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Burwell Confirmed as HHS Secretary."At the same time Social Security payroll taxes have taken a huge hit due to tens of millions of people out of work, claims for Social Security will grow faster in 2020 than anticipated, as older adults lose their jobs," says Johnson. Before the start of the coronavirus recession, many older workers may have delayed claiming Social Security to allow their benefits to grow. "But those who lose their jobs may have to go ahead and claim Social Security benefits now because they can't afford to wait - especially if their retirement accounts have gone down significantly in value as well," Johnson says.."But there's still time for Congress to pass legislation to provide an emergency COLA," says Cates. TSCL strongly supports legislation that would provide 70 million Americans with a one-time emergency COLA payment of 3.9%. The Seniors and Veterans Emergency Benefits Act was introduced last fall by Senator Elizabeth Warren, and a companion bill was introduced in the House by Representative Tammy Duckworth..The number of people who rely on Social Security for 90% or more of their income is growing. In 1976 one in four Social Security recipients relied on Social Security for most of their income, today one in three do. "Those who do rely on Social Security for most, or all, of their income are living very close to the poverty level," Cates says. The average Social Security benefit in 2014 was only ,304 for the year. That's just 18% above the U.S. poverty level - ,670 for a household of one..Social Security beneficiaries have lost nearly one-third of their buying power since 2000, according to the 2017 Social Security Loss of Buying Power Study released by The Senior Citizens League. The findings represent a big 7% loss in buying power just over the past 12 months, from 23% in 2016 to 30% in 201This occurred as inflation has begun to climb, but people receiving Social Security received an annual cost-of-living adjustment of just 0.3% for 201Housing and medical costs - particularly for prescription drug expenses - were among the most rapidly rising spending categories over the past year..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.".The Senior Citizens League is working for enactment of legislative measures that would lower prescription drug costs. To learn how to get involved, visit..We've heard stories about cutting back on prescriptions over the years, but recently I heard one about a diabetic who was forced to cut back on the amount of insulin that she needed to control blood sugar. She was going into debt to buy Lantus insulin. Cutting back, and not taking the recommended dosage to control her blood sugar, triggered severe nerve pain and sent the woman back to her doctor..Once the Social Security reform trigger has been pulled, the House budget resolution stipulates that the Trustees would have until September 30th of the same calendar year to submit recommendations for the changes necessary to achieve a positive 75-year balance to the President. The resolution would then require the President to submit legislation to Congress within 60 days of receiving the Trustees' recommendations. President Trump promised repeatedly on the campaign trail not to touch Social Security.