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Inflation, as measured by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' consumer price index, has taken a deep tumble over the past year, meaning older Americans will have to settle for a cost-of-living adjustment of 1.6% in 2020 after getting a 2.8% increase this year..Even small tweaks in inflation can save the government hundreds of billions over time. Using the chained CPI would reduce the measured rate of inflation, and the amount of money you would receive in your COLA every year. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that moving to the chained CPI would cut government spending on Social Security by 2 billion over the first 10 years alone..and puts the coverage of low-income older adults who receive Medicaid in jeopardy, including the majority of the nation's nursing home patients.".That's changing this year due to new Medicare rules that require suppliers to engage in competitive bidding to supply seniors with this equipment. A two-year pilot of competitive bidding in nine cities succeeded in lowering Medicare's durable medical equipment costs by a third. Lower costs for Medicare should also mean lower co-pays for seniors.."It's about time," states Johnson. At the time of passage of the Affordable Care Act, this tax was widely referred to as a "Medicare" tax in the media, by tax and investment professionals, and, many lawmakers sold it to the public that way. "Now those revenues are needed by the Medicare Part A Hospital Insurance Trust Fund," says Johnson. Part A is three years from insolvency and faces an estimated funding gap of more than 5 billion over the next ten years..As far as we can tell, the answer to the question of why this coronavirus is getting so much more attention and such extraordinary measures are being taken as compared to previous flu outbreaks is the fact that this flu apparently spreads so quickly. Because of that, it can overwhelm the ability of local health systems to handle all of those who come down with the flu..Rep. Matt Cartwright represents Pennsylvania's 17th Congressional District, which includes Schuylkill County and portions of Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, and Northampton Counties. Cartwright serves on the House Committee on Natural Resources and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform..But when you work, there's a limit to how much you can earn and still keep your benefits. When you are under full retirement age, your Social Security benefit will be reduced for every you are over the earnings limit..The Supreme Court has agreed to hear another Obamacare challenge in February or March. The outcome could have enormous financial impact on millions of people who purchased their health insurance through, the online federal health insurance exchange.