WASHINGTON, DC, October 9, 2008: A lawsuit filed today in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia charges the Social Security Administration (SSA) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with adopting policies that deny otherwise eligible retirees their rightful Social Security benefits if those retirees choose not to enroll in Medicare. The plaintiffs have asked the Courts to temporarily and permanently prohibit SSA and HHS from enforcing the policies,which were improperly adopted, the plaintiffs say, without required public notice and hearings.