AARP news stories on Newser

AARP: Families Provide $450B in Unpaid Care

Sarah Whitmire — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 16:04:50 CDT

About one in four US adults provided unpaid care for a sick or disabled family member at home in 2009, and AARP estimates the dollar value to be $450 billion, the AP reports. These 42.1 million people provided an average of 18.4 hours of care per week, up...

AARP Open to Modest Cuts in Social Security Benefits

John Johnson — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 16:57:48 CDT

The debate on entitlements reform got a jolt today when the Wall Street Journal reported what it sees a major shift in policy at AARP: The group will no longer oppose cuts in Social Security benefits. Given the group's massive clout, the story raised a ruckus on Capitol Hill and...

Old People Rule America

Kevin Spak — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 08:50:29 CST

The unspoken question looming over Washington’s budget battle isn’t how much discretionary spending tol cut; it’s “whether our elected politicians will take back government from AARP,” writes Robert Samuelson of the Washington Post . Both parties obviously quake in fear of the senior citizens’ lobby, unwilling to go near the entitlements...

Anti-AARP Group Launching

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 07:22:46 CDT

The American Association of Retired Persons ... sounds so non-threatening, right? Yet an anti-AARP group is coming out swinging against the nonprofit. Led by a longtime Republican adviser and head of the Social Security Institute, the Alliance for Retirement Prosperity will launch Wednesday with the goals of repealing the Obama administration's...

Workers May Get Automatic Retirement Accounts

John Johnson — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 16:58:06 CDT

Democrats plan to introduce legislation that would automatically enroll private-sector workers in retirement savings accounts, the Hill reports. The measure, being heavily pushed by the AARP, would apply to those whose employers don't offer 401k accounts. Workers would be able to opt out of the plan, whose backers don't expect...

AARP Will Endorse House Dems' Health Bill

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:00:36 CST

In a coup for House Democrats, AARP will endorse sweeping health-care overhaul legislation, officials said today. An endorsement from the seniors' lobby was crucial when then-President Bush pushed the Medicare prescription drug benefit through a closely divided Congress in 2003. House Democrats are hoping it will work the same political...

GOP Ramps Up Attacks on AARP Over Health Care

John Johnson — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:16:12 CDT

The "right-wing commentariat" has a new villain to replace ACORN, and it has a far more familiar acronym: AARP. The basic line of attack is that the AARP has struck "backroom deals" with Democrats on health care reform to steer insurance business its way, writes Evan McMorris. The House GOP...

Dems, GOP Fight Over Medicare Rates

Kevin Spak — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:33:00 CDT

A new health care-related bill is in the spotlight on Capitol Hill, as senators battle over a Democratic proposal to freeze Medicare rates for doctors at the current rate for 10 years—overriding a 21% cut scheduled for January. Democrats say the bill, which is backed by lobbyists from the...

Health Reform's Enemy No. 1? Seniors

Kevin Spak — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 09:12:30 CDT

Scan the ranks of health care reform malcontents at your local town hall, and you’ll notice a lot of older faces. With Democrats aiming their sales pitch mostly at middle-class Americans and the uninsured, seniors have come to fear that Medicare, their own beloved government-run health care, will face unpleasant...