The Honorable William Keating
c/o The Bill Keating Committee
P.O. Box 3065
Buzzards Bay, MA 02532

Dear Congressman Keating:

The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, on behalf of its millions of members and supporters, including more than 6,000 residing in Massachusetts’ 9th Congressional District, enthusiastically endorses your re-election to the United States House of Representatives.  You earned the endorsement of the National Committee because you understand and support the critical roles that Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid play in the retirement and health security of our nation’s older citizens and their families.  Our nation needs your continued leadership, vision and determination to fight for working families and older Americans.

As a member of the Congressional Seniors Task Force, you are a key ally in the effort to serve the needs of seniors and their families.  You appreciate that Social Security benefits are modest,  on average only $16,848 annually and even lower for women who most often have their working careers interrupted for family caregiving.  You oppose proposals for a chained Consumer Price Index (CPI), which would lower beneficiary cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs), and instead are directing your efforts towards a more accurate measure of how inflation actually affects seniors.  You appreciate, too, that Social Security benefits are earned and that Social Security has not contributed one dime to the nation’s debt.  You are among the original sponsors of the Social Security 2100 Act, legislation extending the solvency of Social Security for 75 years, cutting taxes on Social Security benefits, and making other major benefit improvements.

You recognize, too, that Medicare is crucial to the health of older Americans, many of whom cannot afford higher out-of-pocket costs:  One-half of all Medicare beneficiaries had incomes below $26,200 per person in 2016.  You introduced the Fighting Medicare Fraud Act to address abuse and establish stiffer penalties on people who commit identity theft and Medicare fraud, ultimately saving money for seniors.  You also opposed proposals to cut Medicaid by $1.4 billion in Fiscal Year 2019, recognizing that cuts of this magnitude serve only to make it more difficult for seniors to access long-term care.

The nation needs your forward-thinking leadership on issues affecting the health and retirement security of all Americans.  There is no membership in the nation more aware or active politically than the men and women who proudly are associated with the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.  National Committee members and the 9th District’s 190,236 Social Security beneficiaries know they can count on you!

Sincerely,

Max Richtman
President & CEO
Chairman, NCPSSM-PAC Board of Directors