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TSCL Members and Supporters:.This new data strengthens the argument that focusing on negotiating prices for the relatively small number of drugs that make up a disproportionately large amount of Medicare spending could help reduce the costs of prescription drugs to Medicare and the patients who use them..TSCL joins voices with Chairman Sam Johnson in urging President Trump to nominate a Social Security Commissioner immediately. To stay updated on the nomination and confirmation process in the months ahead, visit the Legislative News section of our website every Friday morning..Out-of-network emergency services, which would include services furnished after a patient is stabilized unless notice and consent criteria are met..According to TSCL's research, Barbara is correct. Since 2000, Social Security benefits have lost 30 percent of their buying power due to inaccurate COLAs, and in the last year alone, they have lost 7 percent. This loss of purchasing power has occurred because Social Security COLAs are based on the spending patterns of young, urban workers not the spending patterns of retirees..They believe we should consider increasing future Social Security benefits..This year, for the first time in decades, "expanding" Social Security became the platform of a major political party - the Democrats - while both presidential candidates, Clinton and Trump, expressed opposition to any benefit cuts. And lending credibility to the claims, legislation is pending in both the Senate and the House that would provide a boost to Social Security benefits and use a "seniors" CPI, the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly, to determine the annual cost-of-living adjustment. The legislation would finance doing this by lifting the payroll taxable maximum - which is currently capped in 2016 at the first 8,500 in earnings..When you get surgery it's often difficult to know the costs in advance. Medicare covers anesthesia provided for medically necessary inpatient or outpatient surgical procedures. But it's important to understand how services like anesthesia work because they are often billed and paid separately, and administered by specific providers who may not be affiliated with your in-network hospital or doctor's practice. In addition, billing errors frequently occur, and bills often need to be corrected and re-submitted for reimbursement. Here are some steps to take to make sure all your bills get paid..This year, for the first time since the early 80's, the Social Security Trust Fund that pays retirement and survivors benefits fell into deficit and is paying out more than it receives in payroll taxes and taxes on Social Security benefits. In years in which there was an excess of Social Security taxes, the federal government used the surplus revenues for other purposes and then credited the Trust Fund with special non-marketable government bonds representing IOUs. But with the recession and prolonged economic recovery, the taxes that fund Social Security plunged. At the same time, enrollment is soaring as seniors who have lost their jobs turn to Social Security early. When the Trust Funds don't receive enough tax revenues, then the government must find the cash to redeem the IOUs to pay benefits. The only options Congress has is unsustainable levels of borrowing, tax increases, or cutting benefits.