Fifty Plus Advocates

BOSTON — Republicans and Democrats in Massachusetts are faulting President Barack Obama for proposing changes that would trim Social Security and Medicare benefits. The changes, included in a federal budget plan released by the president Wednesday, would switch the way the government calculates annual cost-of-living adjustments for recipients of Social Security and other government benefit [...]

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WASHINGTON — Seeking an elusive middle ground, President Barack Obama is proposing a 2014 budget that embraces tax increases abhorred by Republicans as well as reductions, loathed by liberals, in the growth of Social Security and other benefit programs. The plan, if ever enacted, could touch almost all Americans. The rich would see tax increases, [...]

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By Matthew Perrone WASHINGTON — TV ads show smiling seniors enjoying an “active” lifestyle on a motorized scooter, taking in the sights at the Grand Canyon, fishing on a pier and high-fiving their grandchildren at a baseball game. The commercials, which promise freedom and independence to people with limited mobility, have driven the nearly $1 [...]

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BOSTON, Feb. 28 — Ann Hartstein, Secretary of the Executive Office of Elder Affairs (EOEA), testified before the Joint Committee on Ways and Means about the FY 14 budget which is now being developed on Beacon Hill. “I want to start with demographics, ”Hartstein told lawmakers. “Baby boomers who are now turning 65, are doing [...]

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WASHINGTON, March 16 — President Barack Obama’s widely publicized recent string of meetings with rank-and-file Republican and Democratic lawmakers earned him public praise from even some of his most implacable critics. But for all the warm talk, no breakthroughs were anticipated and none emerged to break the impasse between the White House and Congress over [...]

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By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar
 WASHINGTON — Applying for benefits under President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul could be as daunting as doing your taxes. The government’s draft application runs 15 pages for a three-person family. An outline of the online version has 21 steps, some with additional questions. Seven months before the Oct. 1 start of [...]

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