insolvency
A Discussion on Strenghtening the “Guardrails” for Social Security and Medicade
The crisis in Social Security and Medicare funding is drawing attention from many quarters, especially as the flashpoints draw closer. We’ve reached the point where the luxury of deferring action on the insolvency issues facing these two critical programs will…
Policy Options for Addressing Social Security & Medicare Solvency Issues
The focus on resolving the rapidly eroding financial positions of our country’s two critical senior safety net and income security programs—Social Security and Medicare—is growing. As we look ahead to the incoming congressional session, various solutions will likely enter the…
Too Much Dependence on Social Security Could be a Problem
A post by The Motley Fool’s Katie Brockman highlights the results of a recent Gallup poll in which 60% of those surveyed indicate that their Social Security benefits are a major source of their retirement income. Further, nearly 905 of…
The Social Security/Medicare Funding Picture in a Nutshell
Quite a bit of rhetoric is surfacing on the media airwaves about the operation and financial stability of America’s primary senior benefit programs, Social Security and Medicare. With much of the commentary dealing with the issue of the insolvency projections…
Social Security Insolvency–What If It Actually Happens?
Over the past few years (actually for decades, now), the Social Security trustees have been sounding the alarm on insolvency. Back in 1983, Congress adopted a slate of amendments intended to sustain the program through the mid- 2050’s, although economic…
Warren Buffett–A Historical View of What Should be Done About Social Security
Social Security’s looming solvency problem is beginning to draw attention (again), now as a segment of the 2024 presidential election debates. Solutions are popping up in many corners, and they range from doing nothing to shoring up the revenue side…
Senate Confirms Former Maryland Governor as SSA Commissioner
On a 50-11 vote, the U.S. Senate yesterday ended the two-year absence of a permanent Social Security Administration leader. Former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley will assume the position of Commissioner for the agency, replacing acting Commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi and taking…
Raising Taxes to Rescue Social Security?
It’s mentioned a lot by pundits and Democrat politicians– raise payroll taxes to fix Social Security’s ill financial health. Maurie Backman explains the program’s troubles (insolvency hits around 2033-34) followed by various tax raising proposals. One is to increase the…
Stimulus Negotiations and Comments on a Payroll Tax Holiday
Pre-recess deliberations on another coronavirus relief package are continuing amid complex and divergent viewpoints on the size and content of further relief. From a Social Security standpoint, one of the concerns continues to be the administration’s continuing push for a…
A Preview of Potential Social Security Changes
As we’ve reported on this website persistently over the past several years, Social Security is facing a long-term solvency issue. Not bankruptcy, as the rumor mill frequently suggests, but rather the inability to fully pay the benefits promised to beneficiaries who…