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Consumer Reports makes a good point. When you stick with the higher costing brand, the entire cost of the drug under that plan will apply towards your initial coverage limit, pushing you toward the doughnut hole coverage gap. That raises the chance you will use up your limit before the year's end and you'll pay half the cost of the brand name drug in the doughnut hole, and 79% on any generics. You may want to ask your doctor to prescribe the generic version of the drug whenever available..In the months ahead, The Senior Citizens League will continue to advocate for these and other policy solutions that would strengthen and enhance Social Security benefits for current and future beneficiaries. For progress updates, follow The Senior Citizens League on Twitter..TSCL is working with Members of Congress for the "Guaranteed 3% COLA for Seniors Act, introduced by Representative Eliot Engel. The bill directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics to prepare and publish a monthly CPI-E and uses it to calculate the annual Social Security COLA. And in the case when inflation is low, the bill would provide an annual COLA of at least 3%..The rate of growth in the number of older Americans who receive Social Security has slowed sharply recently, and the drop may be due in large part to the large number of deaths from COVID-19 among people age 65 and up. In March of 2021, the number of people receiving retirement benefits from the Social Security Administration rose 900,000 to 46.5 million, the smallest year - over - year gain since April 2009..Lawmakers Work Towards Omnibus."Should Social Security's Cost-of Living Adjustment Be Changed?" National Academy of Social Insurance, April 2011..Get your health expense records up to date and review the Annual Notice of Change from your current plans: Drug and health plans send out their Annual Notice of Changes for 2022 in September through October of this year. Review those details to learn what might affect you in 202Start a list of costs, break down what you will pay for all premiums, any out-of-pocket costs that you typically pay. List what you spend out - of - pocket on dental, vision and hearing services, as well as any expenses such as eyeglasses and hearing aids. If you are comparing current Medigap coverage with Medicare Advantage, you will need to know what sort of services you are using and what you typically pay out - of - pocket now for those services, if anything. Worksheets maintained for tax purposes, statements, check registers may be an excellent source of this information..According to the three Senators, under current law, the administration has the authority to allow pharmacists and wholesale retailers to import prescription drugs from Canada, where medicines are often half the price. The administration also has the power to issue an executive order that would allow individuals to import prescription drugs from Canada for their own personal use..The 5 or so million Americans aged 50 to 64 who currently buy insurance on the individual and small business exchanges could compare a Medicare-X plan to those offered by private insurance plansm and choose which works best for them. Guaranteeing Medicare-X in every ZIP code would ensure there's always an option for Americans not yet on Medicare. And, because participants' premiums would cover the full cost of the plan, it wouldn't raise taxes, add to the deficit, or take resources from the Medicare trust fund. Medicare-X would allow price negotiation under Part D, but would not touch the benefits offered through traditional Medicare or Medicare Advantage.