Blog Supreme Court Rules States May Authorize Sports GamblingAlexandria, VA deadline is looming for more than 8.9 million disabled Social Security beneficiaries as well as 1.8 million of their children, warns The Senior Citizens League. So far Congress has not made public any long-term plan to head off a 20% cut of Social Security disability benefits that would occur in about two years. "All Social Security beneficiaries are waiting to learn how our newly elected lawmakers intend to remedy the situation," says TSCL Chairman, Ed Cates..The hold-harmless provision was again triggered on a nation-wide basis in 2016, when the COLA was zero, and again in 2017, when it was just 0.03 percent. In the meantime the Part B premium rose to 4.00 per month. In 2018, the COLA finally boosted benefits by 2 percent, but even so, roughly half of all beneficiaries reported that the increase in Part B premiums offset their entire COLA this year..In today's environment, working together - whether that's across the aisle, across the country, or across generations - is the only way to keep our communities safe. That spirit and attitude is what America is all about, in the greatest country in the world, and that's thanks, in no small part, to the many accomplishments of our seniors. … Continued
Patient Education Care Of Children Safety Precautions Bicycle SafetyRepresentatives Donna E. Shalala, Phil Roe, M.D., Ann McLane Kuster, and Larry Bucshon M.D. have introduced legislation to eliminate out-of-pocket costs for vaccines to everyone under Medicare. Currently, Medicare vaccine coverage is split between Medicare Part B and Medicare Part D. Seniors can access vaccines covered under Part B - such as flu, pneumonia and Hepatitis - with no out-of-pocket costs. However, under Part D, vaccines such as shingles and pertussis often include a cost to beneficiaries..The Social Security taxable maximum is tied to the wage index, but according to the Congressional Budget Office, the limit on the amount of wages that can be taxed has not kept up with the growth of wages of the most highly paid workers. Because wages for high - income earners are growing faster than for other workers, the taxable share of the nation's earnings subject to Social Security payroll taxes is falling - from 90 percent in 1983 to 82 percent in 201The trend is forecast to continue, with the CBO projecting the share of earnings subject to payroll taxation to drop to below 78 percent by 2026..On Wednesday, the House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee held a hearing titled "Determining Eligibility for Disability Benefits: Challenges Facing the Social Security Administration." Members of the Subcommittee heard from several expert witnesses at the hearing, including Bea Disman, Marilyn Zahm, and Lisa Ekman. … Continued