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Obesity and diseases related to it, such as diabetes, have also been shown to be high risk factors for negative outcomes for those who contract the coronavirus..If you are having trouble affording costs as they are in 2014, premiums and possibly some of your out-of-pocket costs may be higher in 201If your premium subsidy remains unchanged, that would mean it would be up to you to cover increased costs..The Senior Citizens League supports proposals that strengthens Medicare for dental, vision and audio services, and cuts prescription drug costs by allowing Medicare to negotiate prices. To learn more visit:..Late last week, lawmakers in the House passed a budget resolution that lays the groundwork for a repeal of the ACA. Now that both chambers of Congress have adopted the resolution, four committees the House Energy and Commerce Committee, the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee, and the Senate HELP Committee will begin drafting legislation to repeal the health care law..TSCL is strongly opposed to plans to "chain the COLA." Such a switch has been estimated to reduce Social Security benefits by about 7% over a 30-year retirement. An average benefit of ,300 in 2017 would be about 5 per month less at the end of the period than it would be using the current CPI. An index that causes higher taxes, and lower retirement benefits, make the chained CPI a bad deal for older Americans..Now, 18 years later, TSCL is hopeful that 2021 will be the year when Congress finally enacts legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. This change is supported by about 85% of participants in TSCL's Senior Surveys. In 2019, Congress came very close to passing such a bill. In 2019, the House passed legislation, that would have allowed Medicare to negotiate drug prices, but was loathed by the pharmaceutical industry. It stalled in the Senate late in 2019 when Senate leadership refused to take up the bill..It is possible there could also be another emergency spending bill or, as we reported above, even a full-blown stimulus to try and keep the economy going..First, one new cosponsor Representative Steve Cohen signed on to the Creating Access to Rehabilitation for Every Senior Act, bringing the total up to five. If adopted, this bipartisan bill would improve access to affordable long-term care by eliminating the three-day prior hospitalization requirement that currently limits Medicare's coverage of patient stays in skilled nursing facilities..Older Americans report that their household budgets jumped substantially last year despite the lack of growth in their Social Security benefits, according to a new survey by The Senior Citizens League. "The gap between benefit growth and retiree costs was particularly pronounced due to rising prices of the most essential items in retirees' budgets, - medical and food costs," says TSCL's Social Security and Medicare policy analyst, Mary Johnson. TSCL today sent a letter to Congressional leaders calling upon them to enact legislation that would provide a modest boost to Social Security benefits.