• AFL-CIO Rallies Thousands on Social Security
• 'Social Security Truth Truck' Drives Message Home
  to Congress
• Medicare's Financial Outlook Improves Slightly,
  but Program Still Faces More Problems than
  Social Security
• Medicare Premium Projected To Increase 12 Percent
• Supreme Court Eases Grounds for Age
  Discrimination Suits
• Companies Tighten Monitoring as Health Costs
  Rise 10 percent
• New Retiree Leaders Hone Skills
• Here and There
• Save When You Take the Grandkids to Theme Parks
• Quote of Note
• Web Site of the Week: http://www.senoirjobbank.com

AFL-CIO RALLIES THOUSANDS ON SOCIAL SECURITY
Thousands of union activists in 70 sites from New York to San Francisco, Boston to Austin demonstrated March 31 to demand that Wall Street brokerage firm Charles Schwab and financial giant Wachovia Bank withdraw their support for President Bush's plan to privatize Social Security. In Washington, a throng of nearly 500, including some 50 AFT staff and activists, picketed Schwab and Wachovia offices. They heard AFL-CIO president John Sweeney call the Bush plan “a flim-flam scheme” that would reduce the standard of living of tomorrow’s retirees and saddle the young with an exploding federal deficit. Sweeney warned the firms not to “try to pick our pockets while you line yours.” Major backers of the privatization push, the corporations are well positioned to make huge profits managing private accounts. AFT leaders and activists in New York, Florida, Pennsylvania, California, Texas and other states participated in similar events. Earlier, under pressure from union activists, brokerage houses Edward Jones and Waddell Reed withdrew from a major business coalition backing privatization. For more information, go to http://www.wallstreetgreed.org/.

'SOCIAL SECURITY TRUTH TRUCK' DRIVES MESSAGE HOME TO CONGRESS
Making 16 stops in fewer than two weeks, the Alliance for Retired Americans Social Security Truth Truck called on members of Congress in their districts to reject any plan that will cut benefits or divert money from the Social Security Trust Fund. Carrying 1.2 million messages, the truck stopped in Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania and New York from March 21 through April 1. In south Florida, UFT activist Marna Davidson, who also serves as treasurer of the Florida Alliance, told demonstrators at U.S. Rep. Clay Shaw’s office, "Instead of scrapping [Social Security], we have to find a way to repair it.  You wouldn't get rid of a car just because it had a flat tire."  Rep. Shaw has offered a plan to create personal retirement accounts funded by general tax revenue.

MEDICARE'S FINANCIAL OUTLOOK IMPROVES SLIGHTLY, BUT PROGRAM STILL FACES MORE PROBLEMS THAN SOCIAL SECURITY
The trustees’ annual report released March 24 showed little change in the Social Security’s financial outlook, confirming that the program is secure today and faces modest long-term financial challenges. According to the trustees' projections, Social Security would still have sufficient money coming in to cover 74 percent of benefits in 2041, one year earlier than last year's estimate, even if nothing were done to strengthen the system. Independent trustees stressed that although the short-term financial outlook for Medicare had improved slightly, the long-term problems that system faced were much worse than those of Social Security. The primary culprits were soaring healthcare costs and an underfunded prescription drug benefit. By 2020, Medicare taxes will cover 79 percent of benefits. Not surprisingly, trustees appointed by the Bush administration seized upon the report to bolster its Social Security proposal to divert payroll taxes into private accounts. Yet, even President Bush acknowledges private accounts will do nothing to address Social Security's long-term solvency. In fact, private accounts would accelerate insolvency to 2030. By 2020, Medicare will be able to pay only 79 percent of its benefit costs, the report said.
More info: http://www.ebri.org/ibpdfs/0305ib.pdf

MEDICARE PREMIUM PROJECTED TO INCREASE
12 PERCENT
Medicare trustees report that Medicare Part B premiums are likely to increase 12 percent next year—to $87.70 a month. In 2005, monthly premiums for Part B, which covers out-patient care for people with Medicare, reached at a record high $78.20. Medicare’s chief actuary Richard Foster warned that the premium increase could be higher if Medicare increases payments to doctors.

