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Friday Alert
Thursday, July 3, 2008(Alliance for Retired Americans)
Senate to Vote Again on H.R. 6331,
Medicare Bill That Fell Short by One
Vote
After opponents of H.R. 6331,
the "Medicare Improvements for Patients and
Providers Act of 2008," were able to prevent
the measure from coming up for a vote last
week, the Bush administration
moved on Monday to assure doctors that coming
cuts in Medicare reimbursements would not kick
in for a few days. Many Republicans
oppose the bill because it would take away
subsidies from Medicare Advantage private
insurance plans. According to the
publication Politico, the vote has
Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA)
“scrambling to explain himself,” and GOP aides
wondering why their party’s leadership has
risked infuriating formerly loyal
doctors. The measure would have passed if
Sen. Specter, who had supported a similar bill
earlier, had not voted against it after some
“eleventh-hour dealing with the White
House.” All sides say they want to
forestall the physician pay cut. But
paying for the fix has grown into a larger
ideological battle over the direction of
Medicare and how best to both rein in the costs
of medical equipment and drugs and balance
demands for private market alternatives to
traditional government-run care for older
Americans, according to
Politico. In an attempt to “calm
the waters,” the Bush administration announced
Monday that Medicare will not be processing
claims in the first half of July, in order to
avoid having to factor in the 10.6% pay cut
before Senate Majority Leader Harry
Reid (D-NV) forces another vote when
the Senate returns from recess on July 7.
However, that hold will create a backlog in
Medicare’s claims processing. “There is
an awful lot of pressure on Sen. Specter and
other Senators to do the right thing, look out
for the best interests of retirees, and vote
for H.R. 6331,” said George J.
Kourpias, President of the
Alliance. “Thank you to all the
Pennsylvania Alliance members who e-mailed
Senator Specter and advised him to reconsider
when he has a chance to vote again.”
IRS Still Reaching Out to Millions
of Potential Stimulus Check
Recipients
The Internal Revenue
Service has issued over 76 million checks
together worth $63.8 billion to Americans
eligible for economic stimulus payments;
however, the delivery of payments to retirees
and disabled veterans remains incomplete.
To issue a payment, the IRS needs to have a
person’s 2007 income tax return. There
are 20 million retirees and disabled veterans
who do not normally file tax returns because
their benefits are not taxable. The IRS
has successfully contacted 74% of this elusive
group, but 5.2 million retirees and disabled
veterans have yet to send in the necessary
information to the IRS. Later this
summer, the IRS will send out a special letter
containing information on stimulus payment
eligibility and how to claim it, a sample tax
form, and a real tax form that can be filled
out and mailed back to the IRS. People
who would not normally file a tax return should
file Form 1040A. Recipients must have
$3,000 in qualifying income, which includes
certain types of Social Security and Veteran
Affairs benefits. “It is not too late to
file your 2007 income taxes and get a stimulus
check,” said Ruben Burks,
Secretary-Treasurer of the Alliance.
“October 15 is the absolute cut-off for
filing.”
Ohio Alliance Member Speaks at
“Bush Legacy Tour” Event
Ohio
Alliance for Retired Americans Zone Coordinator
Dan Fonte spoke at an
Americans United for Change (AUFC) “Bush Legacy
Tour” event in Canton, Ohio, on Monday.
The tour consists of a biodiesel-powered bus
with an interior full of interactive exhibits
on Bush administration policy failures, such as
its response to Hurricane Katrina and economic
policies that favor the wealthy. At the
event in Canton, Mr. Fonte discussed the toll
that the Bush agenda has taken on workers and
retirees. After asking whether the crowd
was better off than it was eight years ago, Mr.
Fonte answered his own question. “Let’s
see: higher gas prices, higher food prices,
higher home heating prices, higher electricity
bills, more debt, record home foreclosures,
school systems in trouble, and health care we
can’t afford.” The cross-country tour
will make 150 stops in 41 states.
Connecticut Re-Establishes
Department of Aging
On Wednesday,
July 9th, Connecticut Governor M. Jodi
Rell and State Senator Edith
Prague (D-S19) will hold a press
conference announcing the re-establishment of
an independent Connecticut Department on Aging
as of July 1st, 2009. The state has not
had such an agency since 1993, when it was
absorbed into the Department of Social Services
as the Elderly Services Division. Sen.
Prague, who spearheaded the agency’s
development as Vice Chair of the Select
Committee on Aging, served as a Commissioner of
that department prior to its move. The
Connecticut Alliance for Retired Americans has
long advocated for the creation of a separate
aging agency, and has been invited by Senator
Prague to attend this announcement. For
more information, please contact Connecticut
President Kevin Lynch, at
(860) 523-8206 or kmblynch@sbcglobal.net.
Florida Alliance Goes to Court to
Defend Free Speech
A hearing was
held on June 25 in Miami to try to reach a
settlement over a lawsuit between several
Florida municipalities and the AFL-CIO, the
Florida Alliance (FLARA), and several
individuals who were harmed by police actions
during a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)
demonstration in 2003. A settlement was
reached with the municipalities of Haileah,
Miami-Dade, and Fort Lauderdale. However,
FLARA President Tony Fransetta
facilitated agreement among the co-plaintiffs
that the offers from other municipalities were
unacceptable, and the group will proceed to
trial against others who harmed them.
Note to Political Convention
Delegates
Are you a delegate to the
national Democratic political convention in
Denver or the Republican political convention
in Minneapolis – St. Paul? The Alliance
is keeping track of our members who will be in
attendance for inclusion in related Alliance
events. Please let us know you will be
there by e-mailing arafridayalert@retiredamericans.org.
HAVE A HAPPY, SAFE FOURTH OF JULY
HOLIDAY. THE NEXT FRIDAY ALERT WILL BE
PUBLISHED ON JULY 11, 2008.