For the first time, voters across America can now access the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare's Congressional Scorecard online! The urgency of this election compelled us to release incumbents' scores publicly so that all voters have the fullest possible picture of where their elected representatives in Congress stand.

We've designed our Scorecard to inform citizens about how their House and Senate members voted on Social Security, Medicare and other measures impacting older Americans during the 116th Congress. Armed with this information, we believe Americans will see which candidates truly support the social safety net programs that seniors depend on now more than ever during the COVID pandemic — and vote accordingly.

This election, more than any other, will determine whether seniors' earned benefits are protected and expanded or cut and privatized. Workers pay for these benefits with their hard-earned payroll contributions over the course of their lifetimes. Amid a pandemic that has taken a disproportionate toll on older Americans, it is critical that voters understand their House and Senate members' votes on key legislation affecting seniors. Our Congressional Scorecard will help voters compare incumbents' public statements with their actual records.

On the Scorecard page, simply click on your state on the interactive U.S. map. That will bring up a list of the state's U.S. Senators and House members, along with a record of relevant votes and a percentage score from 0 to 100%. The higher a member's score, the better his/her votes aligned with seniors' interests. Elected representatives with a perfect 100% score voted in favor of older Americans every time. House and Senate members scoring 0% voted consistently against seniors' interests — or may have missed the votes in our scorecard.

The National Committee endorses the "Save Our Social Security Now Act" (H.R. 8171), introduced by U.S. Representative John Larson (CT-01), which would block President Trump's executive order calling for a payroll tax deferral. While a payroll tax deferral may provide a few extra dollars for workers in the short-term, the President's plan to forgive repayment of the deferral would rob Social Security of much-needed revenue for the future at a time when millions of older Americans rely solely on their earned benefits just to make ends meet.

What's worse, President Trump has promised to "terminate" the payroll tax if he's elected to a second term in office. If that happens Social Security's revenue stream would dry up completely. Any tampering with Social Security's funding could open the door to devastating benefits cuts and dangerous privatization schemes. And in the past President Trump has indicated his support for Social Security privatization.

That's why the National Committee is urging lawmakers to pass Representative Larson's bill before President Trump's payroll tax deferral can have real, lasting, damaging effects on workers' and retirees' earned benefits.

We're now just weeks away from the historic 2020 presidential election. And there are important policy differences between the presidential candidates when it comes to issues impacting Social Security and Medicare.

With the first presidential debate scheduled to take place on Tuesday, September 29th, we asked our readers the following question in the last issue of Benefits Watch:

What issues do you want the presidential candidates to address to voters?

The results from our recent poll are fascinating, but they’re only available to National Committee members! Join the National Committee today and we’ll immediately give you the results of this important poll.

Did you know that a team of experts in the field of Social Security policy is available to answer your questions about benefits? For 37 years, the National Committee has been helping thousands of our members and supporters with a broad range of concerns on Social Security.

Whether you're currently retired or approaching retirement, the National Committee's "Ask Us" section can help answer your questions about Social Security. You can either search our archives for valuable advice on a broad range of concerns at www.ncpssm.org/ask-us-recent/ or email your question to [email protected].

This week's question is: If I apply for disability and become approved, will this affect my husband's check and what about our son's check?

Click here to read the answer.

How Did Congress Vote on Social Security and Health Bills?  (September 9, 2020, ThinkAdvisor, Ginger Szala)

Senate report finds 'significant' prescription drug delivery delays under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy (September 9, 2020, USA TODAY, Nicholas Wu)

Trump assertions of lower drug costs mask truth for many consumers (September 9, 2020, Roll Call, Andrew Siddons)

Vaccine maker got $1 billion from taxpayers. Now it’s boosting drug prices (September 14, 2020, Los Angeles Times, Noam N. Levey)

Why Trump’s payroll tax deferral won’t aid the recovery, but could help cripple Social Security (September 10, 2020, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Joel L. Naroff)