Issue
Brief: Health Care We Can Count On (November
2007)
This issue brief from the
Alliance for Retired Americans Educational Fund
(ARAEF) examines the stake that retirees have
in the health care reform discussion and why
their involvement is critical if there is to be
universal coverage with an adequate benefits
package. In particular, questions need to be
raised and answered on prospective changes to
Medicare, retiree health care, long-term care,
and the health security of younger
generations.
Outrageous
Fortune (September
2007)
Through patent
extensions, inflated price information,
superficial lawsuits, political contributions,
lobbying and marketing, and lucrative
opportunities with the Medicare Modernization
Act Part D benefit, the pharmaceutical industry
has been able to increase as well as protect
its profits while plundering the pockets of the
American people.
Medicare
Under Attack: Will Privatizing Measures Destroy
the Program? (August
2007)
Since the 1965
enactment of Medicare, the program has provided
hospital and outpatient health care coverage
for persons over age 65 and younger adults with
permanent disabilities. This issue brief from
the Alliance for Retired Americans Educational
Fund (ARAEF) outlines the evolution of the
privatization of Medicare and what it means to
the future of the program and well-being of
Medicare beneficiaries.
Medicare
Advantage: A Windfall For Insurers; Downfall
for Beneficiaries (August
2007)
Nearly 44
million Americans are Medicare beneficiaries.
Although 80 percent receive their health care
services through the traditional Medicare
program, about one in five—8.7
million—receive care through Medicare
Advantage (MA) plans. This issue brief from the
Alliance for Retired Americans Educational Fund
(ARAEF) provides an overview of the
shortcomings of Medicare Advantage plans
overall and of the fastest growing of MA plan
types, the Private Fee-For-Service (PFFS)
plans, in particular.
[Issue Brief] Understanding
Medicare's Preventive Services (Aug
2006)
This report highlights the
preventive care services and demonstration
projects provided by the Centers for Medicare
& Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal
agency that administers these programs.
Medicare
IB 2 806 final.pdf
[Issue Brief] How Medicare
Part D Fares and What Lies Ahead (Aug
2006)
The new Medicare
prescription drug law was created under great
controversy and implemented with confusion
and uncertainty. In this report,
the Alliance for Retired Americans Educational
Fund examines the issues seniors faced in
enrolling in a drug plan, and the subsequent
economic and health care ramifications of this
new law.
Medicare
IB
806.pdf
[Issue Brief] Long-Term Care
Policy: Its Time Has Come...Again (Nov 2005 -
No. 8)
An increasing
number of Americans will need long-term care in
the future and the costs are expected to rise.
Yet long-term care languishes in the health
policy background despite widespread public
support for action. This brief provides an
overview of essential factors that should be
considered in developing a long-term care
policy for the nation.
WHCoA_November2005_web.pdf
[Issue
Brief] Vanishing: Pensions and Savings (Sept
2005 - No. 7)
The movement
away from guaranteed pension benefits creates
the potential for economic hardship for
millions of Americans during their retirement
years. This report examines the shifting trends
in employer-sponsored pension and retirement
savings plans in the private sector and makes
recommendations for protecting existing
benefits and expanding coverage for those
workers who are not participating in any plan.
WHCoA_Sept05_web.pdf
[Issue
Brief] An Affordable Home of One's Own (Aug
2005 - No. 6)
In an inflated housing market,
many older Americans are finding it difficult
to find or maintain homes that meet their
physical and financial needs. As America ages,
the need for affordable, quality housing is
increasingly important. This report examines
the housing needs of older Americans, the
status of federal housing programs, and what
actions may be taken on the federal, state, and
local levels to address what has been
characterized as a "quiet crisis in
America."
WHCoA_August_FINAL_web.pdf
[Issue
Brief] Retiring
Into Work (Jul 2005 - No. 5)
(PDF: 155KB)
Working in later life
often supplements other sources of retirement
income, such as Social Security, pensions and
savings, and it is likely to become even more
important in the future. This report explores
the advantages and disadvantages of working
longer and the practices that can encourage
continued participation in the labor force at
older ages.
[Issue
Brief] Medicare
Rx Drug Benefit: Navigating Low-Income
Assistance (Jun 2005 - No. 4)
(PDF: 150KB)
Under the Medicare
Prescription Drug, Improvement, and
Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003, all Medicare
beneficiaries who have Medicare Part A
(Hospital Insurance) or Part B (Medical
Insurance for doctor services and outpatient
care) will have access to prescription drug
benefits. Most individuals will obtain drug
coverage through private plans. This report
provides basic information for low-income
beneficiaries, their families and their
advocates about the application process for
assistance and
enrollment.
[Issue
Brief] Medicare
Prescription Drug Benefit: A Guide Through the
Maze (May 2005 - No. 3) (PDF: 157KB)
This report provides
basic information individuals need to
understand the prescription drug benefit, the
implementation process, the decisions and
actions they must take, and the resources
available to them.
[Issue
Brief] Social
Security for All Ages (Apr 2005 - No.
2) (PDF:
161KB)
This issue brief draws
upon a report released earlier by the Alliance
for Retired Americans Educational Fund, Social
Security Under Attack. It highlights how the
Social Security program works, the protections
that it provides, key points about the effects
of privatization and how minor adjustments will
provide for promised benefits over the next 75
years.
[Report]
Social
Security Under Attack
(PDF: 11MB - NOTE: This is a very large
file*)
For nearly 70 years,
Social Security has been the bedrock of income
security for nearly all Americans, providing
benefits to retirees, those with disabilities,
and the survivors of retired and deceased
workers. The program has never missed a
benefits payment in its history. However, the
program is threatened by proposals to divert a
portion of payroll contributions from the
Social Security Trust Fund into private
accounts. This report examines the effects of
privatization and offers better solutions. An
appendix reviews how the program works and the
protections that is provides. [*To request
printed copies of the report, please call
1-888-633-4435.]
[Issue
Brief] White
House Conference on Aging 2005 (Feb 2005 - No.
1) (PDF:
2.4MB)
This report is the
first in a series from the Alliance for Retired
Americans Educational Fund, leading up to the
White House Conference on Aging (WHCoA),
tentatively scheduled for October 23-26, 2005
(this may change to a later date) in
Washington, D.C. As a framework for the series,
this brief presents background on the
conference, a profile of the baby boom
population, which will be a major focus of the
October meeting, a history of WHCoAs, and the
reflections of a federal official who
participated in the first conference in 1961.
Subsequent briefs will focus on issues and
programs that must be considered at the WHCoA
as the nation’s boomers become retirees.
These topics will include Social Security,
Medicare, pensions, work and retirement, health
care status and coverage, long-term care,
housing, transportation and the Older Americans
Act.
[Report]
Broken
Promises-Retiree Health Care (PDF: 896KB)
Health plans for
retirees over and under age 65 in America today
are not keeping pace with the needs of the
nation’s retirees. Most early retirees are
without coverage and those who have it face
increasing cost-sharing. For those over age 65,
Medicare is typically the primary source of
health insurance coverage but the program
covers little more than half of health care
costs. This report assesses current public and
private approaches to retiree health care
coverage.
