroll tax. Support for each proposal was mixed, and while experts on the panel spoke with a sense of urgency, no real consensus was evident among Members of the Subcommittee..In the weeks ahead, TSCL will continue to monitor the health reform discussions in the Senate and we will post updates here in the Legislative News section of our website. In the meantime, we encourage our members and supporters to contact those in the Senate who voted against the "skinny repeal" bill to express their gratitude. Senators Collins, Murkowski, and McCain took a stand against legislation that would have jeopardized the health and financial security of millions of older Americans, and TSCL appreciates their leadership on this important issue. For contact information, click HERE. … Continued

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