Congressional Research Service Reports - 113 Matching Results

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Federal Spending for Older Americans

Description: This report discusses the share of the federal budget devoted to older Americans, which is growing. The federal government currently spends more than one-third of its budget on benefits and programs for older Americans. For people age 65 and over, estimated FY2007 spending for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid alone is $833 billion. Spending for retired federal employees and military personnel and for veterans is also significant, and smaller programs add to the total as well. Tax expendi… more
Date: January 25, 2007
Creator: Grady, April & Klunk, William J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Missing Adults: Background, Federal Programs, and Issues for Congress

Description: The first section of this report discusses demographics and record keeping of missing adults and unidentified remains, as well as some of the factors that may contribute to the disappearance of adults. This section also discusses federally funded databases that are used to track data on missing adults and unidentified individuals. The second section of the report describes the federal programs and initiatives to assist in locating missing adults, including funding data where applicable. Finally… more
Date: May 7, 2013
Creator: Fernandes-Alcantara, Adrienne L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Medicaid Reimbursement Policy

Description: This report begins with a summary of basic federal requirements applicable to payments for all services and an overview of major developments in federal Medicaid reimbursement policy over the last 20 years. This overview provides a historical context for current policies and highlights some issues that have been perennial concerns for federal and state policymakers. The next four sections of the report provide a detailed discussion of Medicaid reimbursement for four basic categories of services… more
Date: November 2, 2004
Creator: Merlis, Mark
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Missing Adults: Background, Federal Programs, and Issues for Congress

Description: The first section of this report discusses demographics and record keeping of missing adults and unidentified remains, and some of the factors that may contribute to the disappearance of adults. This section also discusses federally funded databases that are used to track data on missing adults and unidentified individuals. The second section of the report describes the federal programs and initiatives to assist in locating missing adults, including funding data for FY2002 through FY2008, where… more
Date: October 15, 2008
Creator: Fernandes-Alcantara, Adrienne L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): Formula and Estimated Allocations

Description: This report reviews how allotments of regular LIHEAP funding are determined and how these calculations change at different funding levels. Included is a description of the components of the new LIHEAP formula rates.
Date: December 6, 2005
Creator: Whittaker, Julie M. & Perl, Libby
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Medicare Home Health Benefit Primer: Benefit Basics and Issues

Description: This report describes home health eligibility criteria, home health services, characteristics of Medicare beneficiaries who use home health services, and home health providers. Further, this report describes in detail the Medicare home health prospective payment system (HH PPS), provides an overview of Medicare home health payments, and discusses issues for Congress related to the Medicare home health benefit.
Date: March 14, 2013
Creator: Talaga, Scott R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The LIHEAP Formula: Legislative History and Current Law

Description: This Congressional Research Service Report for Congress contains information about the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP provides funds to states, the District of Colombia, U.S territories and commonwealths, and Indian tribal organizations (collectively referred to as grantees) primary to help low-income households pay home energy expenses.
Date: September 8, 2010
Creator: Peral, Libby
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Allocation Rates: Legislative History and Current Law

Description: This Congressional Research Service Report for Congress contains information about the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP provides funds to states, the District of Colombia, U.S territories and commonwealths, and Indian tribal organizations (collectively referred to as grantees) primary to help low-income households pay home energy expenses.
Date: February 10, 2006
Creator: Whittaker, Julie M. & Peral, Libby
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Allocation Rates: Legislative History and Current Law

Description: This Congressional Research Service Report for Congress contains information about the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP provides funds to states, the District of Colombia, U.S territories and commonwealths, and Indian tribal organizations (collectively referred to as grantees) primary to help low-income households pay home energy expenses.
Date: July 18, 2006
Creator: Whittaker, Julie M. & Peral, Libby
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Medicare Advantage

Description: This report is an overview of the Medicare Advantage (MA) program, an alternative way for Medicare beneficiaries to receive covered benefits, and includes legislative history and analysis of recent trends.
Date: March 3, 2009
Creator: Morgan, Paulette C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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End-of-Life Care: Services, Costs, Ethics, and Quality of Care

Description: This report provides information on various aspects of end-of-life care: (1) demographic and historical changes affecting death and dying in the United States (2) the definitions of end-of-life, palliative, and hospice care (3) costs associated with end-of-life care (4) end-of-life care laws and ethics (5) quality of care at the end of life and (6) policy issues that would modify or expand the federal government's role in addressing end-of-life care.
Date: February 23, 2009
Creator: Colello, Kirsten J.; Mulvey, Janemarie; Sarata, Amanda K.; Williams, Erin D. & Thomas, Kenneth R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Increases in Tricare Costs: Background and Options for Congress

