News Progress

•December 6, 2017• Influenza (flu) activity is starting to increase across the country just as friends and family are coming together for the holidays. Getting a flu shot is the best line of defense when it comes to protecting yourself, and those around you, from getting the flu. The flu causes millions of illnesses, hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations, and thousands or tens of thousands of deaths each year in the United States. The majority of hospitalizations and deaths occur in people 65 years and older, but even healthy young children and younger adults can have severe disease or even … Read More

•December 6, 2017• By Gerald Tilley Social Security District Manager Next payday, when you see a portion of your wages go toward FICA taxes, rest easier knowing that your investment in Social Security brings a lifetime of protections for you and your family. From your first job and throughout your career, we track your earnings and give you credits for the contributions you’ve made through payroll taxes. Those credits can translate into important future benefits.  … Read More

•December 6, 2017• By Wendell Potter, Rural Health News Service Medicare and drug coverage: some good news, some bad One of the benefits of the Affordable Care Act to Medicare beneficiaries has been the gradual closing of a big and costly gap called the “doughnut hole” in the prescription drug (Medicare Part D) program. By the end of 2020—if the ACA is not repealed or altered substantially by Congress—the doughnut hole will be completely closed. In 2010, people hit the doughnut hole coverage gap when the total amount they and their plan had paid for prescription drugs reached $2,800 in … Read More