So, how should the pending problems with Social Security and Medicare be addressed? This measure, called the CPI for the Elderly, would increase the annual COLA by about 0.2 percentage point, on average. In fact, Social Security provides world-class service to millions of people every day – online, on the phone, and in our network of field offices across the country. For example, did you know the original name of the Social Security Act was the Economic Security Act? That comes to $12,228 a year. But Social Security is showing its age, or rather, American workers are showing theirs.
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uQuestion: Why is there a five-month waiting period for Social Security disability benefits?
All this indicates that benefits need to be raised so that Social Security (plus some individual savings) will enable retirees to live above the poverty line. It is only applied now to the first $118,500 of an employee’s pay, a level that rises yearly with inflation.
Second, Social Security now has almost $3 trillion. It will be solvent, but just barely. Policymakers have an easy – and in the past non-controversial – way to redirect payroll tax revenues between trust funds that would allow Social Security to pay full old age, survivors and disability benefits until 2034.
Social Security’s long-term financial problems are largely a result of demographic changes.
The system’s Disability Insurance program is in much worse condition.
The wage base is not an arbitrary number: In 1983, the last time that Congress significantly reformed Social Security, it was pegged at an amount that would tax about 90 percent of all wage income in the United States. Politicians won’t let that happen. No wonder the program was wildly popular.
Between now and January 2017, we’ll be working hard to get presidential candidates to endorse our goals, which also include creating 25 million jobs over the next decade, achieving energy security by 2024, and reaching fiscal balance by 2030.
“It’s not just about changing a number on a card, it’s about changing systems, and that does take a while and costs some money”, Thompson says.
Social Security is there for us. A report in July stated that the retirement and disability funds will be exhausted in 2034; after that, it will only be able to pay 77 percent of the promised benefit if Congress doesn’t take action to solidify the entitlement program.
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“Social security has been a national treasure for 80 years, bringing financial stability, independence and dignity to millions of Americans”. In 1 out of every 4 households, someone receives Social Security today. With experts predicting that Social Security may be depleted by 2033, retirees are concerned. If they claim early and receive reduced benefits they may not have enough money to meet their basic needs. Beyond that, she supports 2 fixes that are easy to understand and seem like they could secure bipartisan support. That’s not what Social Security reform looks like. Others think the tax should be raised, the retirement age should be raised or the benefits should be cut down. Being a persistent optimist, I believe we’ll continue to see medical breakthroughs that will extend life so I like my chances using this strategy.
