Apr 22, 2019
Social Security’s financial health is on the upswing.
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Social Security’s financial health is on the upswing.
via twitter.
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The crux of the conservative attack on Social Security in recent years has been the claim that the program is on an unbroken path to insolvency. Monday’s release of the Social Security trustees’ annual report knocks a pillar out from under that campaign, for it shows that the program actually got healthier during the last year.
The trustees predicted that the program’s reserves — that is, the trust funds of its retirement and disability components — will be exhausted in 2035. In last year’s report, the trustees pegged that date at 2034. In other words, the trust funds’ exhaustion last year was 16 years away; this year it’s still 16 years away.
We’ll get to the main reason for the improvement in a moment. But the bottom line is positive. “This year’s trustees report shows that, contrary to conservative propaganda, Social Security is not ‘going bankrupt’ or ‘in peril,’” Max Richtman, head of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said after the report’s release.
via Los Angeles Times.
Related Reading:
Social Security’s Financial Health Improves, Trustees Say.
Social Security’s financial health is on the upswing, according to today’s report from the Social Security Trustees. The system’s reserves are now projected to last until 2035 (a full year longer than last year’s report projected), with the government able to pay 80% of benefits after that time – but only if Congress does nothing to fortify Social Security’s finances.
This year, Social Security will take in more than it pays out. As a result, the asset reserves of the combined trust funds will increase by $3 billion in 2018 to a total of $2.895 trillion.
Do some mainstream media outlets truly not realize that members of Congress are working to avert shortfalls in Social Security and Medicare without cutting benefits? Or do they simply believe that the "no action in Washington" narrative is more compelling than the truth?
The media’s reporting on the Social Security Trustees’ annual reports has fallen into an unfortunate pattern: No matter what the Trustees actually report, journalists tend to describe Social Security and Medicare’s future in the gravest terms possible – topped by alarmist headlines. The coverage of Monday’s 2019 report was no different.
“Social Security won't be able to pay full benefits by 2035” - CNN
“Medicare, Social Security Face Shaky Fiscal Futures” – Associated Press
“Social Security and Medicare Funds Face Insolvency” – New York Times
“Social Security is headed for insolvency by 2035” – CNBC
“Social Security, Medicare — uh oh!” – Federal News Network
Read more from our new op-ed by clicking here.
It's an annual ritual: The Social Security trustees release a report detailing the status of Social Security and Medicare, and Republicans, Third Way Democrats, and members of the punditry that have been conditioned to believe them howl that the programs are dying and must be cut to be saved.
via As usual, reports of Social Security's imminent demise are exaggerated.
Related Reading:
Don’t Believe Misleading Coverage of Social Security Trustees’ Report.
The media’s reporting on the Social Security Trustees’ annual reports has fallen into an unfortunate pattern: No matter what the Trustees actually report, journalists tend to describe Social Security and Medicare’s future in the gravest terms possible – topped by alarmist headlines.
This year’s Trustees report shows that, contrary to conservative propaganda, Social Security is not ‘going bankrupt’ or ‘in peril.’
via Social Security’s Financial Health Improves, Trustees Say.
One of the ugliest tropes in American politics is to say "Social Security is going broke." Although there are structural funding problems with the system, to say that the nation's most successful annuity program is going bust is a lie. It can be fixed and only politics blocks a reasonable remedy.
But that didn't stop dozens of Fox News outlets from proclaiming otherwise. They got their facts wrong and wanted to scare people without providing context.
Fox anchors read this statement: "The Social Security Board of Trustees said [in] its 2017 annual report that 2022 will make the first time in more than 40 years that Social Security pays out more in benefits than it takes in. And so deficits are going to continue to be depleted out of the roughly $3 trillion in asset reserves."
Two parts of this report are false. 1) The Social Security trust fund will not be depleted in 2022. 2) The trust fund will remain solvent until 2034, not 2022. This is not my math, it's what the latest Social Security Trustees annual report states.
via Forbes.
Related Reading:
Misleading Media Headlines on Social Security & Medicare Finances.
The truth is that Social Security and Medicare are not in crisis, going broke, heading toward the skids, or facing insolvency. The Trustees reports indicated none of these things.
So, if you find the shorter Medicare timeframe concerning, the main culprit is clear. It is not the structure of the program or the ACA. It is the Trump administration’s policies, which are undermining the financial stability of much of our health care system.
Certainly, Medicare faces other long-term financial challenges as medical costs continue to rise and the number of beneficiaries grows. Policies to address those concerns are urgently needed. But the most recent Trust Fund financial projection is a diversion from those more serious issues. The Trust Fund could be as solid as ever, if Congress were to put the ACA back on track.
via Philly - The Inquirer.
Related Reading:
No Cause for Alarm from Social Security Trustees Report.
On Medicare, the Trustees report shows that the Part A Trust Fund will be able to pay full benefits until 2026, at which point payroll taxes are estimated to be sufficient to cover 91% of benefits – if nothing is done to bolster the system’s finances.
The National Committee advocates several measures to keep Medicare financially sound, including a genuine push to allow the program to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies.