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Without action by Congress, the situation would also create inequities or a new "notch" in premium costs for new Medicare enrollees in 20New enrollees would be subject to paying the "unadjusted" Medicare premium while those who fall under "hold harmless" protection would continue to pay the adjusted .40 per month. An estimated 850,000 people would be affected in 2010 alone. Here's an example:.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..Two Key Bills Gain Support.What you propose is an interesting concept. It would be possible to design such cost of living adjustment option in several different ways. For example, the COLA could be calculated based on the national average retiree benefit in the current year. This amount could be adjusted using the current method the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, or the use of a seniors' consumer price index such as the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly. The law could even add a provision that the COLA would never be lower than a certain amount - such as 3%..On the other hand, the standard deduction for 2020 has increased slightly and is ,800 for married couples filing jointly. In addition, if both you and your spouse are age 65 and older you add an extra ,300 to the standard deduction for a total standard deduction ,100. That means your total itemized deductions will need to be higher than ,100..Does Social Security Provide Enough Income For Today's Retirees?.Hospitals and other medical providers were forced to stop routine "non-urgent and elective care" earlier this year to preserve scarce personal protective equipment and to avoid the risk of spreading the coronavirus. Once considered a sector of the economy impervious to most economic disruptions, these lost visits have become a financial crisis for many healthcare providers..Key witnesses such as Mr. Richard Nance, Director of the Utah County Department of Drug and Alcohol Prevention and Treatment, advocated in favor of expanding telemedicine to treat those afflicted with addiction. Other witnesses such as Dr. Andrew Kolodny of Brandeis University warned that doctors need further education on safe opioid prescribing, and that it should not be influenced in any way by parties that benefit from the sale of opioids..Later in the week, the President doubled down on his promise to try and cut prices on branded prescription drugs. Word is out that the President is considering an executive order to combat the problems of high cost drugs sold to Medicare and other government programs.