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Medicare to Pay for Physical Therapy, Nursing Care and Other Services for Beneficiaries with Chronic Diseases
n January, Medicare officials updated the agency’s policy manual so that the program will now pay for physical therapy, nursing care and other services for beneficiaries with chronic diseases like Alzheimer’s disease in order to maintain their condition and prevent…
Column: Tips on maximizing Social Security
Social Security is often one of the most overlooked aspects of proper retirement income planning. Here are some specific rules to keep in mind as you start factoring your Social Security benefits into your retirement planning. You contribute 6.2 percent of…
VA Disability Claims Backlog Drops by 44 Percent
One year after the backlog of pending disability compensation claims peaked at over 611,000 in March 2013, the Department of Veterans Affairs has reduced that number by approximately 44 percent to 344,000 claims — a reduction of more than 267,000…
Delaying Social Security: What an Investment!
A lot of people claim their Social Security benefits at the earliest possible age of 62. Social Security Administration data which I’ve worked with showed that 50% of beneficiaries in 2004 had done this. Though I don’t know what that…
How the Rich (and Poor) Avoid Paying Income Taxes
Tax reform has become a hot-button issue in Congress and among taxpayers as discussion continues about whether the wealthy pay their fair share. But the issue is much deeper than a brewing controversy between the haves and have-nots. An examination…
EDITORIAL: The Social Security disability con – Feds must pay closer attention to crooks and schemers
Swindlers are drawn to big government like flies on watermelon, honey and other sweets. Bureaucrats hold a bottomless purse, and they’re not particular about what happens to the cash within. It is, after all, someone else’s money. James W. Smith of Hermantown,…
Disability claims backlog will disappear in 2015, Shinseki says
The Veterans Affairs Department is still on pace to clear its disability claims backlog by the end of 2015, so long as the agency is given adequate money for information technology programs and claims processors’ overtime pay, VA Secretary Eric…
GPO, WEP and Your Future Social Security Benefits
The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) are two provisions of the Social Security law that affect Social Security benefits to which CSRS retirees may be entitled. The WEP can apply to CSRS Offset and FERS Transferee retirees…
Social Security Disability with Brown and Crouppen
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is a federal program that gives cash benefits to disabled people who are unable to work. Work Qualifications To qualify for benefits, you must first have worked in jobs covered by Social Security. Not every employee is…
New regulation would hike premium and drug costs for Medicare Part D users
An effort by the Obama Administration to impose new, unnecessary regulations on the Medicare prescription drug benefit, Part D, is nearing the final stage and would increase costs for seniors. The Administration’s effort to destabilize Medicare Part D has been…