AARP to use its 38 million members to pressure Congress to reject new GOP healthcare bill.

Courtesy of PR Newswire:

AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond released the following statement today in response to the pending vote on the House bill that would create an "Age Tax," weaken Medicare's solvency, put at risk seniors' ability to live independently as they age, and give sweetheart deals to big drug and insurance companies. In a letter sent to all 435 members of the House of Representatives, AARP maintained its strong opposition to this harmful bill and urged each Representative to vote 'No' on the proposed legislation. AARP believes this legislation will have a significant negative impact on the health of millions of older Americans ages 50 to 64, as well as other vulnerable groups, including poor seniors and disabled children and adults. 

"AARP recognizes the magnitude of the upcoming vote on this harmful legislation that creates an Age Tax, cuts the life of Medicare, and gives sweetheart deals to big drug and insurance companies while doing nothing to lower the cost of health care or prescriptions. We intend on letting all 38 million of our members know exactly how their Representative voted. Our members care deeply about their health care and have told us repeatedly that they want to know where their elected officials stand. We will communicate the results of the House vote to our members and the public through The Bulletin, a print publication that goes to all of our members, as well as through emails, social media, and other communications channels. 

"This bill, if passed in its current form, will disproportionately hurt older adults between the ages of 50 and 64 by dramatically increasing insurance premiums to unaffordable rates. Allowing insurance companies to charge older adults an Age Tax 5 times or more than others for health insurance, and reducing tax credits to help pay for it, is quite simply unfair. "

AARP is also concerned that this bill weakens the fiscal sustainability of Medicare, reduces cost-sharing help for out-of-pocket costs for 50- to 64-year-olds purchasing coverage on the individual insurance market, increases the number of uninsured Americans, and puts at risk the health and well-being of millions of poor seniors and disabled adults and children by capping funding for much needed services that allow individuals to live independently in their homes and communities. 

"We are also profoundly disappointed that the big drug and insurance companies were given sweetheart deals while nothing was done to lower the cost of health care or prescriptions. Congress must do more to bring down the unsustainably high health care and prescription drug costs for consumers and taxpayers."

Well if the NRA can get Republicans to bend to their will with only five million members imagine what AARP can accomplish with a whopping 38 million?

And this 50 to 65 age group is EXACTLY the demographic that turned out in force for Donald Trump.

He loses them, he loses everything. 

Yeah, I don't see this GOP bill making it much further. 

Wasilla lawmaker suggests that if senior citizens don't like her budget cuts because then they can't afford to live in Alaska they should get the hell out.

Courtesy of KTVA:  

Rep. Lynn Gattis says seniors who can’t afford to live in Alaska, should consider moving out of state. AARP, a senior citizens advocacy group, warns reductions in the state budget proposed last week by the House Finance Committee, which includes Gattis, may force many to leave. 

“I had that in my mind that I wanted to grow old and die here in Alaska,” said Ken Helander, associate state director for AARP. “I don’t know if I’m going to be able to. It frightens me to think of that.” 

Alaska has the fastest growing senior population in the nation, and AARP said House members are targeting seniors with their scissors. According to calculations by the group, the Alaska House of Representatives is proposing more than $23 million in cuts to programs that will affect Alaska seniors. 

Gattis said she thinks seniors might be better off elsewhere anyway. 

“Alaska is a tough state for older folks to live in: slipping, falling, icy so on and so forth,” Gattis said. “So if you’re not working, on a fixed income, sometimes there are other places that are less expensive to live.”

You know what, all of us are getting older.

However many of the elderly living in Alaska are some of the toughest old coots you ever want to meet.

Some of these folks have been living here since before it was a state, when driving on a paved road was a rare occurrence, and EVERYBODY dug their own wells and cesspools, and raised much of their own food.

So if they want to live the rest of their lives in one of the most beautiful places on this planet, well by gosh they should have that right and nobody should suggest otherwise.

And perhaps somebody should tell this Lynn Gattis lady that another group who has trouble navigating on icy sidewalks are fat people, so perhaps she should hoist her lard ass onto a plane and fly the fuck out of our state before some elderly lady gives her a good old fashion Alaska beat down.

Or if that seems too extreme perhaps she could simply shift her attention to being a good parent for a change.

New study shows that Social Security pumps $2 into the economy for every $1 paid out in benefits.

Courtesy of AARP:  

A new report by the AARP Public Policy Institute, "Social Security's Impact on the National Economy," found that Social Security adds more than $1 trillion to the U.S. economy each year. People who receive Social Security benefits are not saving that money for a rainy day. They're spending it on goods and services — pumping it back into the economy. We have to remember that the typical older American has an income of about $22,000 a year, and Social Security accounts for about half of a typical older family's income. 

Businesses use the income to purchase more goods and services, to realize profits and to hire more employees. Those employees, in turn, spend their wages on more goods and services, which creates more spending and income for more people. This creates a powerful multiplier effect that benefits the economy, businesses and workers. In fact, our report found that every dollar in Social Security benefits paid out generates about $2 of total output for the U.S. economy. 

In 2012, spending by Social Security beneficiaries, combined with the added spending by businesses, generated roughly $1.5 trillion in total economic output. 

This spending in turn supported more than 9 million jobs in the national economy. About 4 million of these jobs were created in just 10 industries. The largest impact was seen in the food services, real estate, health care and retail industries. 

Thanks to the benefits provided by Social Security, nearly 21.4 million Americans avoided poverty: 1.1 million children, 5.8 million adults under 65, and 14.5 million adults 65-plus.

 Of course despite this the Republicans party has been attempting to undermine Social Security since its very inception. And just like Medicare, and now the Affordable Care Act, these are programs that ultimately benefit not just the individual but also the country at large.

I look forward to the day when a report comes out detailing the incredibly positive benefits that Obamacare has had on the nation. Because eventually you KNOW it's coming.