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One of the first steps in bringing down prices is demanding transparency from the many players in the prescription drug supply chain. Many experts point to pharmacy benefit managers as potentially contributing to rising list prices and out-of-pocket costs. PBMs are the veritable middlemen of the drug industry - they serve as intermediaries between drug manufacturers, health insurers, and pharmacies. Some believe that, during this process, drug makers are forced to raise the list prices of their drugs just so they can offset the costs of rebates paid to these PBMs..I go to get the car keys from the porch and then notice mail on the porch table..Medicare Part D's True Out-of-Pocket-Cost spending requirements which are unusually high as it is, are poised to make a stunning and unprecedented jump in 2020. Unless Congress takes action, the Part D doughnut hole coverage gap will swell by 25% next year, from ,100 in 2019, to ,350 in 2020 before the catastrophic phase of coverage kicks in. This would be the largest increase in Part D's required out–of–pocket spending ever, since the start of the program in 2006..While seniors with Medicare aren't required to have an Obamacare health plan, they have worries too. Obamacare cut Medicare by more than 0 billion over ten years, and that's starting to impact seniors age 65 and older. In particular, the law cut reimbursements to Medicare Advantage plans by 6 billion..But with low growth in Social Security benefits, rapidly growing healthcare costs, and more people living longer in retirement, that argument has little support among the public. A March 2016, Pew Research survey found that 71% of Americans believe benefits "should not be reduced" while only 26% say that "cuts should be considered.".My Social Security benefits are reduced because I receive a government pension. I started benefits at age 70. My wife worked in a private sector job and started Social Security at 6If I pass on would her Social Security survivors benefit based on my account be reduced because of my government pension? She is not eligible for benefits from my pension. My current benefit is ,320.00 versus about ,842.00 without the penalty..Late this week, lawmakers in the House and Senate adjourned for a seven-week summer recess. They are expected to return to Capitol Hill following the Labor Day holiday, on September 6th. In the meantime, most Members of Congress will be holding town hall meetings in their home states and districts, presenting constituents with an excellent opportunity to have their most pressing questions answered before the looming elections..While you may be familiar with the problem of our government using a price index that reflects the inflation experience of younger workers rather than retired people over the age of 62, you quite likely have not heard very much about the specifics of how our government calculates price indexes. What the average person thinks of as a straight - forward mathematical calculation, the federal government can approach in convoluted ways..The Democratic Platform Committee approved a plan that would expand the Social Security program "so that every American can retire with dignity and respect." Their document states, "We will fight every effort to cut, privatize, or weaken Social Security, including attempts to raise the retirement age, diminish benefits by cutting cost-of-living adjustments, or reducing earned benefits."