Coronavirus and Seniors Petition

Petition to 117th Congress

Older people have been the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Eight out of 10 deaths from COVID in the U.S. have been in adults 65 years old and older. Loss of employment has forced many workers 60 and older into retirement prematurely, isolation threatens their emotional stability, and the costs of everyday living continue to rise.

The 117^th Congress must address the financial and health challenges facing seniors and people with disabilities to ensure they survive the pandemic. Legislative fixes should include:

Enacting a 3% Social Security cost of living adjustment to make up for paltry COLAs in recent years (including the meager 1.3% for 2021).

Preventing price gouging for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies.

Investing $25 billion in a vaccine manufacturing and distribution plan that will every American is inoculated, cost-free.

Improving Nursing Home Safety by requiring the Department of Health and Human Services to develop and enforce robust safety protocols and allocate additional funding to monitor and facilitate management of COVID outbreaks.

Eliminating the Social Security ‘Notch” Benefit Cut for future retirees which resulted from the pandemic’s devastating impact on the economy.

I call upon Congress to work with the White House and immediately pass legislation that will protect the financial, physical and mental well-being of seniors and people with disabilities.