Posted on 01/15/2010 6:30:51 AM PST by GailA
Social Security News
Senior Citizens May Not Get Social Security COLA for Years Says Kaiser Medicare Brief
No Social Security increase also means higher Medicare Part B fees for many seniors says the analysis.
June 29, 2009 – Senior citizens are not expected to receive a cost of living adjustment (COLA) in 2010 – for the first time ever. What’s worse, they may not receive an increase for the next three years. And, it keeps getting worse - no COLA means high Medicare Part B premiums for about a quarter of all Medicare beneficiaries, according to an analysis by the the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
The Medicare Issue Brief, based on the most recent projections of the Medicare and Social Security Trustees, explains the relationship between the Social Security COLA and the Medicare Part B premium, and the implications for those who are covered by both programs.
With Medicare Part B spending expected to continue to increase in the coming years, beneficiary premium contributions are also expected to rise to cover 25 percent of total Part B spending as required by law. Not all Medicare beneficiaries will be affected. About three in four Medicare beneficiaries are protected by a “hold-harmless” provision in the law that ensures that their Medicare premiums do not increase more than any increase in Social Security premiums, according to the report.
Thus, the higher premiums would fall on the remaining one quarter of beneficiaries - with monthly premiums expected to rise from $96.40 this year to $104.20 in 2010 and $120.20 in 2011.
Because most in this group are low-income beneficiaries eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid benefits, Medicaid would pay the cost of the monthly Part B premium, increasing Medicaid costs for states.
Higher-income beneficiaries who are required to pay an income-related surcharge in addition to the monthly Part B premium would also pay the higher rate, as would any new enrollees who did not receive Social Security payments in the previous year and/or were not covered under Part B.
This issue brief was prepared by Tricia Neuman and Juliette Cubanski of the Kaiser FamilyFoundation. Lisa Potetz of Health Policy Alternatives provided http://www.kff.org/medicare/upload/7912.pdf
Link to Scott Brown debate, dems want to cut Military Tricare health insurance
No COLA raise for Seniors, No COLA raise for retired Military, cuts to Medicare and Tricare, we families who depend on Tricare for our secondary health insurance after our spouses spent 20 or more years serving their country are going to be getting double screwed with the cuts and increases in premiums and fees.
In the Hannity interview the remark went totally over Hannity's head. I don't think any of the talk radio host know what Tricare is!
TRI CARE FOR LIFE This from a google search:
This option would help reduce the costs of TFL, as well as costs for Medicare, by introducing minimum out-of pocket requirements for beneficiaries. Under this option, TFL would not cover any of the first $525 of an enrollee’s cost-sharing liabilities for calendar year 2011 and would limit coverage to 50 percent of the next $4,725 in Medicare cost sharing that the beneficiary incurred. (Because all further cost sharing would be covered by TFL, enrollees could not pay more than $2,888 in cost sharing in that year.)
November 6, 2009 | Rep Buyer and Rep McKeon
Bill Would Restrict Veterans’ Health Care Options
Buyer and McKeon Offer Amendments to Protect Veterans and TRICARE Beneficiaries
The lesson here is, live by the government, die by the government.
Meanwhile, the Obama Administration is making sweetheart deals with unions to get its execrable pile-of-junk healthcare bill passed.
Ole Matt said last June that it would be 2 years, obviously they are planning for a huge inflation rate for the next 3 years.
Plan on cutting the budget by cutting the benes for SS/Military, BUT does this apply to FED EMPLOYEES.
Wonder if only “working” FED employees get an increase.
LIKE CONGRESS.
Anyone know the answer to this one.
How can this be? Wasn’t it the Democrats that said we have to beware of the Republicans who would take benefits from seniors? Now the Democrats have done it? /s
But I’ll bet that al federal government employees and retirees will receive their 3% annual raises and increasess!!!
You lose. I am a retired federal employee. Our COLAs are tied directly the CPI-W figures just like SS. We get the same increases or lack thereof. No raise this year and probably none next year at a minimum. Active federal employees use a different system for the computation of their increases, which amount to 2% this year.
NOT TRUE!!!
I turn 65 next month. I have already been informed by the SSA that my premiums for Medicare Pt. B will be $110.50/mo. The SSA also says that after they contact the IRS, this amount may increase (retro-actively to Feb.1) depending on my total income.
I'm not complaining about not getting COLA or the amount of my Medicare premiums, just stating a fact.
If these morons in Congress can deny Seniors their Cola raises then they better roll back any recent raises and any future raises for themselves.
Vote all of them out on the street, NO Pay, NO Pensions, No Health Care,NOTHING !!
It's just not the benefit cuts, it's the fee hikes along with the inflation that will really put the squeeze on us seniors. We are already feeling the pinch with increased cost of living for food, gas etc. Along with the pay cut while small $10.80 with the income tax fiddling the demwits did we've had to cut corners where ever we can.
And when seniors have less available extra cash then they don't contribute to church or charities, give presents to grand kids, etc....snowball effect on the economy.
I planted a veggie garden last year and intend to expand it this year. The old Victory Garden...home owner's association can go fly a kite, if they don't like it. I hid the green beans in behind the azeleas out front and on the side of the house. We have a huge hill for a back yard.
You should be remembering younger voters, because the seniors voted republican.
This is a report on the Kaiser Foundation report, and we all know how LEFT wing the Kaiser Foundation is, they may have just been conservative in their math, and it was done in June, a lot has changed in the last couple of months.
Yes. I suspect the majority of Seniors voted for Zero. I am so sorry that they weren’t more curious about what he would REALLY do in office, instead of what he SAID he would do. Those of us who looked beneath the smarmy veneer KNEW what was coming with Zero.
“because the seniors voted republican. “
You live in a dream world!
My polling place is in a senior community and 65% of them are democrap!
The biggest percentage of seniors over 70 are democrap.
I remember during the 2nd worst Presidents aftermath. A SS eligible woman was living in her home alone.
Her daughter would come over to check on her. She would always check her cabinets and fidge to make sure she had plenty of food.
She collapsed one day and a neighbor called the ems.
When the Doc told her that her Mother was suffering from MALNUTRITION, she couldn’t believe it.
When she went to her home she found that her Mother had neatly placed the empty boxes neatly back in the Cabinets.
Empty milk cartons in the fridge etc.
Expect muchh more of this type of thing happening.
My question is, will they get medical care? Useless eaters you know.
How can you say that? There's plenty of Democratic seniors. I expected most of the youth vote to go to the shiny new object but the seniors should have known better.
Needs to be repeated every 30 minutes!
Thanks TPF!!
No they didn't. The following is pulled from a left-of-center site, but there's plenty more out there that can be collaborated on a quick search:
Election Day was full of historic results for Barack Obama. But his performance among seniors (age 65 and over) provided one of the few lower points, as exit polls show that Obama lost to John McCain among seniors 45 to 53 percent. According to the exit polls, while Obama made gains with nearly all groups compared to John Kerry, this did not happen with seniors.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.