Description: This report discusses budgetary matters for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), specifically regarding past instances of debate regarding the Tricare system. The dollar amounts allocated to health care in the budget of the DOD have more than doubled since FY2001, growing from about $17 billion to over $44.8 billion in FY2009.
Date: May 14, 2009
Creator: Jansen, Don J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Retirement Savings and Household Wealth in 2007

Description: This report discusses various issues that impact the retirement income of Americans. About half of all workers in the United States participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan of some kind, a proportion that has remained relatively stable over the past thirty years. Because the majority of assets held in retirement accounts are invested in stocks, trends in stock prices have a significant impact on households' retirement account balances.
Date: April 8, 2009
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Medicare's Hospice Benefit

Description: This report discusses Medicare's hospice benefit, which was provides care that specializes in the relief of the pain and symptoms associated with a terminal illness and the provision of supportive and counseling services to patients and their families during the final stages of a patient's illness and death.
Date: March 9, 2009
Creator: Stone, Julie
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Income and Poverty Among Older Americans in 2007

Description: This report describes the income and poverty status of the 36.8 million Americans age 65 and older who were living in households in 2007. The report also describes how the proportion of total income received from each source differs between high-income individuals and households and low-income individuals and households.
Date: October 3, 2008
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Income and Poverty Among Older Americans in 2008

Description: This report describes the sources and amounts of income received by the 37.8 million Americans aged 65 and older who lived in non-institutional settings in 2008. The report also describes how the proportion of total income received from each source differs between high-income individuals and households and low-income individuals and households.
Date: October 2, 2009
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Factors Affecting the Demand for Long-Term Care Insurance: Issues for Congress

Description: This report will discuss the role of long-term care insurance (LTCI) in financing long term care (LTC) costs and current trends in the LTCI industry; factors affecting the demand for LTCI, including cost and complexity of the product and adequacy of consumer protections; and key features of legislative proposals in the 111th Congress to address these issues.
Date: May 27, 2009
Creator: Mulvey, Janemarie
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Income of Americans Aged 65 and Older, 1968 to 2008

Description: This report presents data collected by the Census Bureau in the Current Population Survey from 1969 through 2009 about the employment status and the sources and amounts of income received by people aged 65 and older.
Date: November 4, 2009
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Older Americans Act: FY2015 Appropriations Overview

Description: This report discusses Older Americans Act (OAA) funding. It begins with an overview of OAA's FY2015 funding and provides a detailed breakdown of current-year funding for each of the act's programs and activities. The report then reviews OAA's funding history since FY2001. Next, it summarizes FY2015 legislative activity with respect to OAA appropriations. It concludes with a discussion of FY2015 funding decisions for selected OAA programs.
Date: January 30, 2015
Creator: Napili, Angela & Colello, Kirsten J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC): A Fact Sheet

Description: The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is a federal government agency established in 1974 by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA; P.L. 93-406). It was created to protect the pensions of participants and beneficiaries covered by private sector, defined benefit (DB) plans. The PBGC is chaired by the Secretary of Labor, with the Secretaries of the Treasury and Commerce serving as board members. In the 112th Congress, an amendment offered by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid… more
Date: April 16, 2012
Creator: Topoleski, John J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Converting Retirement Savings into Income: Annuities and Periodic Withdrawals

Description: To a worker contemplating retirement, there is perhaps no more important question than "How long will my money last?" Congress has a strong interest in the income security of older Americans because much of their income is either provided directly from public programs like Social Security, or in the case of pensions and retirement accounts, is subsidized through tax deductions and deferrals. This report discusses risks involved with retirement fund disbursement and strategies for dealing with s… more
Date: December 1, 2008
Creator: Mulvey, Janemarie & Purcell, Patrick
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Converting Retirement Savings into Income: Annuities and Periodic Withdrawals

Description: To a worker contemplating retirement, there is perhaps no more important question than "How long will my money last?" Congress has a strong interest in the income security of older Americans because much of their income is either provided directly from public programs like Social Security, or in the case of pensions and retirement accounts, is subsidized through tax deductions and deferrals. This report looks at strategies to help deal with the following risks: longevity, investment, inflation,… more
Date: December 1, 2008
Creator: Mulvey, Janemarie & Purcell, Patrick
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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