News

Publication: How Work Affects Your Benefits SSA Publication No. 05-10069.With no increase in Social Security benefits over the past two.New legislation before the House and Senate would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset so that public servants receive the Social Security benefits they have earned and deserve. Will you cosponsor the Social Security Fairness Act when you return to Washington on Monday?.The Bipartisan Policy Center points out in a recent blog, that each of these sources of revenues is negatively impacted by high unemployment. When people are out of work, no payroll taxes are withheld from earnings. A portion of Social Security benefits is taxable when a Social Security recipient has an income higher than ,000 or ,000 for a couple filing jointly. But the coronavirus recession has impacted both earnings from jobs and the value of retirement accounts, so that fewer retirees will meet the income thresholds that make their benefits taxable this year. Finally, the Federal Reserve has responded to the recession by cutting interest rates, which means that the yields on the bonds held by the Social Security Trust Funds are smaller and will provide lower interest income. A recession also causes a higher number of new claims when older workers are forced to retire earlier than planned, raising costs in the short term..One witness, Scott Serota, President and CEO of the BlueCross BlueShield Association, suggested a gradual shift from the current fee-for-service system toward a series of new payment models that would allow for geographic variability. Another witness, David Bronson, President of the American College of Physicians, suggested a patient-centered medical home model, where each patient would choose a physician with a specific team of caregivers. He explained that his model would result in better coordinated care for seniors..This estimate is still just that - an estimate. The 2020 COLA is based on CPI data through September 2019 and won't be announced until October. Inflation could start going up again, but with the first five months of data so low, we are likely to see another low COLA in 2020..partnership programs available in several states..Premiums for Medicare Part B, as well as premiums for either a Medigap and Part D plan, or a Medicare Advantage plan.."Sequester Savings on Senior Programs Would Add New Cost, Study Says," Kerry Young, CQ Roll Call. "Meals on Wheels Budget Cuts: 'Slowly Developing Crisis,'" Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Money, May 6, 2013.