Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans

06/06/2026

New guidance from the Administration shows that Medicaid work requirements introduced in the Republican tax law passed last summer will be even more strict than expected.

Starting next year, older adults will have to demonstrate that they have worked, volunteered, or attended school at least 80 hours a month to keep their Medicaid coverage.

The law passed by Congress said “medically frail” individuals could bypass the work requirements and remain eligible for Medicaid. But the rule released this week narrows the definition of who is considered “medically frail,” specifying that only patients who can prove that their condition(s) “significantly impairs” their ability to meet work requirements can qualify for exemption.

Last year, experts predicted that about five million Americans would lose coverage because of the work requirements.

“Millions of Americans – including seniors – rely on Medicaid for health and long-term care coverage,” said Richard Fiesta, Executive Director of the Alliance. “We said this law was cruel when it was passed, and Americans are about to find out just how far President Trump is willing to go to deny health care to Americans who need it.”

06/06/2026

Learn more about why we are supporting the AFGE and ARA Day of Action on June 10th and join us in Chicago!

https://open.substack.com/pub/illinoisretiredamericans/p/social-securitys-customer-service?r=7j6lvm&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

06/05/2026

Administration Launches Attacks on Vote-By-Mail Just In Time for Midterm Elections

Last week, the United States Postal Service (USPS) proposed a new rule that would force states to provide data for mail-in and absentee voters to the federal government, including names, addresses, and envelope barcode information.

The move came a day after a federal judge refused to block President Donald Trump’s executive order aiming to limit mail-in voting. The order, which forms the basis for the Postal Service’s new rule, would require election officials to share a list of voters who have requested mail-in or absentee ballots with USPS at least 30 days before ballots are sent out. USPS would be barred from sending ballots to anyone not on that list. The agency would also be in charge of associating names of mail-in voters with “a unique barcode” assigned to their ballots, potentially eroding state election officials’ power.

Separately, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule in a state voting rights case later this month that could further complicate voting by mail. The Mississippi Alliance joined the Vet Voice Foundation as an intervenor in the case last year. In March, the court heard oral arguments seeking to repeal a Mississippi state law permitting election officials to count ballots postmarked by Election Day. Voting rights advocates expect the court to rule in favor of overturning the law. This would cause chaos for voters in 29 states that provide grace periods allowing officials to count ballots postmarked on or before Election Day. More than 46 million voters (about 30 percent) cast their ballots by mail in 2024, and 119,000 of those took longer than seven days to deliver, according to the Postal Service.

“The Administration insists that this is about election integrity, but making it harder to vote by mail won’t make elections more secure,” said Robert Roach, Jr., President of the Alliance. “This will just introduce unnecessary administrative burdens for millions of Americans exercising their Constitutional right to vote – including seniors who vote by mail at the highest rates.”

06/02/2026

Statement from the Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans on the Failure of SB1937 to Pass During Spring Session

The Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans is disappointed that SB1937, legislation supported by the We Are One Coalition to address inequities in the Tier 2 pension system, did not pass before the conclusion of the Illinois General Assembly's spring session.

For too long, Tier 2 public employees have been asked to do the same work as their Tier 1 colleagues while being promised a retirement that provides fewer benefits and less security.

SB1937 would have taken important steps toward correcting these inequities by improving the final average salary calculation, strengthening cost-of-living adjustments, lowering retirement ages, and addressing the federal "safe harbor" issue.

While concerns about the state's fiscal outlook and uncertainty stemming from federal funding cuts created challenges for advancing pension legislation this year, the need to fix Tier 2 has not gone away. In fact, delaying action will only increase the cost and complexity of solving the problem in the future.

"Today's retirees understand better than anyone the importance of a secure retirement," said Krystle Able, Executive Director of the Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans. "Many spent decades working, contributing to our pensions, and building the retirement security we earned. We are fighting for Tier 2 workers because we believe the next generation deserves the same dignity and stability in retirement that current retirees rely on today. This isn't just about public employees, it's about protecting the promise that hard work should lead to a secure retirement."

The Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans remains committed to working alongside the We Are One Coalition, legislators, and the Governor's office to achieve meaningful Tier 2 pension reform.

Retirees across Illinois know that strong retirement systems benefit workers, families, and communities, and they will continue advocating until this issue is resolved.

The fight to fix Tier 2 is not over. We will continue organizing, educating, and advocating until Illinois fulfills its obligation to provide a fair and adequate retirement for all public employees.

06/01/2026

05/31/2026

05/30/2026

Retiree Hero Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski hosted a Town Hall in Champaign, Illinois yesterday

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05/29/2026

Palantir Receives Billions in Taxpayer Dollars to Spy on Federal Workers, Including SSA Employees

The Trump Administration is working with software company Palantir to surveil workers at three federal agencies, including the Social Security Administration (SSA), according to a report from the American Prospect.

In March, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) granted an initial no-bid contract of $3.9 billion to Palantir in order to create and execute a digital tool to enforce compliance with the agency’s return-to-office mandate. Palantir’s payout could potentially grow to reach $13.3 billion by September 30.

The Administration is trying to implement similar surveillance programs to track and report daily staff occupancy rates at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and SSA. Leaders from the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) say the heightened surveillance will allow the Administration to use low staffing levels produced by last year’s mass layoffs as a justification for future SSA field office closures and consolidation.

“SSA employees work hard to ensure that Social Security beneficiaries receive the benefits they’ve earned,” said Robert Roach, Jr., President of the Alliance. “These workers should not have to worry about the federal government spying on them while they’re just doing their job. We urge the Administration to stop these contracts and focus on protecting and strengthening the benefits we earned.”

05/28/2026

This week has already been busy for the IARA!

Tuesday was our bimonthly board meeting at UAW Region 4 in Ottawa.

The board approved hosting 3-4 One Day education conferences this summer/fall in Chicago, Central Illinois, Quad Cities and East St Louis areas! Stay tuned for more information about these!

We also finalized our Senior Power Celebration invites which affiliates and labor councils will receive in the mail in the next few weeks!

On Wednesday we hosted our annual Older Americans Month breakfast at the IEA Professional Development Center in Springfield where we heard from IEA President Karl Goeke, candidate for IL-15 Jennifer Todd who we hope will unseat retiree ZERO Mary Miller, and watched a performance of Mother Jones by historical reenactor Loretta Williams!

After breakfast our members joined our brothers and sisters at SEIU Healthcare Illinois at the Capitol to demand people over profits!

*photos at the Capitol from SEIU healthcare Illinois Indiana