Social Security: No 2011 increase expected

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Chances are high that for the second year in a row Social Security beneficiaries will see no increase in their benefit checks.

The official word won’t come until mid-October when the Social Security Administration announces whether there will be a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2011. But those who’ve crunched the numbers say there just hasn’t been enough inflation to justify a bump in benefits.

he last time there was an inflation adjustment was in 2009: Social Security beneficiaries got a higher-than-normal 5.8% increase because of a temporary spike in energy prices in the third quarter of 2008.

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Major Breakthrough with Social Security Disability

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What wonderful news I came upon after arriving from my conference trip to San Francisco earlier this week. The Alzheimer’s Association has announced that the Social Security Administration (SSA) has added early-onset/younger onset Alzheimer’s to the list of conditions under its Compassionate Allowance Initiative. What does this mean? It means SSDI  (Social Security Disability Insurance) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will be available sooner for those who are diagnosed with this disease.

Read more about the addition

Another great update is that the  Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Act introduced last year, is gaining momentum in Congress with more bi-partisan co-sponsors signing on.

This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to provide more funding to breakthroughs in Alzheimer’s Disease research while also providing more help to caregivers and raising public awareness to the disease and its prevention.

Read more about the Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Act. Hopefully this year brings more good news to the millions of us caregivers and affected relatives and friends of all disabled seniors, adults and children.

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Will my father lose his Medicaid if he gets disability?

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One of the things I enjoy doing is going to care giving sites like Agingcare.com. It makes me feel good to know that there are others that can relate to us and maybe share some of our experiences with them to help them through their journey. Also, there are some good tips in there that I take from others and apply it to our own situation.

There was an interesting question that came up in the forum and a reader asked what would happen to her father’s Medicaid if he started receiving disability

What happens when you have Medicaid and you receive disability?

According to disabilitysecrets.com, if you are approved for disability benefits you can receive medicare with Title 2 Social Security funding and medicaid with Title 16 SSI. Disability recipients are eligible to receive medicare two years after they enroll. The date of entitlement is the established onset date plus the five month waiting period. So if you are eligible on January 1st, your enrollment date actually would be considered on June 1st ending two years after that date. It is possible for claimants to have served a two year wait for medicare by the time they start withdrawing from their disability benefits.

Some people receive both SSI and Medicare. It is best that you check with your local Social Security Office because different states may have separate criteria for how they disburse or approve for benefits to be received.

Check SSA.gov to find a local listing.

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