News

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 -.."People who have been receiving benefits for 12 years or longer have experienced an unprecedented series of extremely low cost-of-living adjustments," says Mary Johnson, a Social Security policy analyst for The Senior Citizens League. What's more those inflation adjustments do not account for rapidly rising Medicare Part B premiums that are increasing several times faster than the COLA. The situation is causing those with the lower Social Security benefits to see little growth in their net Social Security income after deduction of the Part B premium..A new study recently found that Social Security benefits have lost 34 percent of their purchasing power since 2000 due to rising costs and inadequate COLAs. Do you support the bipartisan CPI-E Act, which would make the COLA more fair and adequate?.Last November, President Obama bypassed Congress to halt the deportations of nearly 5 million unauthorized immigrants. Do you believe his executive orders have overstepped the constitutional limits and that they should be fully implemented?.The resolution introduced by Rep. Rigell expresses a commitment to two critical issues facing seniors, and TSCL was pleased to lend its support to it this week..You may well find that the best way to come out ahead is to pay out-of-pocket and brush your teeth regularly at least twice a day, for a full 2 minutes. If you don't already have a regular dentist, call around to find the most reasonable fees and to see if the dental practice is willing to provide "senior" discounts. If you have good oral health and few health or dental problems, ask the dentist if you can stretch your exams out to every 9 months instead of twice a year, and space out X-rays..The CMS announced new streamlined payment mechanisms for healthcare provider transactions this week. Doctors, hospitals, health plans, and states will all see reduced administrative costs under CMS' larger "administrative simplification" initiative..If your brother was a victim of auto dealer fraud, you may want to look for an attorney who would be willing to work on a contingency basis. If fraud is proven, your brother may be allowed to surrender the unwanted vehicle and the court may order a refund of all payments made toward purchase in addition to canceling any outstanding loan balances. If your brother will have trouble affording an attorney, contact your local Area Agency on Aging or senior services department and ask about legal aid services in your area..Another concern about congressional inaction on the debt ceiling is the potential for cuts to programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. In recent debates, Social Security benefits have been used as a bargaining chip and have been held hostage to the debt limit increase. Some retirees have felt the sting of unexpected benefit cuts. In 2015, following the passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act, millions of seniors, already eligible for Social Security benefits, learned that an important claiming method called "file and suspend" a particularly important protection for women who tend to have lower benefits than men would no longer be an option to them.