According to Bloomberg Government, members of the House Appropriations Committee are still negotiating the spending limits for each subcommittee, and they are far from a deal. House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer told reporters this week that he's doubtful Congress will finish the omnibus before the looming deadline..In fact, unlike the additional Medicare tax on high earners, this 3.8% net investment tax was not even a specific provision of the Affordable Care Act. It was a provision of a separate bill, the Health Care Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010 which was passed about two days after the Affordable Care Act. By setting up the revenues so that they would flow to the General Fund, Congress by-passed earmarking those revenues for Medicare Part A or Part B Trust Fund. That means when the funds are used for other government spending, the Medicare Trust Funds are not earning any interest from the federal government for the use of those funds..If your year has been like mine, you've had a number of Medicare aggravations during which you promised yourself to look into different health and drug plan options at your first opportunity. Medicare's Fall Open Enrollment is underway, and this is your opportunity to compare plans make changes to your coverage..TSCL is adamantly opposed to "Chaining the COLA" and continues to fight it. TSCL is gathering the signatures of thousands of seniors. Should the plan achieve passage, TSCL is prepared to lead a national repeal campaign of the same kind that resulted in the immediate repeal of "Medicare Catastrophic" in the late 1980s. To sign a petition or to learn how you can take part in our campaign, visit TSCL on the web at..Providers would have to give patients information on their network status, costs of out-of-network care, options for in-network providers, and other insurance requirements generally 72 hours before an appointment. The notice would have to clearly state that consent is optional, and that the patient could seek care from an in-network provider..The Congressional Budget Office recently released its fall economic and budget update which estimates that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Medicare outlays will grow 12% over 2020, double the rate what was forecast in April. If that estimate proves to be the case, that suggests the Part B premium increase could be twice as high as the earlier forecast - about .40 per month..TSCL enthusiastically supports the CPI for Seniors Act since we believe it would go a long way in ensuring the retirement security seniors have earned and deserve. In the coming months, we will work tirelessly with Congressman Duncan to help build support for his critical new bill..For information on upcoming town hall meetings, click HERE. For updates on the progress of the BCRA in the coming days, follow TSCL on Twitter or visit the Legislative News section of our website..TSCL agrees that solvency issues for both programs should be addressed as soon as possible so that any changes may be phased in gradually. However, we do not support increased cost-shifting or harsh benefit cuts for seniors. Both Subcommittees will likely hold more hearings on reforming the two programs in the coming months. TSCL will continue to monitor the ongoing debate.
