Top 5 Issues on the Ballot That Will Affect You Now, Later Or Someone You love!

I have a personal investment in the election because I am in the over 50 club.  My daughter is a millennial.

She has a vested interest as well.  I strive to live a life obedient to the word (Bible). The word has instructed us to vote.

Deuteronomy 1:13 says, Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.

God loves people!  Jesus was 100% God but He was also 100% man.  His ministry was not about religion.  His ministry was about helping people through systems that were in place i.e. paying taxes, fairness in the marketplace, taking care of the poor, widows, orphans, sick, helpless and downtrodden.

Even though times have changed since the days when Jesus walked the earth His word changes not!  His word is the same yesterday, today and forevermore.  We must love God and love our neighbor who is sometimes someone you don’t even know.   The top 5 issues on the  Ballot are crying out as a voice in the wilderness!  Save the people!

The top 5 issues on the ballot are: Medicare, Social Security, the cost of prescription drugs, the economy and long-term care.  These people-issues appearing on the ballot are either affecting you now, later, or someone who you know and love.  1 John 4:20 2Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.

Hosea 4:6 says, My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.  At the conclusion I pray you will know what the issues are, what’s at stake and the soldiers on the battlefield who fight for you.

The economy

What’s at stake? Older workers recovering from the economic downturn that the nation has faced since the pandemic began.

•A Congress that will extend emergency unemployment benefits until the pandemic’s economic effects end.

• Federal and state lawmakers who will require paid sick and family leave benefits for all workers.

• State and federal lawmakers who will provide more support, including tax credits, to family caregivers.

• Employers who are monitored and held accountable for not discriminating against older workers when hiring resumes

Players in the Game

President: The President elect of  2020 will set the nation’s economic agenda and decide whether to sign legislation Congress passes and sends to the President’s desk.

Senators and members of the House of Representatives:  Senators and members of the house of representatives are the overseers of the administration’s economic policies.  They possess the power to pass legislation that would help stop age discrimination; change the nation’s tax structure; and provide any added stimulus payments, federal paid sick and family leave, or enhanced jobless benefits.

Governors and state legislators: These leaders have the power to decide whether to enact laws on age discrimination or paid sick and family leave.  They have the power to set levels of unemployment insurance.

Medicare

What’s at stake? Medicare being able to provide access to quality and affordable health care for older Americans. Funding is an issue. The program’s trustees estimate that within six years, Medicare won’t be able to pay full hospital benefits. Who do you think will absorb the unpaid portion? Your vote will determine whether there will be an overhaul of the nation’s entire health care system, an expansion of Medicare or a continuation of the current systems with potentially smaller corrections.

Players in the Game

President: The elected President of 2021 will appoint the leadership of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which runs Medicare. With the flick of a pen he will sign or veto any legislation that makes changes to Medicare from which includes funding the program to altering how it works and who is allowed to enroll in the program.

Senators and members of the House of Representatives: They are the overseers of Medicare.  They enact legislation to make any changes to the program’s structure and its funding

Prescription drugs

What’s at stake? A reduction of what consumers in the United States have to pay for life-sustaining prescription drugs. The price of prescription drugs have increased more than inflation.  In some cases the cost of life sustaining prescription drugs is more than some retirees’ annual Social Security retirement benefit.

Players in the Game

President: President elect of 2020 will decide whether to sign any bills Congress passes to reduce or regulate drug prices. His administration could also enact regulations that would allow the importation of lower-cost drugs from other countries.

Senators and members of the House of Representatives: They can enact legislation to curb prices, allow Medicare to negotiate prices, penalize companies that raise prices more than the rate of inflation.

State elected officials: Governors and state legislators have the authority to pass bills allowing drugs to be imported from other countries or limiting drug-price increases. Some states already have laws creating drug-price monitoring boards, improving price transparency and recommending limits on price increases for specific medications, such as insulin.

Social Security

What’s at stake? Current and future generations get the retirement benefits they earned and rely on. A May report from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania suggests that the trust funds could be exhausted before 2035 because millions of workers have lost their jobs during the Pandemic, so less money is coming into the system.

