Posted by Damozel | Yeah, I know the Clemens line has been done to death. I don't know why I couldn't resist. Actually the title of the report is: Social Security — government report shows that program is healthy for decades to come. Not just not moribund, but actually healthy.
Though people I consider reliable have told me so in the past, it's somehow startling to see it announced, just like that.
The Congressional Budget Office, the agency charged with providing Congress with objective analyses of federal programs, released a new report today that shows the Social Security program is in good financial shape and will be for decades to come.
In fact, the CBO report says, “future Social Security beneficiaries will receive larger benefits in retirement…than current beneficiaries do, even after adjustments have been made for inflation.”
The report, which forecasts out 75 years, finds that while the accumulating surpluses in the trust fund will be exhausted in 2049, ongoing revenues will still be sufficient to fund about 81% of promised benefits at the end of the 75-year period (in 2082). The reason for this is that wages and Social Security revenues will continue to grow as the economy grows. The trust fund will cushion the large baby boom retirement, as it was designed to do, but most benefits will continue to be funded by direct transfers from workers to retirees, as they are now.
The fact that future retirees will receive higher benefits than current retirees, even if no changes are made to the program, is common knowledge among Social Security experts, but may come as a surprise to the average American, and even to many policy makers. This may be why the CBO, headed by respected economist Peter Orszag, decided to make that point in the first page of the new report. (Economic Policy Report; more)
There are problems with the system, but they're not due to boomer retirement. One of the biggies is the health care system. "[W]e need to fix our national health care system, which...spends twice as much as other developed countries with no appreciable difference in outcomes or longevity." (Economic Policy Report; more)
Comprehensive health care reform: another reason to vote for Obama. Just saying. He learned a lot from Hillary and Edwards---who initially had better ideas---and seems open to new data.
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That's good news. I just thought it would be cool to have an option that would allow me to make more money, and when I die my family gets to keep that money instead of it staying with the government. Know what I mean.
My retirement plan doesn't include social security, but if it is still there, I'll consider that a bonus. Yet, if people do rely on soc. sec. for their retirement, they have to retire when the gov. tells them to, as opposed to 58.
Just a thought.
Posted by: freadom | August 24, 2008 at 08:56 AM