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This time, with large numbers of hospitals straining to care for COVID-19 patients, cutting payments to hospitals and increasing revenues is likely to be far more difficult. Hospitals across the country say they have been pushed to their financial limit. And simply raising payroll tax rates may not provide enough of a revenue in the short term if unemployment remains at high levels longer than anticipated. Payroll taxes cannot be collected from workers who are unemployed..It also seems to be a more severe flu strain than the seasonal flu which means more people require greater medical care. For most people this flu is survivable but without the extra medical care that someone might normally need they may succumb to it..Since you were born in 1954, however, you qualify to use a "restricted application" strategy to maximize your benefits at full retirement age. Waiting just two more years could significantly boost lifetime Social Security income. People born after 1954 may no longer use this strategy, so consider this:.Currently, the DI trust fund is set to become depleted in late 2016, and legislative action will be needed to prevent a 25 percent cut in benefits for 11 million disabled beneficiaries. According to those at Wednesday's hearing, reallocating funds from the Old Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund is the simplest and least controversial way of solving the problem. However, TSCL disagrees since doing so would mean that the OASI trust fund would become depleted four years earlier than currently projected. In our most recent survey of members and supporters, only 1 percent said they support the reallocation of funds from the OASI trust fund to the DI trust fund..With it being such a contentious election year, Congress enacted legislation to limit that jump in Part B which could be made even worse because the COLAs of so many beneficiaries would not be high enough to cover the full amount of the increase..Some agree with the President's stimulative plans, however, many on Capitol Hill have aggressively opposed the extension. House Budget Chair Paul Ryan has been particularly outspoken about the tax holiday, referring to it as "sugar-high economics," and preferring instead a plan that includes comprehensive tax overhaul..According to a new survey by The Senior Citizens League, premiums for Medicare supplemental insurance, known as Medigap, grew more than twice as fast as Social Security cost of living -adjustments in the past year. About 41 percent of survey participants who are covered by a Medigap policy report robust premium increases in the past 12 months of at least 6 percent or more, particularly for individuals who were covered by a policy for more than two years. "The Social Security COLA for 2019 is 2.8 percent, far lower than the rate that Medigap policies appear to be growing," says Mary Johnson, a Social Security and Medicare policy analyst for The Senior Citizens League..Ask your doctor for free samples of the new prescription. While the supply may be limited, free samples help you and your doctor assess the effectiveness of a new medication. You will be able to learn how well you respond to the medication and whether you experience any severe side effects..House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement that the House would push for the deal to be included in a year-end legislative package. However, Senate leaders haven't signed off on the deal, according to a committee aide.