Can Social Security Survive the COVID-19 Crisis? - The Motley Fool & AMAC
Social Security’s long-term health has been a problem and has made news for some time, though little is being done in Congress to make it more solvent. The Covid-19 pandemic will make the finances of the program worse, and perhaps MUCH worse than anyone can even predict. Social Security gets the bulk of its funding from payroll taxes, but the U.S. is experiencing unemployment not seen since The Great Depression. Revenues to the program are collapsing, right at a time when record numbers of baby boomers are retiring and people are living much longer (20 years longer than when Social Security began). The latest Trustees Report from April 2020 doesn’t even include the pandemic’s effect on the solvency of Social Security. That won’t be known until April 2021. Maurie Backman analyzes the problem, and it’s one AMAC has been writing about for years. Read Backman’s article here.
The Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC) believes Social Security must be preserved and modernized. This can be achieved by making modest changes in cost of living adjustments and the retirement age, with no additional taxes on workers. AMAC supports a bipartisan compromise, “The Social Security Guarantee Act,” taking portions of bills introduced by former Rep. Johnson (R-TX) and current Rep. Larson (D-CT) and merging them with the Association’s own research. One component is Social Security PLUS, a new, voluntary plan that would allow all earners to have more income available at retirement. This component is intended to appeal especially to younger workers. AMAC is resolute in its mission that Social Security be preserved and modernized and has gotten the attention of lawmakers in DC, meeting with many congressional offices and staff over the past several years. Read AMAC’s plan here.