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computer, or running a successful business..As an indicator of low inflation, based on consumer price index data through April of this year, Johnson estimates that the COLA for 2019 will be about 1.7%percent. That number could change, since there are still five months of consumer price index data to be collected before the Social Security Administration announces the COLA in October..If you own stocks in a retirement account, make sure the company holding your.More Americans are spending more years in retirement, but have little or no retirement savings. Fewer employers are offering retirement plans and participation from workers is low among those who do. According to a study by the Schwartz Center for Economic Analysis at the New School, the median net worth among households near retirement show that only about a quarter can expect an adequate cash income stream from their retirement savings..News From the Office of Senator Claire McCaskill.Appropriations Talks Continue.It's about time. At the time of its passage, the Affordable Care Act, was labeled a "Medicare" tax and sold to the public that way. Now it is needed by the Medicare Part A Hospital Insurance Trust Fund. Part A is less than five years from insolvency and faces an estimated 5 billion funding gap over the next ten years. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that this tax will raise approximately .5 billion in revenue in 2021 alone..Senator Thune also said there are no plans for the Senate to stay in session longer than it normally would to get their work done. That means they will take their usual August break as well as the usual recesses during upcoming holidays..Medicare costs are continuing to escalate in 2010, but unless Congress takes immediate action, it's all but certain that seniors won't receive an annual cost-of-living adjustment to help offset the increase next year. The Senior Citizens League strongly endorses new legislation introduced by Representative Walter Jones, H.R. 3557, to provide an emergency COLA increase for 2010.

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Action on Capitol Hill this week has been limited as Congress re-convenes on January 17th. Meanwhile, members of the payroll tax Congressional Conference Committee were named, while the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced a plan for increased efficiency and savings..Starting distributions from your retirement savings ahead of age 70 ½.With regard to your specific concerns on Social Security COLAs, as you are fully aware, after a person becomes entitled to receive Social Security benefits, his or her monthly benefit was designed to increase annually to maintain purchasing power over time. The amount of the COLA is based on inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index. If the CPI rises, Social Security benefits for the next year increase proportionately. If the CPI falls, Social Security benefits stay the same. Like you, I too have long been critical of this formula that measures the level of inflation in our economy because older Americans have different needs than the "typical" American. In addition, the current CPI fails to adequately reflect the fact that seniors rely more on medical goods and services, which have a much higher inflation rate. … Continued

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Health insurers are pushing back, and are warning that the cost of new coverage could limit other benefits they offer in private Medicare Advantage plans - such as free transportation to medical appointments or free over-the-counter drugs..Mortgage rates and home costs have been at historic lows in 2012, but buying or selling a home is complicated for anyone - and seniors have special issues. Depending on your financial situation and needs, here are some points to consider:.Consumer price index data show that the rate of inflation has changed significantly over the past decade, and has yet to return to the average rate during the decade prior to the 2010 Great Recession. From 1999 to 2008, COLAs averaged 3%. Since 2010, however, the COLA, which is tied to the increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, has averaged just 1.4%. Since that year, inflation has been so low that there was no COLA payable three times - in 2010, 2011, and 201In 2017, inflation was almost zero at just 0.3 percentage point. This is not normal, and research on the costs experienced by older Americans indicates the COLA often doesn't reflect inflation that retirees actually experience. … Continued