Those people include Barbara B. - a retired home healthcare aide who lives in the Indianapolis area. "We're due for the increase," she says. But rising Part B premiums will likely take her entire COLA, leaving her with no increase at all in her net operating Social Security benefit again in 2018.."Hearing On The Effects Of COVID-19 On Social Security," Testimony of Stephen C. Goss, Chief Actuary, Social Security Administration, House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security, July 17, 2020. "Biden Has Promised To Reform Social Security - Some Changes Could Come As Soon As This Year," Lorie Konish, CNBC, January 23, 2021..The COLA is intended to protect the purchasing power of the benefits received by older and disabled Americans. A 30 percent loss in buying power over a 20 - year retirement period indicates the COLA is failing to provide that protection. The Social Security COLA, as currently calculated, is a poor match to the price changes actually experienced by the people it is intended to protect..This occurred all over the U.S. at the very same time that food prices exploded. On December 21, 2020 the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, for example, announced that as of January of this year, 75,079 SNAP households would see an average reduction of in monthly benefits due primarily to the COLA. Another 118 SNAP cases would close, as increased income pushes those households over the eligibility limit..Medicare Advantage enrollees have certain protections under a declared emergency. During the period of the declared emergency, Medicare Advantage plans are required to cover services at out-of-network facilities, or out-of-network providers that participate in Medicare, and charge no more than they would pay if they had received care at an in-network facility or provider. That said, it's much less clear how billing from out-of-network providers will be handled as declared state and national emergencies are lifted. As COVID-19 cases have increased, some states have found the need to bring in emergency nursing and professional staff when hospitals have reached capacity, so the chance is higher that an out-of-network provider was involved in your father's care..Given the importance, changes to Social Security should ideally be made only after a full and open debate, separate from the debt limit negotiations. Any changes should be kept as small as possible and phased in over the longest possible period, and they should not affect people who are currently over 50 years of age..While Part D costs are not capped, there is a "catastrophic level" of coverage that kicks in once Part D enrollees spend ,000 of their own money out-of-pocket. Five thousand dollars is just the threshold in 201That threshold is forecast to rise to more than ,000 per year in just eight years. Even worse, the ,000 threshold is just for your covered drugs under Part D. It does not include other out-of-pocket spending for Medicare, such drugs you may receive through Medicare Part B, and all other out-of-pocket costs..This week, Congressman John Garamendi introduced legislation that would base Social Security cost-of-living adjustments on a more accurate measure of inflation. In addition, The Senior Citizens League announced its support for a bill that would make the Social Security program more equitable for public servants..There's power in numbers. If you're concerned about your Social Security benefits, share this information with others and encourage them to visit the TSCL website to learn more. To learn how much COLA cuts might cost you, try the TSCL Chained COLA calculator.
