Issue Brief Faqs On Medicare Coverage And Costs Related To Covid 19 Testing And TreatmentWhile it is true that we must come together to address our budget, we cannot fix our fiscal problems on the backs of our seniors. We also must not use our economic future as a bargaining chip to advance unrelated partisan interests. During my time in Congress I'm proud to fight for Medicare benefits for our next generation of seniors. As we look forward to the next 50 years I am cognizant of some of the challenges facing Medicare. But I also see opportunity:.Social Security remains strong and solvent, but only for the next 17 years. After that, it faces a shortfall, only able to pay 75 percent of its promised benefits. Rather than breaking our promise to our seniors, and forcing retirees to shoulder benefit cuts that some have proposed across the board cuts, inadequate cost of living adjustments, and privatization Congress should instead work together to keep America's word and strengthen Social Security..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. … Continued
Polling PlacesIn a letter to Congressman Davis, Art Cooper Chairman of TSCL's Board of Trustees wrote: "According to a recent study completed by TSCL, Social Security beneficiaries have lost over 20 percent of their purchasing power since 2000. Those who are subjected to the WEP and the GPO have undoubtedly fallen even further behind. It is now more important than ever for Congress to address the inequities that have been created by the WEP and the GPO, and TSCL believes the Social Security Fairness Act is a fair and responsible solution.".Alexandria, VA Seniors will get one of the lowest cost-of-living adjustment paid in the past decade next January. But even so, COLAs remain a key target in post-election deficit reduction efforts, warns The Senior Citizens League, one of the nation's largest nonpartisan seniors groups. A plan that would slow the growth in annual COLAs is a key provision of major deficit reduction plans quietly under consideration in Congress..From a tax perspective, your distributions from a traditional IRA or 401 are 100% taxable, while distributions from a Roth IRA or 401 are not taxable. Up to 85% of Social Security benefits may be taxable but, for many people, the taxable percentage is much lower. … Continued
