comprising 13% of the total population. Traditional media continues to dominate seniors’ media habits, but the internet is quickly increasing reach, expected to hit 56.0% penetration by 2015.
The 2010 US Census counted 40 million seniors in the US, comprising 13% of the total population. According to the data, baby boomers—the largest single generation in the US—will enter the senior set at a rate of one every 8 seconds for the next 18 years.
Monday, March 28, 2011
SENIORS OPINION HEALTH CARE LAW
Organizing Seniors: Moving the Dial
Reaching seniors with the truth about the health care law can be a challenge, but recent polls are showing a shift in opinion. Go to them and be prepared to answer specific questions.
Seeing benefits in the Affordable Care Act has been a challenge for seniors across the country. During the debate to pass the health care law, seniors heard a lot of misinformation from opponents of the law. Although combating these messages is challenging, public opinion among seniors is beginning to change. Last week, Kaiser Family Foundation released their latest tracking poll, which revealed increased support among seniors for the health law. This past month, unfavorable views of the law decreased by 7 percentage points and favorable views increased 8 percentage points. See the full report here: http://www.kff.org/kaiserpolls/8166.cfm.
This change is only the beginning. With an array of different policies in the law, it can become difficult to generalize about Medicare as a whole when speaking the people over 65. However, there have been real tangible benefits already in effect for seniors, such as Medicare doughnut hole rebate checks and free preventive services in Medicare. Advocates have found that stopping by local senior centers, senior living communities, and social clubs is the best way to reach seniors and spread the message about the benefits of the Affordable Care Act.
Reaching seniors with the truth about the health care law can be a challenge, but recent polls are showing a shift in opinion. Go to them and be prepared to answer specific questions.
Seeing benefits in the Affordable Care Act has been a challenge for seniors across the country. During the debate to pass the health care law, seniors heard a lot of misinformation from opponents of the law. Although combating these messages is challenging, public opinion among seniors is beginning to change. Last week, Kaiser Family Foundation released their latest tracking poll, which revealed increased support among seniors for the health law. This past month, unfavorable views of the law decreased by 7 percentage points and favorable views increased 8 percentage points. See the full report here: http://www.kff.org/kaiserpolls/8166.cfm.
This change is only the beginning. With an array of different policies in the law, it can become difficult to generalize about Medicare as a whole when speaking the people over 65. However, there have been real tangible benefits already in effect for seniors, such as Medicare doughnut hole rebate checks and free preventive services in Medicare. Advocates have found that stopping by local senior centers, senior living communities, and social clubs is the best way to reach seniors and spread the message about the benefits of the Affordable Care Act.
Circuit Breaker Credit Department of Revenue
The state Department of Revenue is warning about unscrupulous tax preparers that officials say have been promising poor Boston seniors a piece of a tax rebate program that has brought $60 million to the Bay State — even if they aren’t eligible.
Last week, the state launched an aggressive review of its so-called “Circuit Breaker” tax credit program that is aimed at homeowners. About 78,000 seniors have received the benefit. But dozens and possibly hundreds of elderly taxpayers who are not eligible for the program have paid $50 application fees, only to find out later they have to return the payments and might even face penalties, according to state officials and social service workers.
“Obviously, somebody here is bamboozling seniors,” DOR spokesman Robert Bliss told the Herald. “They are hearing about something that is too good to be true, but believe it to be true nonetheless.
“We want to make sure it hasn’t spread to other places,” Bliss said. “It might seem like an overabundance of caution, but we are dealing with taxpayer money here, so we think it’s warranted.”
This year, the program has sparked huge interest in Boston’s poorest neighborhoods, but some applicants have been public housing residents, who as non-homeowners are not eligible for the credit.
The tax credit — called the “Circuit Breaker” because it is triggered by an overload of property taxes relative to income — is aimed at elderly Bay State homeowners with limited incomes whose tax bills keep climbing. Low-income homeowners 65 and older, who can prove real estate taxes eat up at least 10 percent of their annual income, can receive as much as $970 a year from the state.
Mary Murray, 69, a renter in the South End, said that she paid a tax preparer $50 to receive a credit of $378, but later got a demand notice from the state tax collection agency.
