Forty-one million Americans participate in Part D. Medicare should be able to negotiate drug prices on their behalf just as the VA and private insurers do. Doing so would have the potential to lower drug costs for Part D participants and save Medicare money. For these reasons, I've introduced multiple bills to end Medicare's ban on price negotiation, and have urged President Trump not to renege on his campaign pledges supporting this..So far critics of the program have not convinced CMS to pare down the size of the demonstrations and states winning approval will get the green light to start shifting patients into managed care plans starting next year..Opportunity to expand and preserve this vital benefit for future generations..The COVID crisis really brought to life the challenges of way Medicare currently pays doctors. Thankfully, despite these challenges, the number of doctors choosing to opt out of Medicare has been on the decline, according to data from CMS..Based on the result of this poll, The Senior Citizens League has endorsed legislation called the Seniors Have Eyes, Ears, and Teeth Act, a bill introduced by Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard and 131 cosponsors in the House of Representatives. If adopted, H.R. 508 would expand Medicare coverage to include essential hearing, vision, and dental services..Unfortunately, it is not as cut-and-dried as "everyone will now pay per month for their insulin." It is much more complicated than that..Improve work incentives and encourage disabled beneficiaries who improve to return to work. Current disability rules restrict what disabled beneficiaries can earn, which serves as a disincentive to those who are capable of re-entering the workforce. TSCL favors adopting rules that are consistent with those of the retirement and survivors program, which allows people to earn ,310 per month before benefits are reduced..This week, TSCL formally announced its support for Rep. Tim Walberg's Social Security and Medicare Lock-Box Act. If signed into law, the bill would safeguard the Social Security and Medicare Part A Trust Funds and prevent lawmakers from using the monies for unrelated purposes. In addition, it would establish a commission to determine alternate forms of investment for the surplus funds..So it could be significant this week that a Republican member of the Federal Trade Commission, Christine Wilson, stated that she believes Medicare should have more power to negotiate drug prices. She acknowledged that her position would be controversial among her fellow Republicans because they argue that allowing Medicare to negotiate with the pharmaceutical companies would essentially allow Medicare to set drug prices and stifle development of innovative new drugs. As the year progresses, we shall see if her views make any difference.

The Breastfeeding Resolution Controversy

In a letter that was sent to the twenty-nine conferees on Monday, members of the House Appropriations Committee wrote: "We call on the Budget conference to reach an agreement on the FY2014 and FY2015 spending caps as soon as possible to allow the appropriations process to move forward … If a timely agreement is not reached, the likely alternatives could have extremely damaging repercussions." According to the appropriators, the alternatives include: a government shutdown on January 15th, continued governance by continuing resolution, and a second round of across-the-board spending cuts via the "sequester," which is scheduled to hit in January..too..Many Members of Congress will schedule town halls throughout the month of August, giving voters the opportunity to voice their opinions. … Continued

Nourish Eat Like An Olympian Or Paralympian

TSCL worked hard for the Medicare Part B "roll back" last fall which prevented an even larger Part B premium spike in 2016, and stands ready to ask lawmakers to do the same in 201You can help: Contact your Representative in the House and Senators now and ask your lawmakers to take action to stop the Medicare Part B premium spike. Call your lawmakers toll free at or send an email to your Members of Congress..This occurred all over the U.S. at the very same time that food prices exploded. On December 21, 2020 the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, for example, announced that as of January of this year, 75,079 SNAP households would see an average reduction of in monthly benefits due primarily to the COLA. Another 118 SNAP cases would close, as increased income pushes those households over the eligibility limit..In addition, one new cosponsor Sen. Christopher Murphy signed on to the Social Security Fairness Act this week, bringing the total up to fourteen in the Senate. If signed into law, S. 896 would repeal two provisions of the Social Security Act that unfairly reduce the earned benefits of millions of state and local government employees each year. TSCL believes that the two provisions the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset must be repealed before the end of this year so that dedicated public servants receive the retirement security they have earned. … Continued

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