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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…
Social Security isn’t going away
Despite what you may hear from media pundits who like to dramatize, the Social Security program isn’t going away. Yes, the program does have financial issues which could impact benefits in the future and which need the attention of Congress,…
Social Security disability trending toward lower program costs
Little changed in the most recent Social Security Trustees’ Report, which still shows a projected depletion of the Trust Funds by 2034, meaning a potential cut in benefits. However the Trustees did not adjust their assumptions regarding the Social Security Disability…
Social Security Disability: How an appeal hearing works
About 2 out of every 3 Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) claims are initially rejected, but fortunately there is an appeals process if you feel your claim has been unfairly denied. Appealing a denial is your right, from requesting reconsideration…
Does recent GOP tax and DACA legislation affect Social Security?
The wailing and hyperbole from the left side of the aisle would lead you to believe that recent GOP legislation for tax cuts and job improvement, as well as the rescission of the DACA (“Dreamers”) program, would devastate the Social…
Here’s what to do in your first summer of retirement
Probably each of us has daydreamed at work about all of the neat things we’d like to do this summer. The sun shinning through those office windows seems to beckon us to come out and enjoy. Well, after 40 or…
A hedge for Social Security’s woes: Build your savings
A pretty big, but not so pretty, milestone will occur this year when Social Security taps into its Trust Fund to pay out benefits. This is a harbinger of what Social Security’s Trustees have been warning us about for years –…
Short on retirement savings? Work longer
It’s pretty well known, and many news articles even headline it: America has a “savings crisis”; that is, far too many people approaching retirement don’t have enough money saved to ensure it’s a comfortable one. If that’s an issue which concerns…