Latest News
Social Security Trust Funds as Viewed by Economists
In a post on economics21.org, Dennis Jansen (Director of the Private Enterprise Research Center and a Professor of Economics at Texas A&M University) and Thomas Saving (Director Emeritus of the Private Enterprise Research Center and a former public trustee of the Social…
Healthcare Costs in Retirement: Some Sobering Thoughts
Seniors may face some extraordinary healthcare costs in the future, and the numbers can be overwhelming. Journalist Chris Farrell, senior economics contributor for American Public Media’s Marketplace, provides some thoughts on just how overwhelming this situation might be for some. Check his article out…
New Wage Reporting Application
(Source: Social Security Administration) On June 2, 2018, new capabilities were added to my Social Securityaccounts. The my Social Securityonline portal now accepts wage reports electronically from Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients and deemors, concurrent beneficiaries, and representative payees. This capability had been available only to…
What Social Security’s COLAs Really Mean
Reporter Karla Bowsher, in a post on www.msn.com, takes a look at Social Security’s Cost-of-Living Adjustment provision, notong that “benefits cover a lot fewer expenses than they used to — despite the fact that benefits increase almost every year on account of…
CBO sounds alarm on several federal trust funds
It is not just the Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds that are headed for insolvency. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects the Highway Trust Fund will be depleted by 2022 and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation multi-employer fund by 2025. This article…
Take benefits now, later, or in between: Three people’s decisions
When to start taking Social Security benefits is perhaps the most important decision one can make in retirement. This article can assist one in making this deeply personal determination by looking at three people’s own personal decisions and the aspects that guided them. Read…
Rep. Reed discusses ideas to save Social Security and Medicare
That Social Security and Medicare need reform is news to no one in Congress of either party. But bipartisan solutions have eluded passage for decades. Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) said, “We care about those on Social Security and Medicare and are…
Trust Fund Report Highlights Need for Reform
This article explains The Social Security Trust Fund and its role in paying current and future benefits. As the amount in the fund decreases, the need for Congress to act to sustain the long-term health of the Social Security program becomes…
About being mistakenly declared dead by Social Security
If you think the thought of your actual death is unsettling, read this (GA) Cherokee Tribune & Leger News article by Thomas Hartwell which relates the story of a woman who was inadvertently declared dead by Social Security. Despite such…
Debunking Social Security myths
There is probably no other American program which suffers from as many myths as the Social Security program. From using the word “entitlement”, to politicians “stealing” Social Security’s money, to how suggested actions might “fix” the program’s finances, the purveyors…