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SSI Savers Act of 2011
Congressman Tom Petri (R-WI) and Congresswoman Niki Tsongas (D-MA) plan to reintroduce a bill by the end of May that would reform the asset limit test of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program.
The legislation would increase opportunities for people with disabilities to open bank accounts, build up savings, and work.
Background: In general, eligibility for SSI is limited to those who have no more than $2,000 in assets for an individual and $3,000 for a couple. The SSI test also generally counts all resources deemed accessible to an individual, including defined-contribution retirement accounts, such as 401(k)s and IRAs, as subject to the asset limit. These outdated rules pose a serious obstacle to financial self-reliance. Because beneficiaries of SSI are allowed little savings to fall back on, there is a tendency to rely on government assistance.
Proposal - The SSI Savers Act of 2011 proposes the following:
Increase asset limits to $5,000 and $7,500 respectively, and index those limits to inflation. For recipients younger than 65, the bill excludes retirement accounts, education savings, and individual development accounts from counting against the limit. For recipients 65 and older, it allows retirement accounts up to $50,000 (single) / $75,000 (married) to reduce SSI benefits instead of creating an immediate cut off.
Medicaid
There is a call in congress to convert Medicaid to a block grant program (putting global caps on spending). Legislation is moving through the House to remove the maintenance of effort (MOE) requirement for Medicaid in the Affordable Care Act, which could result in states making drastic cuts to Medicaid eligibility levels. The proposals do not address underlying health care spending. Instead, they shift costs onto the states, seniors and people with disabilities.
To assess the human impact of the proposed Medicaid cuts, Families USA produced the report, Cutting Medicaid: Harming Seniors and People with Disabilities Who Need Long-Term Care. This report is accompanied by reports for each state, to clarify the harm these cuts would bring to people in your community. Families USA also analyzed the detrimental effects of removing the maintenance of effort requirement on both seniors and people with disabilities in a fact sheet: Protecting Seniors and People with Disabilities: Why It Is Important to Preserve the Maintenance of Effort Requirement in the Affordable Care Act.
To see how Arizona would be specifically affected, see this fact sheet.
Electronic Medical Records
Many families of children with high medical needs eagerly look forward to the day that their child's medical records can be accessed online in a reliable, safe way. As the varied interests in maintaining health records try to work through issues impeding rapid adoption of electronic systems, problems continue to impede progress. Agreement on standards, security and privacy issues, high cost, and universal access are some of the challenges.
PBS Newshour recently on Push for Electronic Medical Records Overlooks Security Gaps.
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