Players in the Game

President: The president is extremely powerful in this arena. No legislation can pass without the president’s involvement.

Senators and members of the House of Representatives: They have the power to enact legislation to adjust Social Security taxes, payouts, ages, oversight and more. However, this is not an area where they have shown a desire to change the system. The last time lawmakers l made major changes to the program was in 1983.

Long-term care

What’s at stake? Protection of residents in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities against sickness, neglect and isolation, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and that older Americans can have the choice to age in their homes.

Players in the Game

President: The President elect of 2020 will have the power to establish federal health and safety guidelines for long-term care facilities and services. He also will have the power to sign or veto any nursing-home-related legislation that Congress passes.

Senators and members of the House of Representatives: They decide whether to enact legislation to protect residents and improve oversight and conditions in U.S. long-term care facilities.

Governors and state legislators: States inspect nursing homes on behalf of the CMS to see if they comply with federal standards for quality, health hygiene, record-keeping and overall residential care. States also have the power to regulate assisted living facilities.

Soldiers on the Battlefield….AARP

AARP (formerly called the American Association of Retired Persons) is a United States-based interest group focusing on issues affecting the elderly.  AARP no longer requires that members be retired, and there are no longer any age restrictions even for a full membership.  The organization says that it is non-partisan and does not support, oppose or give money to any candidates or political parties. AARP’s stand on Medicare, Social Security, the cost of prescription drugs, the economy and long-term care as follows:

AARP has asked Congress and state lawmakers to take these actions:

• Require adequate staffing, regular coronavirus testing and personal protective equipment for residents and staff in long-term care facilities.

• Make virtual visitation an option for communication between families and residents, even after in-person visits resume.

• Reject proposals to grant blanket immunity related to COVID-19 for nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

• Make it easier for older Americans to age in their homes and communities, and provide greater support to family caregivers

AARP has asked Congress and state lawmakers to take these actions:

• Allow Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices.

• Make sure benefits are affordable, including premiums and cost sharing.

• Ensure that all people with Medicare have access to enough qualified health care providers.

• Sustain Medicare for the future by cracking down on waste and fraud.

AARP’s Stop Rx Greed campaign calls on lawmakers to act on these principles:

• Allow Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices.

• Allow the importation of drugs.

• Increase price transparency.

• Speed up the process of getting generic drugs to the marketplace.

In conclusion, I pray you have a better understanding as to what is at stake, the players in the game and who are the soldiers on the battlefield.  God is in control! Your vote is more powerful than any speeding bullet for you are anointed.  Luke 4:18 18″The Spirit of the LORD is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,Despite how the elections turn out the most important relationship you can have is one with Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

One beloved and favored of the Lord

WOW…Works of Wonder..The Single Christians Experience is a 501(c)3 charitable organization that exists to glorify God and build His kingdom.  WOW fellowships with like minded people and performs community service.  WOW represents single Christians thirty-five years of age and older in the Dallas Fort Worth Texas Metroplex.  Everyone is welcome

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ALIVE 2020 is a FREE “in person” with very safe, social distancing, and virtual conference for  Christian single adults and ALL friends, taking place at the Prestoncrest Church of Christ in Dallas, TX.  We are in our 14^th year of this special gathering single adults and friends coming together to connect, encourage, inspire, and empower one another toward exceptionally meaningful and purposeful life with our God and others.  And how great will it be to have an opportunity to gather, in person or virtual, during a crazy pandemic experience like this culture of 2020!  Our gathering will be highlighted by special presentations from Sammie Berry, minister of the Dallas West Church of Christ (Dallas, TX), person most active in ministering and caring for the family of Botham Jean, following the death of Botham by a Dallas police officer.  Also at our conference will be Ben Glover, Licensed Professional Counselor (Owner of Turning Point Counseling in OKC) and long-time minister and now elder with the Oakcrest Church of Christ in OKC.  Possibly most significant of all, we will have excellent opportunities for all those attending in person or virtually around the country and the world to participate in interactive “Breakout Groups”, sharing insights and experiences that will encourage and inspire!  We hope you will be able to join us for this very powerful and timely experience.

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