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A Call to Arms in the War on Poverty
Fifty years ago today, President Lyndon Johnson declared a War on Poverty. It was one of the greatest social undertakings of our time, spawning and expanding some of our most successful social programs – Medicare, Medicaid, increased Social Security benefits,…
Hey, Baby Boomer; You Saved Enough Yet To Retire?
From now until 2030 about 10,000 Baby Boomers will turn 65 every day, the Pew Research Center estimates. This large generation, born between 1946 and 1964, has had a huge impact on American culture and society, and that remains the…
Making compromises to save Social Security
Just three short decades ago, a relatively comfortable retirement income for most individuals was comprised almost entirely of three primary sources — personal savings, Social Security benefits and pension-plan benefits. The latter two were predictable and guaranteed Today, however, it’s…
Seniors Are Paying For Medicare Budget Cuts
Many senior citizens are now paying out of their own pockets for a 2 percent cut in federal Medicare reimbursements to doctors, hospitals and health insurance companies. Beginning Jan. 1, seniors enrolled in certain Medicare Advantage Plans – including some zero…
Social Security now more politically secure
Proposals to raise Social Security benefits are a refreshing antidote to portrayals of the program as a mere drain on the Treasury. Details of some such plans are troubling but the change in tone is most welcome. Democratic Sens. Tom Harkin…
Retirement Plan Limits Largely Unchanged in 2014
Anyone who’s bought groceries, filled their gas tank or paid insurance premiums recently would probably be surprised to learn that, according to Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (CPI-U), the rate of inflation is relatively flat —…
Nearly 11 million Americans on disability at the end of 2013
For the 202nd straight month, the number of Americans receiving disability benefits rose. The end of 2013 saw another record set – 10,988,269 Americans now on disabilty, up 6,000 from the end of November.The average monthly benefit paid to a disabled worker…
The Top Five Reasons Congress Should Begin Reforming Social …
It has been 30 years since Congress last touched Social Security. Reform is urgently needed to protect the nation’s elderly and disabled from poverty and its younger generations from an increasing and economically harmful tax burden. Here are the top five signs that…
New Year’s Resolution: Help Sen. Warren Preserve Social Security
Shop at a Target or Walgreens and notice a 70-something gal or guy behind the counter? Most likely they didn’t take this low-wage job because they were bored in retirement, but because they were running out of money. More than one…
2014: Seize the Moment
The Congress has just ended one of the worst and least productive sessions in the history of our country. At a time when the problems facing us are monumental, Congress is dysfunctional and more and more people (especially the young)…