News

TSCL supports a number of bills that would tie the COLA to the Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers. To learn more, visit online at..Currently, the DI trust fund is set to become depleted in late 2016, and legislative action will be needed to prevent a 25 percent cut in benefits for 11 million disabled beneficiaries. According to those at Wednesday's hearing, reallocating funds from the Old Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund is the simplest and least controversial way of solving the problem. However, TSCL disagrees since doing so would mean that the OASI trust fund would become depleted four years earlier than currently projected. In our most recent survey of members and supporters, only 1 percent said they support the reallocation of funds from the OASI trust fund to the DI trust fund..Just years before they retired these individuals learned they would have significantly lower benefits than they expected because of amendments to the Social Security Act that were signed into law in 1977 and which have compounded over time..Under current law, noncitizens who gain temporary work authorization can qualify for long-term Social Security benefits based on work under invalid Social Security numbers that was done prior to gaining that authorization. If elected, would you support legislation to modify this policy?.Social Security's finances depend largely on payroll taxes, tying the strength of Social Security to the strength of the U.S. economy. The U.S. unemployment rate was more than 13.3% through May. That was worse than the 2009 Great Recession, when the unemployment rate reached a peak of 10.6% in January 20With 20.5 million people out of work, combined with a higher number of new claims for benefits as older unemployed workers turn to Social Security, there will be a significant impact on the finances of the Social Security Trust Funds. The degree of the impact depends on how long it takes to get our economy safely up and running again..In response to concerns over high prescription drug prices, I have introduced two bills in this Congress to lower the cost of prescription drugs. H.R. 448, the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Act, would authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate for lower drug prices on behalf of Medicare Part D beneficiaries. H.R. 447, the Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act, would allow qualifying prescription drugs manufactured at FDA-inspected facilities of licensed Canadian sellers to be imported into the United States. These solutions, along with other bills introduced by my colleagues in the House and Senate, will help to fundamentally change the playing field, helping to lower prices for patients while reining in excessive drug company profits..This week, lawmakers in the House remained in their home districts, while those in the Senate returned to Capitol Hill to begin working on a plan to avoid a government shutdown. In addition, The Senior Citizens League saw three key bills gain support..Known as "auxiliary beneficiaries," they are children, widows, spouses, and parents, entitled to benefits on the record of another individual. The Social Security Act requires that individuals first entitled to benefits as of June 1, 1989 or later, must have applied for a Social Security number to receive benefits. But a recent audit by the Social Security Office of Inspector General found that, as of June 2014, there are 11,179 auxiliary beneficiaries without SSNs receiving benefits because of a loophole - they became entitled to benefits prior to June 1, 1989 and therefore are not required to have an SSN on the Social Security Administration's Master Benefit Record or to have applied for one to receive benefits..If we closed this loophole, we could ensure that Social Security continues paying full benefits to every single American who pays in, just as they were promised.