SUPREME COURT EASES GROUNDS FOR AGE DISCRIMINATION SUITS
In a March 30 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court made it easier for workers over 40 to allege age discrimination, ruling that employers can be held liable even if they never intended any harm. The unanimous ruling sides with older police officers in saying they do not have to prove that the city of Jackson, Miss., deliberately tried to discriminate against them, just show that the policies disproportionately harmed them. Nevertheless, the high court dismissed the suit, saying officers did not demonstrate that. The ruling means that workers age 40 and over -- about half the nation's workforce -- now have less of a burden to raise their claim in court when suing under federal law.

COMPANIES TIGHTEN MONITORING AS HEALTH COSTS RISE 10 PERCENT
The cost of employee healthcare is increasing at 10 percent in 2005 as companies work to slow the rate of spending growth by more closely monitoring their workers' health, according to a new survey by benefits consulting firm Watson Wyatt Worldwide and the National Business Group on Health. Results showed the rise in healthcare costs for private employers declined from a 12 percent increase in 2004. The survey also found that the shift of healthcare costs to employees has slowed. About 41 percent of companies are somewhat more willing to absorb cost increases in 2005, compared with 29 percent in 2004. To slow the rise in healthcare costs, companies are boosting efforts to examine the health of their workers and to change unhealthy habits. About 95 percent of the companies surveyed now use disease-management programs to track workers' illnesses and care, up from 57 percent in 2003. Firms also are implementing behavioral programs, encouraging employees to undergo general health screenings and planning ways to correct unhealthy weights, high blood pressure and other health problems. The percentage of employers with such programs increased to 68 percent, nearly double the rate in 2004. Researchers collected data late last year and in January 2005 from 555 companies with at least 1,000 workers.

NEW RETIREE LEADERS HONE SKILLS
Thirteen leaders from retiree groups from Hartford to Anchorage joined AFT staff for an intensive four-day session on leadership skills at the George Meany Center in Silver Spring, Md., March 20-23. The participants focused on recruiting skills, developing a leadership team and improving their communication skills. They heard from a variety of national AFT staffers on issues ranging from the fight to strengthen Social Security and preserve pension rights to AFT PLUS benefits.

HERE AND THERE
Florida Education Association Retired leader Joan King was featured in the Feb.-March issue of America at Work, part of a special feature on Social Security. The Orange County Classroom Teachers Association retiree told the AFL-CIO magazine that without Social Security she and her husband would not be able to afford the medications they need.

Alliance Education Fund Releases Report on
Social Security: The Alliance for Retired Americans Educational Fund (ARAEF) has published a report, Social Security Under Attack, detailing the importance of Social Security, how it works, the privatization debate, how privatization plans have failed in other countries, and possible solutions for Social Security's shortfall. This brief and insightful primer provides the nuts and bolts of this venerable retirement program that has faithfully served Americans for 70 years. Available on the Educational Fund Web site at http://www.retiredamericansfund.org/pubs.

SAVE WHEN YOU TAKE THE GRANDKIDS TO
THEME PARKS
It's getting close to the perfect time of the year for visiting theme parks and saving money! With spring break here and more good weather on the way, AFT members can save on admission to theme parks such as Sea World, Busch Gardens and Sesame Place. In addition, you can get discounts at hotels, on rental cars, dining and more! These savings are all in one place for you in the AFT PLUS Theme Park Package.

To receive your AFT PLUS Theme Park Package, complete the request form online at www.aft.org/aftplus/parkpkg.html or call 800/238-1133, ext. 8643. Your package will arrive seven to 10 business days after placing your order.

QUOTE OF NOTE
"It is argued that Social Security problems should be addressed now, because each year's delay makes them more difficult to solve. That argument is even more true about Medicare, which is scheduled to crash in 2020. The projected long-term deficit in Medicare is half again larger than the projected Social Security deficit. The problems in Social Security cannot fairly be described as a crisis. The problems in Medicare can."

Des Moines Register
Editorial, March 24, 2005

WEB SITE OF THE WEEK: http://www.seniorjobbank.com If you’re over 50 and looking for full-time, part-time, temporary or volunteer work, this free, confidential service matches job seekers with employers in all 50 states.

Contributors and sources: Ron Krouse, Bill Cunningham, Shantel Edmonds, Washington Post, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Associated Press, Hartford Courant, Baltimore Sun, Des Moines Register, Center for American Progress, Inside AFT, Alliance for Retired Americans Friday Alert, Kaiser Health Policy Report. Frank Stella, editor; Mary Boyd, copy editor; Renee Turner, design.