Careers Administrative Fellowship TestimonialsNeedless to say, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services still lacks the effective oversight to monitor the wasteful payments that continue to plague the system. The Obama administration has made efforts to increase Medicare's accountability and reign in the waste and fraud that remain at an all time high level. In an education initiative, President Obama recently announced an increased effort and funding for a "Senior Medicare Patrol" program designed to educate Medicare beneficiaries on fraudulent spending from healthcare providers. The goal is to bolster Medicare fraud education programs for seniors across the country, highlighting ways to spot and report suspicious fraudulent activity from healthcare providers..Also this week, one new cosponsor Rep. Lou Barletta signed on to Rep. John Duncan's CPI for Seniors Act. The cosponsor total for this bill is now at 11..Roughly half of all older taxpaying households paid income taxes on a portion of their Social Security benefits this year, even though many of them had incomes as low as ,000 or ,000 for married couples filing jointly. Those modest incomes are just two times higher than the federal poverty level. Do you believe this tax on Social Security benefits is fair and, if not, what are you doing to fix it? … Continued
Selena GonzalesAnother participant, Walgreens, will begin using its federal doses on Feb. 12..The bill would also repeal the medical expense deduction, which is essential for older Americans who disproportionately experience high medical costs for prescription drugs, medical equipment, or services like nursing home care. Around 5 million taxpayers over the age of sixty-five rely upon the tax deduction when their out-of-pocket medical costs total more than 10 percent of their annual income. Its elimination would be a major loss for older Americans who are living on fixed incomes and are facing catastrophic medical costs..If you own a pet and have been to the vet lately, the bill may have taken a big bite out of your budget. Like human healthcare, the cost of vet services is growing several times faster than inflation. But unlike human healthcare, the cost of vet services has been growing even faster than the cost of medical services from your doctor 68% faster in 2013 alone. And although you may have Medicare or some other type of health insurance for yourself, chances are you don't have health insurance for your pet meaning you foot 100% of the vet bills. … Continued