Since the start of the first CPI in 1940, the BLS has made changes to how it calculates price inflation - most recently announcing changes to how they collect price data. A new paper reports that the BLS has undertaken several pilot projects in an attempt to supplement and/or replace its traditional field collection of price data with "alternative sources." If that sounds suspicious, you have good reason to ask questions. The BLS Handbook of Methods lists more than 21 changes that economists have made to how they calculate the CPI since 198In most cases the so-called "improvements" tend to slow the measured rate of inflation. That means the growth in COLAs is cut and Social Security benefits grow more slowly over time. In short, this boils down to an erosion in the buying power of your Social Security benefits when, in reality, prices are actually going up..According to Representative Roybal-Allard, almost 80 percent of those over the age of 80 suffer from hearing loss, which leads to serious injuries and health problems when left untreated. In addition, nearly 70 percent of older Americans currently have no dental insurance coverage. In a letter of endorsement, Art Cooper Chairman of TSCL's Board of Trustees wrote: "It is essential for older Americans to receive the preventive care and treatment that is needed to maintain their dignity and ensure good health in retirement … Your bill would improve access to care for millions of older Americans, and we believe it would go a long way in ensuring the retirement security senior citizens have earned and deserve.".The study found people with silent strokes scored somewhat worse on memory tests than those without silent strokes. This was true whether or not people had a small hippocampus, which is the memory center of the brain..Someone calls stating they are with Medicare and they need to update your information. Medicare never calls or visits anyone and already has the information it needs to send your cards..Illegal immigrants get jobs using counterfeit, invalid, and stolen Social Security numbers that employers use to withhold payroll taxes and report earnings to the Social Security Administration. Immigration advocates argue that unauthorized workers have little chance of collecting benefits. "That changes once those workers gain a valid Social Security number," Hyland says. Social Security Administration policy allows noncitizens who have evidence of earnings under invalid Social Security numbers, to claim and reinstate those earnings for use in determining entitlement once they obtain a valid Social Security number. The earnings are then used to determine the initial retirement benefit amount..Here are three things you can start doing right now to lower your Medicare costs.I have absolutely NO idea what I did with the car keys..Pneumococcal pneumonia is an example of a serious flu-related complication that can cause death. You can get the pneumococcal vaccine your provider recommends when you get a flu vaccine..When the average person measures cost changes, one compares the change in the cost of a specific item like a gallon of home heating oil over a specific time frame. For example, the national average cost of home heating oil was .15 per gallon in the first week of January 2000. In the first week in January, 2013 it had increased to .00 per gallon - an increase of .8That's a total increase of 257% over 13 years.