“I’m paying the money back, because I don’t want any part of this,” Murray said.
“It’s a wonderful tax credit,” said John Drew, chief executive of Action for Boston Community Development — the Boston nonprofit that blew the whistle on the exploitation scheme. He said his agency fills out the applications for free.
“We’ve been told that tax preparers are going to Boston Housing Authority properties, where no one is eligible for the tax credit, and telling them that President Obama has stimulus checks for them,” Drew said.
For people who actually qualify, he said, “We want more people to apply for it, because we want to get more income into households that really need it.”
Last week, the state launched an aggressive review of its so-called “Circuit Breaker” tax credit program that is aimed at homeowners. About 78,000 seniors have received the benefit. But dozens and possibly hundreds of elderly taxpayers who are not eligible for the program have paid $50 application fees, only to find out later they have to return the payments and might even face penalties, according to state officials and social service workers.
“Obviously, somebody here is bamboozling seniors,” DOR spokesman Robert Bliss told the Herald. “They are hearing about something that is too good to be true, but believe it to be true nonetheless.
“We want to make sure it hasn’t spread to other places,” Bliss said. “It might seem like an overabundance of caution, but we are dealing with taxpayer money here, so we think it’s warranted.”
This year, the program has sparked huge interest in Boston’s poorest neighborhoods, but some applicants have been public housing residents, who as non-homeowners are not eligible for the credit.
The tax credit — called the “Circuit Breaker” because it is triggered by an overload of property taxes relative to income — is aimed at elderly Bay State homeowners with limited incomes whose tax bills keep climbing. Low-income homeowners 65 and older, who can prove real estate taxes eat up at least 10 percent of their annual income, can receive as much as $970 a year from the state.
Mary Murray, 69, a renter in the South End, said that she paid a tax preparer $50 to receive a credit of $378, but later got a demand notice from the state tax collection agency.
“I’m paying the money back, because I don’t want any part of this,” Murray said.
“It’s a wonderful tax credit,” said John Drew, chief executive of Action for Boston Community Development — the Boston nonprofit that blew the whistle on the exploitation scheme. He said his agency fills out the applications for free.
“We’ve been told that tax preparers are going to Boston Housing Authority properties, where no one is eligible for the tax credit, and telling them that President Obama has stimulus checks for them,” Drew said.
For people who actually qualify, he said, “We want more people to apply for it, because we want to get more income into households that really need it.”
Sunday, March 27, 2011
176 Massachusetts state retirees collect $100K pensions
The number of state retirees collecting pensions of at least $100,000 has climbed more than 20 percent in the past year, jumping from 145 to 176, with the top pensioner receiving more than $240,000.
State Police retirees represent the largest group of six-figure earners, with 50, followed by faculty and administrators from the University of Massachusetts Amherst at 42, and employees of the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, at 19.
Eight years ago, only 33 state employees made more than $100,000, but as state salaries have increased through the decades, so have pensions, which are calculated in part based on employees’ income in their three highest-paid years of work.
“There is an urgent need for comprehensive pension reform,’’ said Michael J. Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. “Soaring pension and health care benefits are cannibalizing municipal services.’’
T.
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State Police retirees represent the largest group of six-figure earners, with 50, followed by faculty and administrators from the University of Massachusetts Amherst at 42, and employees of the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, at 19.
Eight years ago, only 33 state employees made more than $100,000, but as state salaries have increased through the decades, so have pensions, which are calculated in part based on employees’ income in their three highest-paid years of work.
“There is an urgent need for comprehensive pension reform,’’ said Michael J. Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. “Soaring pension and health care benefits are cannibalizing municipal services.’’
T.
READER COMMENTS »
View reader comments (9) » Comment on this story »
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Malden Census Figures
< Back to front page Text size – + Malden
Malden population grows 5.5 percent
E-mail | Print Posted by Matt Byrne March 24, 2011 10:04 AM
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Sending your articleYour article has been sent. By Matt Byrne, Town Correspondent
Nearly 7,000 fewer white people live in Malden than a decade ago, while the number of minorities in the city has increased, new census data shows.
According to the data, released Tuesday by the US Census Bureau, there are 6,927 fewer white people in the city than10 years ago. In the same period, 10,589 additional people who identify as minorities are now residents.
