Lucas Kaplan, Author at NCPSSM

Medicare Advantage Keeps Gaming The System, New Data Reveals

Over the years, we here at the National Committee have talked a lot about the disadvantages of Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. These plans — which have become a gold mine for profit-focused insurers and their Wall Street backers — cover over half of Medicare beneficiaries, and are sold as a cheaper alternative to traditional Medicare. In reality, these private plansschemes are bleeding taxpayers for $76 billion more in 2026 than traditional Medicare would cost for comparable enrollees. A thorough analysis by MedPage — drawing from data provided by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) — highlights MA’s broken promises.

Lucas Kaplan2026-01-27T13:06:12-04:00January 26th, 2026|Categories: Medicare, Medicare Advantage|

GOP Senators Face Key Test on Health Care Affordability

Last week, the House of Representatives took a bold step towards averting huge increases in Americans’ health care premiums, passing a bill that would extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits for three years. The measure succeeded thanks to YES votes from all House Democrats and 17 House Republicans, who openly defied GOP Speaker Mike Johnson.

Lucas Kaplan2026-01-16T16:26:56-04:00January 13th, 2026|Categories: affordable care act, Congress, Older Americans, President Trump, Republicans|

Latest Social Security Website Crash a Symptom of Trump/DOGE Mismanagement

Seniors trying to access their earned benefit information hit a snag when the Social Security Administration's (SSA) website crashed on Wednesday morning. These sorts of incidents have unfortunately become commonplace since the Trump administration took over, as DOGE’s crusade at SSA has left the agency in chaos. "We continue to get reports of glitches on SSA's website. It looks like this was one of them," said NCPSSM President and CEO, Max Richtman.

Lucas Kaplan2025-12-23T13:07:54-04:00December 19th, 2025|Categories: President Biden, President Trump, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA)|

Senate Republicans Kill ACA Tax Credit Extension, Spike Health Care Premiums

Senate Republicans just voted to allow Americans' health care premiums to spike in 2026, neglecting the needs of their own constituents. On Thursday, the Senate failed to reach the 60-vote threshold to extend crucial Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits, forcing the program's nearly 24 million enrollees to navigate premiums that could double or even triple in 2026. In a Thursday news release, our President and CEO, Max Richtman called ACA marketplace coverage “a linchpin for older adults who often cannot get affordable health insurance any other way.”

Lucas Kaplan2025-12-12T12:34:57-04:00December 12th, 2025|Categories: affordable care act, healthcare|

What Does the End of the Shutdown Mean for Older Americans?

As the longest government shutdown in U.S. history finally ends, many of our readers are asking: what does this deal mean for older adults? We supported Democratic efforts to extend Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium subsidies. Without Congressional action to extend these subsidies, millions of “near seniors”— aged 54 to 65— are poised to face dramatically higher health insurance premiums in 2026.

Lucas Kaplan2025-11-13T14:54:37-04:00November 13th, 2025|Categories: affordable care act, Congress, Democrats, GOP, Medicare, Older Americans, Republicans|

Trump & GOP Intransigence Will Hike Health Care Premiums

Open enrollment season for Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans arrives amid a severe threat from Trump and congressional Republicans —- who continue to block the extension of crucial ACA premium subsidies. These subsidies have helped middle and lower-income Americans afford health coverage since they were enacted during the Covid pandemic. This is what the government shutdown — now in its fifth week — is all about. Democrats insist that the subsidies be extended; Trump and the GOP have refused, despite the economic pain and health insecurity their actions will inflict on everyday Americans – including millions of MAGA voters. The president and his party won’t even negotiate with Democrats to end the shutdown.

Lucas Kaplan2025-11-06T15:05:23-04:00November 6th, 2025|Categories: affordable care act, Aging Issues, Congress, President Biden, President Trump, Republicans|

New Senior Poverty Data Disproves ‘Greedy Geezer’ Myth

Conservative think tanks have been pushing a false narrative that older Americans who collect Social Security are somehow ‘ripping off’ younger adults. This propaganda ignores the facts — pitting hardworking Americans (of all ages) against one another. While right-leaning analysts push the argument that younger workers shouldn’t have to pay into Social Security while wealthy ‘greedy geezers’ collect benefits, the data tells a different story. New statistics show that poverty among seniors is on the rise, reaching 15% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM).

Lucas Kaplan2025-10-30T15:06:08-04:00October 30th, 2025|Categories: Social Security, Social Security Disability Insurance|

News from the Frontlines of the Fight Against Alzheimer’s

In this week’s episode of our You Earned This podcast, Dr. Heather Snyder of the Alzheimer’s Association tells us about some common misconceptions about Alzheimer’s disease while also sharing exciting developments in research, treatment, and prevention. These advances should be welcome news to America’s Seniors, demonstrating important steps forward in the ongoing fight against Alzheimer’s.

Lucas Kaplan2025-10-27T10:08:20-04:00October 23rd, 2025|Categories: Alzheimer's|

Tester Opponent’s Ad Full of Falsehoods on Social Security

Montana GOP Senate candidate Tim Sheehy stooped to new lows in a recent ad that hit to the airwaves this Summer. In less than 30 seconds, the Koch-funded, billionaire-backed campaign unveiled a series of baseless claims on incumbent Senator. Jon Tester, attempting to misinform Montana seniors on who is looking out for their retirement security. We take a closer look at these lies, and where these two candidates really land on Social Security.

Lucas Kaplan2024-09-18T14:32:21-04:00September 18th, 2024|Categories: Congress, Election 2024, Medicare, Senator Jon Tester, Social Security, Social Security Trust Fund|

Dems, Republicans Spar on Social Security at Senate Hearing

Senate Budget Committee chairman Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and his colleagues welcomed two panels to Capitol Hill today to host a range of discussions on Social Security. The first featured Social Security Administration (SSA) Commissioner Martin O'Malley, focusing on the Administrations budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2025 and some of his accomplishments in the position. The second panel saw a group of experts join the committee to discus the preservation of Social Security forever and what needs to be done to strengthen America's retirement security.