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This week, House lawmakers remained in their home districts for the final week of the August recess. Meanwhile, The Senior Citizens League saw support grow for one key bill that would increase competition in the pharmaceutical industry and improve access to affordable prescription drugs..In recent years a growing number of Medicare beneficiaries are entering hospitals for observation care rather than as inpatients. The number rose 69% in five years according to the most recent national statistics, but over the same period Medicare hospital admissions have declined..To qualify for a divorced spouse survivor's benefit, you must have been married to your ex-spouse for at least 10 years, and you did not remarry until you were past the age of 60. After age 60, your remarriage does not affect eligibility for ex-spouse survivor's benefits. Any benefit that you receive would not affect the benefit for other survivors who are receiving benefits based on the record of your ex-spouse..In counting out-of-pocket spending, Medicare does not include the cost of monthly Part D premiums or the cost of any drugs that aren't listed on your drug plan's formulary. And, even after hitting ,350, out-of-pocket spending would not end there, because Part D has no annual out-of-pocket maximum. The TrOOP cost is the amount you must spend before you qualify for the catastrophic stage of Part D coverage, when Medicare steps in and co-insurance goes down. But you still are required to pay a minimum of .60 for generic drugs or a 5% coinsurance for brand drugs..There were certain federal health programs set to expire at the end of May, but the expiration date was extended to Nov. 30 in one of the recently passed bills to deal with the coronavirus situation..Since that conversation inflation for certain items has jumped. In fact consumer price data indicate that the COLA for next year may be the highest since 2019, if the trends continue. My estimates about the COLA are based on the most current available data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, for what it's worth..TSCL continues to work for the passage of Notch Reform legislation. Recently Representative Jo Ann Emerson, a stalwart Notch Reform advocate, re-introduced the Notch Baby Act of 201The legislation would provide additional benefit increases for Notch Baby beneficiaries who first became eligible for benefits, at age 62, from 1979 through 1988..Perhaps the most ambitious effort on behalf of the Obama administration to fight Medicare fraud, abuse, and wasteful spending is the Medicare Shared Savings Program. The program will use networks of doctors, hospitals and other healthcare providers that form a partnership to provide increased accountability toward savings. MSSP is administered by CMS and will aim to bring together in partnerships up to 270 physicians, specialists, hospitals, and long-term care facilities across the country to participate in the program. If effective, the program will reduce healthcare costs by eliminating wasteful and inefficient practices that could save Medicare an estimated 0 million over the next four years..Last month the Trump administration reported that a future COVID-19 vaccine would be free for nearly all Americans, except for seniors with traditional Medicare coverage.