Overall population grew 5.52 percent, to 59,450 total residents, the data shows, about 3,100 more than in 2000.
People who identified themselves as white dominated in 2000, at 40,618, but 2010 figures show a decline to 33,691.
Blacks in Malden went from 4,592 in 2000 to 8,796; Asians from 7,882 to 11,971; and Hispanics grew from 2,696 to 4,992, the data shows.
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Malden population grows 5.5 percent
E-mail | Print Posted by Matt Byrne March 24, 2011 10:04 AM
E-mail this article To: Invalid email address Add a personal message: Your e-mail: Invalid email address
Sending your articleYour article has been sent. By Matt Byrne, Town Correspondent
Nearly 7,000 fewer white people live in Malden than a decade ago, while the number of minorities in the city has increased, new census data shows.
According to the data, released Tuesday by the US Census Bureau, there are 6,927 fewer white people in the city than10 years ago. In the same period, 10,589 additional people who identify as minorities are now residents.
Overall population grew 5.52 percent, to 59,450 total residents, the data shows, about 3,100 more than in 2000.
People who identified themselves as white dominated in 2000, at 40,618, but 2010 figures show a decline to 33,691.
Blacks in Malden went from 4,592 in 2000 to 8,796; Asians from 7,882 to 11,971; and Hispanics grew from 2,696 to 4,992, the data shows.
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Friday, March 11, 2011
HOMELESS VETERANS MASSACHUSETTS
New VA and HUD report finds 136,000 veterans spent a night in a homeless shelter during 2009.The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and VA have published the most authoritative analysis on the extent and nature of homelessness among our country’s veterans. “Veteran Homeless: A Supplemental Report to the 2009 Annual Homeless Assessment to Congress” details the study’s findings, released in February, in a first-ever collaborative report of its kind between two government agencies. The most noteworthy finding: nearly 76,000 veterans were homeless on a given night in 2009, and around 136,000 veterans spent at least one night in a shelter during that year.
The report also notes that veterans are 50 percent more likely to fall into homelessness, compared to the rest of the population. This ratio is even greater among impoverished and minority veterans.
Additionally, veterans contrast the overall homeless population in the demographics that comprise it. About 96 percent of homeless veterans are single adults and about 4 percent are veterans with families; the general homeless population claims 66 percent of its members as single, non-attached persons. The study also found that 10 percent of veterans in poverty became homeless at some point during the year, compared to just over 5 percent of adults living in poverty.
Outside of conducting studies, the two agencies provide direct support to homeless veterans. Through the HUD-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program, HUD provides rental assistance for homeless veterans, while VA offers case management and clinical services. Since 2008, a total investment of $225 million has gone toward providing housing and supportive service for approximately 30,000 veterans who would otherwise be homeless.
The report also notes that veterans are 50 percent more likely to fall into homelessness, compared to the rest of the population. This ratio is even greater among impoverished and minority veterans.
Additionally, veterans contrast the overall homeless population in the demographics that comprise it. About 96 percent of homeless veterans are single adults and about 4 percent are veterans with families; the general homeless population claims 66 percent of its members as single, non-attached persons. The study also found that 10 percent of veterans in poverty became homeless at some point during the year, compared to just over 5 percent of adults living in poverty.
Outside of conducting studies, the two agencies provide direct support to homeless veterans. Through the HUD-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program, HUD provides rental assistance for homeless veterans, while VA offers case management and clinical services. Since 2008, a total investment of $225 million has gone toward providing housing and supportive service for approximately 30,000 veterans who would otherwise be homeless.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
HOMELESS VETERANS MASSACHUSETTS
According to HUD and the VA, nearly 76,000 veterans nationwide lacked shelter on a given night in 2009 with about 136,000 spending at least one night in a shelter during the year. Of those veterans without a home, 57 percent lived in a shelter or a transitional housing program, while 43 percent lived on the street.
Nationally, 12 percent of all people experiencing homelessness were identified as a veteran. In Massachusetts, veterans account for 6.8 percent of the population.
Nationally, 12 percent of all people experiencing homelessness were identified as a veteran. In Massachusetts, veterans account for 6.8 percent of the population.
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