That's changing this year due to new Medicare rules that require suppliers to engage in competitive bidding to supply seniors with this equipment. A two-year pilot of competitive bidding in nine cities succeeded in lowering Medicare's durable medical equipment costs by a third. Lower costs for Medicare should also mean lower co-pays for seniors..A Kaiser Family Foundation study has found that ten percent of prescription drugs make up the majority of Medicare drug spending..Month after month, year after year, unbeknownst to most of the public, thousands of people with no Social Security number are receiving Social Security benefits. The beneficiaries don't qualify for benefits based on their own work record. Eighty-three percent of them don't even reside in this country. A few of those receiving benefits are even dead.."Social Security: What Would Happen If The Trust Funds Ran Out?" Christine Scott, Congressional Research Service, August 2, 201Debt Limit Analysis, Bipartisan Policy Center, July 2011..The Republican platform assures current beneficiaries and those nearing retirement that their benefits will remain untouched, and that all changes to the program will aim to preserve the solvency of the Social Security trust funds. It explicitly states that all plans to increase tax revenues like the increase in the payroll tax cap that the Democrats proposed will not be supported. It states, "As Republicans, we oppose tax increases and believe in the power of markets to create wealth and to help secure the future of our Social Security system.".President Obama and House leadership are discussing support of a more "limited approach" to immigration reform. Under discussion is a plan to grant illegal immigrants limited legal status by providing the right to work in the U.S., but not citizenship..Open enrollment for the exchanges begins October 1, 2013 for coverage starting January 1, 201To learn more, visit the new website. To get an idea about whether you qualify for a government subsidy visit the Kaiser Family Foundation's Subsidy Calculator..Medically necessary home remodeling. This can include ramps, making doors and hallways wider, adjusting electrical outlets, even grading exterior landscape to provide access to the house..Extra Help pays for your Part D plan premium, up to a specific amount, based on your state.
