'Retirement Security'
Alliance for Retired Americans
I am a big fan of the Alliance for Retired Americans. The mission of the Alliance for Retired Americans is “to ensure social and economic justice and full civil rights for all citizens so that they may enjoy lives of dignity, personal and family fulfillment and security.” The organization has an excellent newsletter [...]
Medicaid Funding: Robin Hood in Reverse
I like the Coalition on Human Needs. “The Coalition on Human Needs is an alliance of national organizations working together to promote public policies that address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable people.” The Coalition represents passionate, staunch defenders of good public policy. CHN provides a wealth of important public [...]
Medicaid in Alaska: The Basics
One of every two children born in Alaska is born with the assistance of Medicaid. Nearly one of every four Alaskans is served by Medicaid. Medicaid is the largest health insurance program in Alaska–it is far bigger than Blue Cross/Blue Shield or any other health insurance program in the State, yet the importance [...]
Letter From AARP to Don Young
This letter addresses an important public policy issue that affects Alaskans. The letter was written by Pat Luby, Advocacy Director for AARP Alaska. It is a good letter, and is an important read if you have not seen it before. Pat has the highly valued ability of making difficult public policy issues [...]
Feds Negotiate Lower Drug Prices Than Private Sector
As implementation of the new Medicare prescription drug program draws near, both conservatives and liberals in Washington are fretting over the potential cost of the program. To deal with this problem, congressional architects of the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA) created a program in which private companies would negotiate directly with drug companies to obtain discounts [...]
Alaska Retirement Systems Workshop
You know the Legislature did “something†to PERS and TRS, but do you know what?
Senate Bill 141 changed the retirement options for any public employee hired after July 1, 2006. This includes all teachers, municipal employees (including firefighters and police officers) and state employees.
Audit the PERS/TERS Disaster
It’s like closing the barn door after all the horses have escaped, but it is a start. Last week Rep. Mike Kelly called for a legislative audit of the state’s pension retirement systems to determine how the programs ended up with a $5.7 billion shortfall. It appears as though a number of Rep. [...]
Cut the Cake, Not the Benefits
Today, August 14, is Social Security’s birthday. Happy Birthday Social Security! You have a lot to be proud of. Here are the top ten reasons why…
Fact #1: About half of the elderly have incomes that, without Social Security, leave them below the poverty line. Social Security lifts 13 million elderly Americans above [...]