News

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has not announced his health care priorities for the Senate this year. He still refuses to bring the bi-partisan Grassley-Wyden bill that would lower prescription drug prices up for debate on the Senate floor so that may be one of the reasons he has not issued information about his priorities..View Cosponsors.This week, lawmakers returned to Capitol Hill and two committees held hearings to discuss the opioid epidemic. In addition, The Senior Citizens League saw support grow for several key bills..The following Members of Congress, among many others, will be holding town hall meetings in the days ahead: Reps. Eric Swalwell, Susan Brooks, Gary Palmer, Lamar Smith, Bruce Westerman, Randy Hultgren, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Marc Veasey, and Ed Perlmutter..Prevention of Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Eliminating inefficiencies within Social Security and Medicare..The ASPCA website, ASPCA.org, has information, including a helpful chart that can help you estimate the costs of owning a pet..At this point in time, it remains unclear whether congressional leaders will bring the "Budget for a Brighter American Future" to the floor for a vote, but the resolution does clearly outline the policy priorities of the majority party in the House. The Senior Citizens League will keep a close eye on the movement of the budget resolution in the weeks ahead, and we will continue to voice our opposition to policies that would jeopardize the health and financial security of older Americans. For progress updates, follow TSCL on Twitter or visit the Legislative News section of our website..In order to cover shortfalls - in 2021, and every year thereafter - the Social Security Trust Fund will liquidate the special issue bonds it holds in order to pay scheduled benefits until the program becomes insolvent. According to the Social Security Trustees in 2020, without Congressional action, the combined Social Security Trust Fund will become insolvent around 2034, a little more than ten years from now. At the time of insolvency, Social Security will only receive enough revenues to pay about 77% of benefits. In other words, Congressional inaction could result in an automatic benefit cut of about 23%..Background

State Indicator Medicare Shared Savings Program Aco Assigned Beneficiaries

Rep. Matt Cartwright introduced H.R. 4445 on April 10, 201It has since been referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce..On the other hand, the standard deduction for 2020 has increased slightly and is ,800 for married couples filing jointly. In addition, if both you and your spouse are age 65 and older you add an extra ,300 to the standard deduction for a total standard deduction ,100. That means your total itemized deductions will need to be higher than ,100..How much will the New Year's 1.5% cost-of-living adjustment increase your Social Security benefits? How much did your household budget increase over the past 12 months? Your response is important because the only thing standing between seniors and COLA cuts right now is public pressure on Congress and the White House. Major budget negotiations are underway as the nation faces another government shut-down on January 15th, hitting the debt limit again the first week in February. Members of Congress need to hear how their actions would impact real people like you. … Continued

State Indicator Individual Market Guaranteed Issue Not Applicable To Hipaa Eligible Individuals

I live on a fixed income of less than 0 dollars a month. I live in public housing for seniors, and during the pandemic, I had to rely on help from my children to eat every month. I was approved for 6 a month in food stamps. A blessing! However, when you live in public housing, and then get a cost-of-living adjustment, it affects your eligibility for public benefits. In my state, the formula they use took 30% of my COLA. Then because of the COLA your food stamps can be lowered. What's the point of getting a raise? Something should change about the formula. - A.R., IL..If adopted, S. 62 would allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate fair prescription drug prices under Part D of the Medicare program..With Medicare Part B premiums growing several times faster than COLAs, premiums routinely offset a significant portion of the annual inflation boost. This, in turn, causes retired households to draw down savings more rapidly than planned, and many retired households to carry growing amounts of debt. Lower income households may go without adequate food, medically necessary health services, and to postpone filling prescriptions. … Continued