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One in
Seven Seniors faces Social Security Check
Cuts in 2010…At
least 6.8 million affected; Total could
include millions more
WASHINGTON, June 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/
-- Close to seven million seniors -- one in
every seven -- will receive a smaller Social
Security check next year, according to a new
analysis by The Senior Citizens League (TSCL).
Millions of other seniors who do not have
their Medicare premiums automatically
deducted from their checks will also have
fewer Social Security dollars leftover next
year.
These seniors will be affected because their
Social Security Cost of Living Adjustment
(COLA) is forecast to be zero next year,
while their Medicare Part B (doctors'
visits, tests, and outpatient hospital
care), Part C (Medicare Advantage) and/or
Part D (prescription drugs) premiums are
forecast to rise.
Affected seniors generally fall into one of
two groups, if not both:
1. MEDICARE PART B: HOLD HARMLESS PROVISION:
Approximately three million seniors will
endure cuts because they are not protected
by a "hold harmless" provision that prevents
the vast majority of beneficiaries from receiving smaller Social Security checks in years when
Medicare Part B premiums exceed the COLA.
Two groups of seniors will not receive hold
harmless protection in 2010:
a. MEANS TESTING: 2,121,500 beneficiaries who pay
higher premiums due to Part B "means
testing." Individuals with adjusted gross
incomes (AGI) above $85,000 and couples over
$170,000 are affected.
b. NEW ENROLLEES: 848,000 new enrollees will pay the
2010 premium rate, forecast by Medicare's
Trustees to be $104.20 per month, instead of
the current rate of $96.40 per month that
tens of millions of seniors will continue to
pay next year due to hold
harmless.
2. MEDICARE PARTS C & D: More than 3.8
million other seniors will see smaller
Social Security checks next year due solely
to likely increases in Medicare Parts C and
D, for which no hold harmless provision
exists.
Note: Millions of other seniors will also be
affected, as our estimate includes just
those who will have automatic reductions to
their Social Security checks. Additional
millions of seniors who pay plans directly
will also have fewer Social Security dollars
leftover next year.
"It's bad enough that seniors will have to
endure rising costs next year without an
increase in their Social Security checks --
but to actually cut checks for millions of
seniors in this economy borders on cruelty,"
said Daniel O'Connell, TSCL chairman.
"Our members are already unable to afford
their prescriptions, rent, and air
conditioning. We simply can't survive
year-after-year of cuts."
See "Night in America," our latest video
about seniors at risk, at
www.YouTube.com/SeniorCitizensLeague.
A majority of those aged 65 and over who
receive a Social Security check depend on it
for at least 50 percent of their total
income, and one in three beneficiaries rely
on it for 90 percent or more of their total
income.
TSCL is lobbying for a change in the
Consumer Price Index (CPI) used to determine
the COLA.
TSCL supports two CPI-E (Consumer Price
Index for the Elderly) bills in the current
Congress: H.R. 2429 and H.R. 2365.
With 1.2 million supporters, The Senior
Citizens League (TSCL) is one of the
nation's largest nonpartisan seniors groups.
TSCL is a proud affiliate of The Retired
Enlisted Association.
Source:
The Senior Citizens League
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