Headlines
What Are the Causes of Projected Growth in Spending for Social Security and Major Health Care Programs?
A CBO blog post yesterday noted that federal spending is projected to rise noticeably relative to the size of the economy over the long term because of growth in spending for Social Security, major health care programs, and interest on…
Disability insurance finds fewer takers
A rarely discussed component of many employee benefit packages is on the decline, and insurance providers in Maine say they are concerned that the problem is about to get worse. Providers of long-term disability insurance in the Portland area, a major…
The CBO Finds Medicare Looking a Little Healthier, Social Security Looking a Little Worse, and the Overall Budget a Mess
The Congressional Budget Office released their annual report on the long-term budget outlook today, and you’ll be forgiven for thinking you’ve heard this story before: The long-term debt picture is an unsustainable mess because of our health and retirement systems and accumulating interest…
Why Taxing the Rich is the Wrong Way to Fix Social Security
It may feel good to jack up payments by wealthier earners, but Social Security is a safety net, not a tax collector. How do you categorize the money that comes out of your paycheck to fund Social Security? Do you…
Should You Work in Retirement?
So you’ve paid your dues for decades, and it’s time to decide whether you’re ready to retire. You’re not only wondering whether you can afford to live off your savings, but you’re wondering how leaving the workplace could affect your…
Medicare costs may crowd out other needs
The White House recently put out a 40-page report arguing that the 24 states that have not expanded Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA or “Obamacare”) are hurting their poor and themselves. It’s an easy case to make,…
Social Security honors veterans
In the United States, people do a lot to recognize and honor the heroes who serve in the Armed Forces and those who paid the ultimate sacrifice. July is an appropriate month to recognize veterans and wounded warriors, as we…
Social Security reforms popular, but improbable
Women, don’t hold your breath. For that matter, no one should be getting blue in the face waiting for Social Security to change for the better. So says a study from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, authored by IWPR…
Medicare is here to stay
Medicare went into effect 48 years ago on July 1, 1966. Earlier that same year, Medicare workers went door to door trying to get seniors to sign up. Medicare was not the cornerstone then that it is today and people…
VA denied 80 percent of disability claims filed by Gulf War veterans
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has released data that shows 80 percent of disability claims filed by Gulf War veterans for conditions related to the war have been denied, citing “inadequate and insufficient evidence” to indicate that the cancers,…