President, Rep. Brady Issue Renewed Threats to Social Security and Medicare

Speaking on CNBC April 24 about the coronavirus economic crisis, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) said we’re “going to have to have a discussion with everything on the table” to constrain federal spending growth, adding that he wants “smart solutions for saving” Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.

“Whether it comes in the form of reduced benefits, privatization, raising the eligibility age -- we must fight against any effort to reduce our earned retirement benefits,” said Richard Fiesta,

Executive Director of the Alliance.

Just days later, speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, President Trump again stated his desire to cut the payroll tax that funds Social Security. Such a move would undermine Social Security’s dedicated funding stream, threatening the earned benefits of current and future retirees.

“President Trump must not be allowed to use the coronavirus crisis as a pretense for weakening the retirement and health care seniors have earned over a lifetime,” said Executive Director Fiesta. “The incessant calls for cutting the payroll tax, the foundation of Social Security, is but one example. Hearing Rep. Brady’s and President Trump’s statements mere days apart is alarming to say the least.”

Seniors with COVID-19 Show Unusual Symptoms, According to Doctors

Coronavirus has been most identifiable by three symptoms: a fever, cough, and shortness of breath. However, older adults with COVID-19 often show atypical symptoms, according to doctors. This makes it difficult to ensure that older adults get timely and appropriate treatment.

Older adults are the group most at risk of severe complications or death from coronavirus but might not display any of the characteristic symptoms. Instead, seniors may seem “off” and not acting like themselves after infection. This could include sleeping more than usual, stopping eating, unusual apathy or confusion, losing orientation, becoming dizzy and falling, stopping speaking, or collapsing. Seniors with cognitive impairment simply may not be able to communicate their symptoms.

“Recognizing the early warning signs in seniors is of the utmost importance,” said Joseph Peters, Jr., Alliance Secretary-Treasurer. “Amid this pandemic we must do everything we can to protect older adults and ensure anyone who is infected receives the care that they need quickly.”

For the latest medical information about COVID-19 and older adults, please visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)  website.

Protecting Seniors’ Health is Top Concern as Older Americans Month Begins

May is Older Americans Month, which acknowledges the contributions of older adults to our country, and this year’s theme is Make Your Mark. Across the nation, older adults play an important role as volunteers, parents, grandparents, mentors, advocates, employees and employers. For 57 years, Older Americans Month has been a time to recognize these contributions and an opportunity to provide resources to help older Americans stay healthy and independent as communities support and celebrate them.

President Trump signed the Older Americans Month proclamation Thursday and made remarks about “protecting seniors.” The Alliance issued a statement prior to the event, outlining all the ways that the Administration has failed to protect seniors over the last 3 years, including the failure to take strong action to protect seniors during the coronavirus pandemic.

“On May 1, at the start of Older Americans Month, seniors are more at risk for their health and economic security than they have been in decades,” said Executive Director Fiesta. "So far, over half of ICU admissions and 80 percent of deaths from COVID-19 have been among people aged sixty-five and over. That is outrageous and it is unacceptable to end shelter in place without scientific justification. It is not the way to celebrate older Americans.”

May Day Commemorates Workers Around the World Amid the Pandemic

May 1 is International Workers’ Day, or May Day, a holiday to celebrate all workers and the efforts of trade unions and the labor movement. It is also a day of remembrance - activists chose this day to remember the workers who died during the Haymarket affair bombing in Chicago in 1886 while protesting for an eight-hour workday. 

“May Day is a reminder that essential workers need access to personal protective equipment and rapid COVID-19 tests,” said Robert Roach, Jr., Alliance President. “No worker should have to choose between their employment and their life because they are performing their job in the face of the pandemic.”

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