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Medicare Part B premiums are expected to stay at 4 per month in 2018, leaving people like Barbara facing a big premium increase. The 4 premium is per month more than she paid this year, and more than what Barbara expects to get from her COLA in 201That means her Part B premium will be adjusted again to prevent reduction in her benefits. As much as that protection is appreciated, Barbara is frustrated about high Medicare premium costs after years of low or no COLA growth. "It's been 36 months since I've had any raise in my net operating Social Security, but my actual household costs continue to go up," Barbara says. "This isn't fair to retirees," she adds..TSCL's opposition to any Payroll tax cut stems in part from previous comments from some Congressional leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell In the past he has said:.Social Security's finances depend largely on payroll taxes, tying the strength of Social Security to the strength of the U.S. economy. The U.S. unemployment rate was more than 13.3% through May. That was worse than the 2009 Great Recession, when the unemployment rate reached a peak of 10.6% in January 20With 20.5 million people out of work, combined with a higher number of new claims for benefits as older unemployed workers turn to Social Security, there will be a significant impact on the finances of the Social Security Trust Funds. The degree of the impact depends on how long it takes to get our economy safely up and running again..The new analysis by Johnson compared the growth of retiree benefits from 2009 through 2020 to learn how much more in income retirees would receive if COLAs had grown by a more typical rate of 3 percent. The analysis found that an "average" retiree benefit of ,075 per month in 2009 has grown to ,249 in 2020 but, if COLAs had averaged 3 percent, that benefit would be 7 per month higher today, and those individuals would have received ,227.40 more in Social Security income over the 2010 to 2020 period..their coverage, losing all of the money they paid.."Auxiliary Beneficiaries Who Do Not Have Their Own Social Security Number," Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General, September 2014, A-01-14-14036..The coronavirus has caused a dramatic decline in home mortgage rates, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a good time for everyone to refinance. The good news is that, in many areas of the country, lenders and states are making the process safer for your physical health. That said, refinancing in retirement is still a process that carries risk to your fiscal health..CMS plans to automatically enroll the seniors in participating states with an "opt-out" provision. But TSCL has concerns as to whether beneficiaries will be able to choose the best form of care and how they would be able to switch plans or return to traditional Medicare..This week, President Obama sent his fiscal 2016 budget blueprint to Congress, and The Senior Citizens League saw one new cosponsor sign on to the Notch Fairness Act.