JUlrich

Heads up, everyone! If you have been procrastinating about sending in your 2018 dues, the time is now!

$17/yr to receive your Dispatch Newsletter by regular mail.

$14/yr to receive your Dispatch Newsletter by e-mail

For two people living at the same address and wanting to receive an e-mail copy, the fees are $31 total. One member pays the actual membership fee of $17. The other member pays only $14 for getting the Dispatch by e-mail. When you mail me your check, you must include the Membership Application below.

Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it….Ronald Reagan (1986)

Talk is cheap, except when Congress does it….Anonymous

I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts….Will Rogers

February drawings at three for $1 are:

THE GARRET ($15 Gift Certificate)

1777 S Bascom Ave, Campbell 408-559-7930

(Thanks to Libby Harbour)

BURGER KING ($5 Gift Card)

Various Locations

(Thanks to Jan Delucchi & our

Chapter Treasure Chest Fund)

CAMPBELL EXPRESS

Two subscriptions 408-374-9700

(Thanks to Stephon Hansen)

WEEKEND COFFEE ROASTERS

Bag of Fresh Coffee

Locally Roasted (Thanks to Rick Loek)

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR GOODIE BAG

(Thanks to Jan Delucchi & our

Chapter Treasure Chest Fund)

I don’t know about you, but the one thing that keeps swirling in my head is Medicare and Medicaid and my ability to pay the bills that they seem to generate. And as many problems as Obamacare has, I may become less happy and pay more once the Senate has their way. It looks like our wonderful Congress is planning a “new and improved” version of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which will allow insurers to charge us oldsters more, while reducing subsidies and slashing Medicaid, which provides health care to 1 in 5 Americans. It’s called the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017. A bit of a misnomer…

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimate that, over the 2017-2026 period, enacting this legislation would reduce direct spending by $1,022 billion and reduce revenues by $701 billion, for a net reduction of $321 billion in the deficit over that period.

• The largest savings would come from reductions in outlays for Medicaid—spending on the program would decline in 2026 by 26 percent in comparison with what CBO projects under current law—and from changes to the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) subsidies for nongroup health insurance. Those savings would be partially offset by the effects of other changes to the ACA’s provisions dealing with insurance coverage: additional spending designed to reduce premiums and a reduction in revenues from repealing penalties on employers who do not offer insurance and on people who do not purchase insurance.

• The largest increases in deficits would come from repealing or modifying tax provisions in the ACA that are not directly related to health insurance coverage, including repealing a surtax on net investment income and repealing annual fees imposed on health insurers.

I believe the Senate is trying to save themselves some money, but at the cost of our health. “This new Senate bill was crafted in secrecy behind closed doors without a single hearing or open debate — and it shows,” said Nancy LeaMond, executive vice president at AARP. “The Senate bill would hit millions of Americans with higher costs and result in less coverage for them. AARP is adamantly opposed to the Age Tax, which would allow insurance companies to charge older Americans five times more for coverage than everyone else while reducing tax credits that help make insurance more affordable.”

And all this after President Trump already delivered a one-two punch to the ACA. He announced the elimination of the subsidy payments to insurers that help lower-income Americans afford health care. That move came just hours after he signed an executive order that he says will promote more competition in the health insurance market.

We need to stay informed and let our Senators know that this bill, H.R. 1628, the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017, is not better care, but more expensive care!

Read more about it in your national AARP Newsletter or here: https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/advocacy/info2017/senate-health-care-bill.html?intcmp=Outbrain&obref=obinsite

We are always delighted to receive contributions of eye glasses, hearing aids, and books on tape at our general meeting. Eye glass collection and distribution has been a project of the Lions Club for many years; we are happy to assist them with this worthy project. Over the years we have collected over 300 sets of glasses — they are all over the world by now thanks to the Lions’ international connections. Just leave these items on the Troop Support table and share this information with your friends and neighbors. It’s a convenient way to pass on unused but valuable items to people who will be so pleased to receive them.

A new year begins for volunteer hour collection. Don’t forget to fill out the bottom of your agenda for the purple envelope which awaits!

February is the month of Love. Let’s show our Chapter’s love for a needy community. Have a Heart for Sacred Heart. Please bring HEARTY protein-rich canned food items (preferably pop tops) to our February meeting.

Eli Tehrani is the territory manager and the ADA Title IV specialist for Clearcaptions in the San Francisco and Bay Area. His background is in medical and computer related products. He started working for Clearcaptions about a year ago and was working for Simarka Management prior to Clearcaptions. His mission is to work with local communities, organizations and individuals in the Bay Area to get the word out to persons with hearing loss that they are entitled to receive a captioning phone absolutely FREE so they can have a healthier, happier and more independent lifestyle.

Social Time 9:30 am Meeting 10 am

Leave clean clothing, bedding and nonperishable food for Sacred Heart on the bench outside. Please do not bring garage sale type items for Sacred Heart. Please bring books to share. Place these items on the first table: donations for the troops, new and used greeting cards in the box; your volunteer hours in purple envelope.

Lunch after Meeting:

The Garret 408-559-7930

1777 S. Bascom Ave, Campbell

Program:

Eli Tehrano, Clearcaptions

CHECK OUT THE 25-CENT ITEMS ON THE TREASURE CHEST!

LOTS OF OTHER ITEMS TOO!

Last month to share 2018 Calendars.