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The Social Security Trust Fund is the single largest holder of U.S. debt. In the past, when more payroll taxes were received than required to pay benefits, the surplus was by law, used for other purposes. The federal government accounted for borrowing the funds by issuing I.O.Us from the U.S. Treasury to Social Security or Medicare Trust Funds. In recent years, the program's financing reversed and now both Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds are paying out more in benefits than money coming in. Both now rely on drawing down the interest and then the I.O.Us. But when the rest of the federal budget is in deficit, the government must borrow to pay Social Security and Medicare benefits. And according to a growing number of economists, those borrowing days are numbered..There was no Cost of Living Adjustment, or COLA, applied to Social Security benefits for 2011, and that may cause great concern for senior citizens and those who care for them. This will leave 54 million beneficiaries who receive a Social Security check each month without an increase..President Trump pledged that he would protect Social Security and Medicare when he ran for president in 201He has repeated that pledge several times since. But to advocate for a payroll tax cut that would bring both programs much closer to insolvency is not in keeping with his pledge.."And even then, half of the US population, at this point, is skeptical of even taking the vaccine," Osterholm said. "So, what we have right now is a major problem in messaging.".Unlike the rest of our tax system, which is progressive, meaning the lower the income, the lower the tax rate that people must pay - Social Security payroll taxes are regressive. The first dollar of earnings is taxed for Social Security, and all workers pay 6.2% tax on earnings - an amount that is matched by employers - but only on the first 8,500 in earnings. But because of the taxable maximum cap, the highest paid workers, like CEOs of major corporations who receive millions in wages and even Member of Congress, are pocketing a huge tax break, 6.2% of every dollar earned over 8,500..Also, we should be wearing masks outdoors as well as indoors at this time. While being indoors with others is far riskier, being outdoors is not risk free if you are with others you don't live with..Next week on January 24th the Senate Finance Committee will be holding a formal confirmation hearing to question Congressman Price. TSCL will be monitoring discussions about the ACA and the future of the Medicare program, and we will post a summary of the hearing here in the Legislation News section of our website..Three Programs That Help Seniors With Medicare Costs.In 2015, the monthly Medicare Part B premium for people with incomes less than ,000 was 4.90. When the Social Security Administration announced that there would be no COLA in 2016, Barbara - like 70 percent of all other Social Security recipients - was protected from reductions in her Social Security benefits by a provision of law known as "hold harmless." Barbara's Medicare Part B premium stayed the same, at 4.90, even though Medicare Part B premiums that year rose to 1.80 for people like new enrollees who were not protected by hold harmless.

Heal When Counting Sheep Doesnt Work
Second, the Social Security Fairness Act of 2017 gained one new cosponsor in Senator Tina Smith, bringing the cosponsor total to twenty-two. If signed into law, S. 915 would repeal the Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision two Social Security provisions that cut the earned benefits of millions of teachers, police officers, and other public servants each year..But the transitional formula failed, and in most cases, the new benefit formula abruptly kicked in. Extreme inflation that climbed to 14.3% in 1980 magnified the disparities. When the benefits are illustrated on a bar graph, they show a deep "V" Notch..The OIG did not estimate the amount that the 11,179 collected in benefits in 2014, no doubt because privacy laws prevent the Social Security Administration from sharing that information. TSCL's Social Security policy analyst and Advisor editor Mary Johnson, however, estimates that this group of auxiliary beneficiaries may have received more than 5 million in benefits in 2014, based on current Social Security statistical data. TSCL agrees with the OIG, and believes that with Social Security in deficit, the Social Security Administration must do more to prevent improper payments. … Continued

Medicaid Fact Sheet Analysis Of Recent Declines In Medicaid And Chip Enrollment
It's important for people planning retirement to learn the age in which you would "break even" for taking benefits earlier than age 70 - which is helpful in determining your optimal age to retire - and how much more you would get if you worked a few more years..Food: The cost of food has been rising faster in recent years and food prices have easily outpaced overall inflation for many other types of goods. Among other senior spending categories, only prices for oil-based products and medical care have risen faster than food prices. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that meat prices, particularly beef and veal, are at record highs, and the USDA expects high prices for beef products through 201Poultry prices remain high but are falling. Try new recipes and plan menus. Use lower–cost cuts of meat and poultry and stretch your servings using less expensive sources of protein like beans, tofu, and high protein whole grains. Four chicken leg quarters that sell for under .49 per pound, for example, can yield 12 - one cup servings of home made chicken and whole grain rice soup, especially good made with white soup beans and fresh chopped mustard greens or endive. Freeze the extra and share with homebound friends..On Monday, the Social Security and Medicare Trustees reported on the financial standing of both programs. According to the six Trustees, Social Security and Medicare are worse off than they were just one year ago. Social Security's combined OASDI Trust Funds will reach exhaustion in 2033, three years earlier than last year's report projected. Medicare's Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will face insolvency in 2024, the same date that was projected last year. However, the program's actual costs are expected to exceed estimates since the Trustees could not account for the costly "doc fix," which Congress will likely vote for at the end of this year. … Continued