Joe Biden

The Worldwide Debate Over Raising The Retirement Age

In the U.S., some Republican lawmakers are proposing  to raise the age of eligibility for full Social Security benefits, provoking withering criticism from President Biden and many Democrats. But the debate over when government should begin paying retirement benefits isn’t just a controversy here. It is happening all over the world. French President Emmanuel Macron has proposed gradually raising the [...]

By |2023-03-15T11:20:25-04:00March 15th, 2023|Social Security|0 Comments

Biden Would Make Big Changes In How Medicare Hospital Insurance Is Funded

In his budget due to be released tomorrow, President Biden will propose major changes in the way Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance program is funded. To ensure the program’s solvency, he’d shift hundreds of billions of dollars in tax revenues and allocate $200 billion in cost savings from other parts of Medicare to the hospital insurance (HI) trust fund. Biden’s [...]

By |2023-03-08T11:12:51-05:00March 8th, 2023|Medicare|0 Comments

Politicians Arguing Again About Social Security. That’s Good

Suddenly, Social Security reform is back in the news. For all the wrong reasons, perhaps. But at least politicians are talking about it. And that’s a good thing. After all, in only about a dozen years, the Social Security Old Age trust fund will be insolvent and able to pay only about three-quarters of its promised benefits. Despite that looming [...]

By |2022-10-26T11:21:12-04:00October 26th, 2022|Social Security|0 Comments

Congress’ Epic Fail In Caring For Frail Older Adults

One would have thought that after more than 750,000 Covid-19 related deaths among older adults in the US and more than 200,000 deaths among residents and staffs of long-term care facilities that Congress would act to improve the nation’s long-term care system. One would have been wrong. Except for including about $12 billion in federal funds to temporarily expand Medicaid’s [...]

By |2022-07-18T15:46:45-04:00July 18th, 2022|long term care reform|0 Comments

Biden’s Plan To Expand Broadband Will Be A Huge Help To Older Adults

On Monday, President Biden announced a deal with 20 Internet service providers, such as AT&T and Comcast, to provide high-speed broadband  to low-income households for no more than $30-a-month. That’s less than half the average 2021 cost of $61 and far less in many areas. That initiative, and an even bigger companion program to build out broadband in communities that [...]

By |2022-05-12T11:14:07-04:00May 12th, 2022|Health Care|0 Comments

A Blue-Ribbon Panel Calls Nursing Home Care “Ineffective, Inefficient, Fragmented, And Unsustainable”

A blue-ribbon panel of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine has issued a scathing report on the state of nursing homes in the US. Operators, owners, regulators, and payors all are failing patients and residents, the report said. “The way in which the United States finances, delivers, and regulates care in nursing home settings is ineffective, inefficient, fragmented, [...]

By |2022-04-06T17:10:28-04:00April 6th, 2022|nursing homes|0 Comments

Even After Covid, Could Congress Ignore The Long-Term Care Needs Of Older Adults?

Is it possible that Congress will do nothing to improve long-term services and supports for older adults and younger people with disabilities or assist their families? Even after 603,000 people over age 65 were killed by Covid-19 in the past two years. Yes, it is possible. The House version of President Biden’s Build Back Better plan included many provisions aimed [...]

By |2022-01-03T12:29:47-05:00January 3rd, 2022|long term care reform|0 Comments

The House Build Back Better Bill Makes Historic Changes for Older Adults, But Care Gaps Remain

The Build Back Better social spending bill the House passed this morning includes a long list of important changes aimed at improving the quality of life of older adults. There is much left to be done, and even this bill may be pared back in the Senate. But following the pandemic catastrophe for older adults, it would be significant progress. [...]

By |2021-11-19T15:16:56-05:00November 19th, 2021|long term care reform|0 Comments

Biden’s Vaccine Order Will Require Most, But Not All, Long-Term Care Providers To Get Jabbed

In an attempt to get a handle on the persistent Covid-19 pandemic, President Biden yesterday issued a broad executive order mandating vaccines for a large segment of the US economy, including most of the medical and long-term care industries. His order should give families comfort that most licensed providers, from doctors to home health aides, will be vaccinated. But it [...]

By |2021-09-10T14:52:56-04:00September 10th, 2021|Health Care|0 Comments

Adding Dental, Vision, And Hearing To Traditional Medicare Would Be Expensive, But Important

Congressional Democrats are expected to include a broad expansion of traditional Medicare benefits-- including dental, vision, and hearing—in a $3.5 trillion social spending bill they’ll consider later this year. The move would be the biggest expansion of Medicare since Congress added a drug benefit in 2003 and would go a long way toward improving the health and well-being of millions [...]

By |2021-07-22T10:47:23-04:00July 22nd, 2021|Medicare, Uncategorized|3 Comments