Medicare Advantage plans are popular in many areas of the country for low, monthly premiums, having an annual out-of-pocket maximum, and for offering supplemental benefits not currently covered by Medicare, such as dental and vision coverage. Most Medicare Advantage plans also provide prescription drug benefits..According to an analysis performed for TSCL, monthly benefits between 2009 and 2016 are 13% lower than they would have been if inflation had been closer to the more typical 3%. For the typical retiree with an average monthly benefit of ,117 in 2009, Social Security benefits are about 9 per month lower this year, according to the analysis. The analysis calculated that, since 2009, people with average Social Security benefits have lost ,575 in total Social Security income over the past 7 years..On Tuesday, with a vote of 244-154, lawmakers in the Housed approved legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act's controversial Medicare cost-cutting board..Finally, the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act gained one new cosponsor in Representative Jim Langevin, bringing the total up to thirty-two. If signed into law, H.R. 242 would reduce costs for older Americans by requiring the federal government to negotiate lower Part D prescription drug prices on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries..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.Notch Bulletin: How Long Have Notch Babies Been Underpaid? I was born during the Notch period. I would like to know how long Notch Babies have been underpaid. In addition could you tell me if the underpayment has been corrected and if we are receiving the right amount now? - M.R. Fort Cobb, OK.Extra Help pays for your Part D plan premium, up to a specific amount, based on your state..If signed into law, the CPI-E Act would amend the Social Security Act with regard to annual cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security and Medicare benefits. Currently, the COLA is based upon the spending patterns of young, urban workers, but Rep. DeFazio's bill would require that COLAs be based upon the way seniors spend their money. The COLA that seniors currently receive does not accurately reflect how they must spend their money, and TSCL estimates that a senior who retired with average benefits in 1984 would have received ,723.16 more through 2011 had the CPI-E been used. We are very supportive of Rep. DeFazio's bill, and we were pleased to see one new cosponsor sign on this week..This week, House lawmakers remained in their home districts for the final week of the August recess. Meanwhile, The Senior Citizens League saw support grow for one key bill that would increase competition in the pharmaceutical industry and improve access to affordable prescription drugs..The proposal to cut the growth of COLAs formed a major Social Security reform provision of President Obama's 2010 Fiscal Commission. It would reduce the growth rate in COLAs by switching to the more slowly-growing "chained" CPI. "The switch is insidious because it's enormously complicated to figure out, and it looks so small on paper - just 0.03 tenths of a percentage point," Hyland observes. "But the loss compounds over time. Within a decade it would have a significant financial punch that just keeps getting bigger," Hyland explains. The following chart provided by TSCL illustrates the impact of a chained CPI on a married couple's Social Security benefits, which start at a total of ,500 per month today, and how their benefits change over the first ten years. After ten years the chained CPI would reduce benefits by per month, and would cut benefits by ,488 over the ten-year period.
