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What can I do?.This issue has just popped up and TSCL will be in contact with members of Congress to do all we can to prevent these looming cuts and we will keep you advised as to how things are going..Burwell Confirmed as HHS Secretary.Reducing the taxation of Social Security benefits by increasing the income thresholds that subject Social Security benefits, from ,000 for single filers and ,000 for joint returns, to ,000 and 0,000 respectively..Date Posted: January 2011.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..Independent financial planners (who don't sell long term care.For years, TSCL has been advocating on Capitol Hill for a more fair and accurate Social Security COLA for beneficiaries. The Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers Act legislation introduced by Rep. Michael Honda is a common-sense solution that would better protect the purchasing power of Social Security benefits since it would use a more accurate measure of inflation..Representative Larson's bill addresses the growing problems of benefit adequacy and program finances by:

Issue Brief How Can Medicaid Enhance State Capacity To Respond To Covid 19

This week, lawmakers returned to Capitol Hill to begin the "lame duck" session of Congress. Those in the Senate plus Republicans in the House held leadership elections for the 116th Congress. In the Senate, key leadership positions will remain largely unchanged in 201Senator Mitch McConnell will once again serve as the Senate Majority Leader, while Senator Chuck Schumer will remain the Minority Leader in the 116th Congress..On Wednesday, the Senate Special Committee on Aging convened to hold a hearing titled "Stopping Senior Scams." At the hearing, members of the committee released this year's Fraud Book, which details the ten most common scams reported to the committee's fraud hotline. In 2017, the hotline received calls from more than 1,400 seniors who were the victims of robocalls, lottery scams, grandparent scams, and romance scams, among many others..Rather than cutting back on one or two drugs, there was a large group that stopped filling most if not all their prescriptions as copays went up. … Continued

Telemedicine Is Growing

This week, lawmakers in the House and Senate remained in their home states and districts to continue the holiday recess. They are expected to return to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, July 10th. In the meantime, many Members of Congress will be attending local events and hosting town hall meetings around the country..The Social Security COLA was created to protect the purchasing power of Social Security benefits received by older and disabled Americans, but the results of this new study show that seniors are failing to keep up with rising costs. In recent years, inflation and COLAs have been at record low levels, averaging just 1.2 percent per year since 20In 2018, Social Security beneficiaries received a COLA of 2 percent, yet most saw no increase at all in their net benefits due to substantially higher Medicare Part B premiums..The Senate advanced its own bi-partisan prescription drug bill, that would establish a new out-of-pocket spending cap at about ,100. While the Senate Finance Committee advanced the package to the floor, it remains on hold. Nevertheless, these bills continue to be among TSCL's highest priorities for passage this year. … Continued