This time, with large numbers of hospitals straining to care for COVID-19 patients, cutting payments to hospitals and increasing revenues is likely to be far more difficult. Hospitals across the country say they have been pushed to their financial limit. And simply raising payroll tax rates may not provide enough of a revenue in the short term if unemployment remains at high levels longer than anticipated. Payroll taxes cannot be collected from workers who are unemployed..Search for health and drug coverage based on the drugs you actually take: Plans vary tremendously on the price of prescription drugs, and you can spend hundreds of dollars more per year than you need to. Do your search for health or stand-alone drug plans by inputting all the drugs you take to get your best choice of plans for you at the lowest cost. Make a list of each drug that you take, dosage, and the amount you take in a month or 90 days if by mail order. Spelling and dosage details are important to get most accurate results. The Medicare plan finder will pull up a list of plans showing the lowest costing plan first. It's important to check the reasons why the plan costs less, including whether the plan covers ALL your prescription drugs. When checking plan cost details, check the difference in prescription prices between standard retail pharmacies and mail order..In 2019, there are a total of ten different Medigap plans, "A" through "N." Congress closed Plans "F" and "C" because they cover the Medicare Part B deductible. The thinking is that deductibles prevent "over utilization" of Medicare benefits. The Part B deductible is 5.50 this year and it rises at the same pace as the Part B premium. According to research by Johnson, Part B premiums have increased about 10 percent per year since 2000, making it one of the fastest growing costs in retirement. "Requiring retirees to pay deductibles, or higher deductibles, has the biggest financial and health impact on middle-income Medicare beneficiaries with modest means," says Johnson. "Many put off medically necessary care if they can't afford the deductible, and their health can get worse when they do," she says..I learned that my client's new brand name prescription cost more than a.Again, those projections were made prior to the effects of the pandemic. You can be sure when this is all over, the projections will be much worse.."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..TSCL strongly believes that inaction on addressing Social Security's financing challenges is putting the benefits of tens of millions at risk. The closer we come to the Social Security depletion dates, the more difficult it will be to find a solution to strengthen program finances. With the coronavirus recession, the depletion date may arrive sooner than anyone ever expected.."The group of Democrats blocked one committee from advancing their party's drug-pricing legislation, with two members arguing it was too far-reaching and could stymie innovation in the pharmaceutical industry. Some of those Democrats also want to rein in a proposal to expand Medicare to include dental coverage, a high priority for progressives such as Sen. Bernie Sanders.".Petition to Congress in Support of Social Security Notch Reform
