Democrats Archives - Page 4 of 10

Manchin Pulls the Football Away from Schumer – and Medicare

Senator Joe Manchin has once again pulled the proverbial football away from Chuck Schumer just before the kick. After negotiating with the Senate Majority Leader over a pared-back version of the Build Back Better bill, Sen. Manchin has once again withdrawn his support - not for the entire plan, but for key components that would have helped seniors. He declared on Thursday that he would not support any new tax provisions. One of these provisions would have closed a loophole, compelling the wealthy to pay a 3.8% investment tax. The revenue would have been directed to the Medicare Part A trust fund, which is currently projected to run dry in 2028.

NCPSSM2022-07-16T00:42:30-04:00July 15th, 2022|Categories: Congress, Democrats, Medicare, Prescription Drug Prices, Senate, Senator Joe Manchin|

Schumer-Manchin Negotiations May Yield Some Wins for Seniors

The negotiations between Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) over a new budget reconciliation deal have been great fodder for political journalists, but they are also incredibly important to American seniors. Senators Schumer and Manchin are haggling over a pared-down version of the Build Back Better legislation, which the West Virginia Senator effectively killed earlier this year, designed to pass with only Democratic votes via the reconciliation process. The new package reportedly retains some crucial items for older Americans: prescription drug pricing reform and Medicare solvency.

NCPSSM2022-07-13T15:52:53-04:00July 13th, 2022|Categories: Congress, Democrats, Medicare, Prescription Drug Prices, Senate, Senator Joe Manchin|

House Members Urge CMS to Expand Medicare Dental Coverage

More than 100 members of the U.S. House have sent a letter to the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in an effort to expand Medicare dental coverage. (Traditional Medicare only covers “medically necessary” dental care in a narrowly defined way that excludes not only routine care, but many illness-related treatments.) The members implored CMS administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure to broaden the definition of “medically necessary” to cover many more types of dental care.

NCPSSM2022-07-06T16:01:52-04:00July 6th, 2022|Categories: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Congress, Democrats, Medicare|

Republican Roundtable Revives Wrongheaded Ideas for Social Security

GOP members of the House Ways and Means Committee held an all-Republican roundtable on the future of the program on June 29. That’s a little like holding an all-Red Sox roundtable on the future of the Yankees. Republicans have spent four decades devising ways to undermine Social Security – including their triad of terrible ideas: raising the retirement age, means-testing benefits, and privatizing the program

NCPSSM2022-07-05T16:10:01-04:00July 1st, 2022|Categories: Democrats, privatization, Rep. John Larson, Republicans, Social Security|

SSA Woefully Underfunded, Struggling to Provide Customer Service, Witnesses Tell Congress

Witness after witness at Tuesday’s Congressional hearing on Social Security Administration (SSA) customer service testified that the agency is in dire need of additional resources in order to properly serve the public. The hearing was held by the House Ways and Means Social Security subcommittee, chaired by Rep. John Larson (D-CT), with testimony from a variety of witnesses from SSA and advocacy groups.

NCPSSM2022-05-18T11:29:21-04:00May 18th, 2022|Categories: Congress, Democrats, Max Richtman, Rep. John Larson, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA)|

The Part D Prescription Drug Bait and Switch

Medicare Part D prescription drug beneficiaries can be in for a rude surprise after they sign up for coverage. In an article this week in Kaiser Health News, Susan Jaffe writes that the price of a drug may jump within a month of a patient enrolling in the Part D drug plan

NCPSSM2022-05-06T10:51:04-04:00May 5th, 2022|Categories: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Congress, Democrats, Medicare, Medicare Drug Coverage and Costs, Prescription Drug Prices, President Biden|

It’s Time to Bring Back the House Select Committee on Aging

Some two decades ago, seniors had a Congressional committee dedicated solely to safeguarding their interests. Then the Republicans, led by Speaker Newt Gingrich, took control of the House for the first time in 40 years and shut down the House Select Committee on Aging. Today, there is a movement to revive that committee – and there truly is no moment since 1994 when it has been so sorely needed.

NCPSSM2022-05-04T10:04:32-04:00April 25th, 2022|Categories: Congress, Democrats, Medicaid, Medicare, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, Retirement, Trump|

$35 Insulin Cap Would Save Seniors Money, But Leave Drug Prices Untouched

The U.S. House took a big step toward saving seniors money on a life-saving drug. On Thursday, lawmakers voted to enact a $35 cap on the cost of insulin for “most Americans who depend on it."

NCPSSM2022-04-01T15:28:45-04:00April 1st, 2022|Categories: Democrats, Medicare, Part D, Prescription Drug Prices, President Biden|

What Does the President’s Budget Mean for Seniors?

There’s encouraging news for seniors in President Biden’s FY2023 budget, even though it does not contain everything that advocates for older Americans had hoped. The budget, which now will be submitted to Congress, includes crucial funding for services that seniors rely upon – from the operation of the Social Security Administration (SSA) to nutrition programs under the Older Americans Act.

NCPSSM2022-03-28T15:13:27-04:00March 28th, 2022|Categories: Boost Social Security, Budget, Congress, COVID, Democrats, Long term care, Medicare, Prescription Drug Prices, President Biden, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Uncategorized|

Seniors’ Programs in Jeopardy if Republicans Retake Majority

Any older voters inclined to put the GOP back in control of the House and Senate in November’s elections might well remember what the Republicans have long wanted to do to their earned benefits. As if to provide that very reminder, Senator Rick Scott, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, released a plan last week that would terminate Social Security and Medicare.