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TSCL will keep a close eye on the negotiations as they evolve in the coming weeks, and we will encourage lawmakers to avoid another government shutdown. For updates, visit the Legislative News section of our website, or our new account on Twitter..Sleep: Deep sleep helps the brain store and retain new facts and information. But the structural changes to our brain as we age interferes with the quality of our sleep. That in turn reduces our ability to store memories for the long term. To improve focus and memory, get better sleep. That's not always easy for people 65 and over, and there may be times when you need to speak to a doctor. The nonprofit Helpguide.org has tips on how to sleep better as we age..On Wednesday, the Social Security and Medicare Trustees released their annual reports on the financial outlook of both programs. As expected, they found that Social Security and Medicare are experiencing long-term financing shortfalls. Social Security's combined trust funds are expected to be depleted in 2034, which remains unchanged from last year's report. Medicare's Hospital Insurance trust fund is expected to be depleted in 2028 two years earlier than the trustees projected last year..Your earnings from work will reduce your benefits if you are under your full retirement age and the earnings are more than the annual limit. The age at which people become eligible for full retirement benefits has been gradually rising. The full retirement age for people born from 1943 through 1954 is 66..Consumer price index data show that the rate of inflation has changed significantly over the past decade, and has yet to return to the average rate during the decade prior to the 2010 Great Recession. From 1999 to 2008, COLAs averaged 3%. Since 2010, however, the COLA, which is tied to the increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, has averaged just 1.4%. Since that year, inflation has been so low that there was no COLA payable three times - in 2010, 2011, and 201In 2017, inflation was almost zero at just 0.3 percentage point. This is not normal, and research on the costs experienced by older Americans indicates the COLA often doesn't reflect inflation that retirees actually experience..I have absolutely NO idea what I did with the car keys..If signed into law, the Improving Care for Vulnerable Older Citizens through Workforce Advancement Act would create six different demonstration projects that focus on the coordination of care and the delivery of medical services to elderly patients with chronic illnesses. The projects would design and test new models of care coordination, and direct-care workers would be granted opportunities to advance their careers through additional training, increased compensation, and expanded roles..Fresh is not always more healthful than frozen. From the moment fruits and vegetables are harvested, they begin to lose nutrients. Fruits and vegetables grown in North America may spend up to 5 days in transit before arriving at a distribution center, and another 1-3 days on display prior to purchase. Consumers may keep their produce for up to 7 days prior to consumption. Consequently, fresh produce can lose a considerable amount of nutrients before consumption. A University of California study found, for example, that vitamin C losses in vegetables stored 7 days range from 15% for green peas, to 77% for green beans. Unless you are harvesting and consuming your own home grown fruits and vegetables within a few hours of picking, frozen choices may be just as high in nutrients..The study examined the increase in costs of 32 key items between 2000 and January 201The items were chosen because they are typical of the costs seniors must bear. Of the 32 costs analyzed, 20 exceeded the COLA. The selected items represent eight categories, weighted by approximate expenditure.