The rationale for both the WEP and the GPO - that the Social Security benefit formula is overly generous to these individuals and that they are reaping unintended benefits - is very hard to justify today. In fact, Social Security benefits are quite modest when compared to the national pension systems of other developed nations. The modified benefit formulas used under each of these two provisions substantially reduces the benefit that workers were counting on, but these are benefits that were earned and paid for by Social Security taxes..Does TSCL receive government funding?.Heating and cooling: According to TSCL's Annual Survey of senior costs, residential fuel oil has been the fastest rising expense for more than a decade. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, a 250-gallon delivery of home heating oil this season may cost more than With the average monthly Social Security payment around ,100, that's a cost few seniors can afford and still have something left over for groceries. Take time to survey suppliers in your area and compare costs. Do ask for a senior citizen discount and learn the supplier's payment options. Financing your heating fuel through the supplier may give you smaller, more manageable payments, but you will pay financing fees and interest. With interest so low on savings, it sometimes makes sense to pay in full when you can to save financing charges..Under current law, the Medicare program excludes coverage of most routine and emergency dental care, leaving around 70 percent of seniors without comprehensive dental insurance coverage. Will you support the Medicare Dental Benefit Act to ensure that seniors have access to essential health care?.This cost shift hits includes retirees with the lowest incomes. Specifically it hits their state Medicaid budgets that pay Part B premiums for low-income Medicare beneficiaries - about 19% of all Medicare recipients. If Medicare Part B premiums go up by more than .40 per month in 2021, that would add yet another fiscal shock to state budgets that are already strained to the limit due to the coronavirus pandemic..Members of Congress may lose an election but unlike other Americans, they never lose their retirement and health benefits. A Member of the House or Senate who retires at age 60 after just 12 years in office will receive a Congressional pension of ,000 a year and lifetime benefits that could total more than 0,000. That doesn't even include 401 benefits or their Social Security benefits -.."This is a budget cut that makes no sense," says TSCL Executive Director Shannon Benton. "Meals on Wheels is a low-cost program that reduces our nation's healthcare bill and more importantly helps seniors stay in their home and remain independent," she says..What do you think about ways to strengthen the COLA? Take our 2019 Social Security survey at..Low-income seniors, including about one-quarter of all Notch Babies, may be feeling the effects of the expiration of federal stimulus funding for Medicaid that ended recently. The recession drove up Medicaid enrollment sharply, but the federal government stepped in with extra funding to help states cover the costs. Increased enrollment and decreased funding have led states to eliminate some benefits and increase the co-payments they charge.
