Social Security Essay

Submitted By msunderstood89
Words: 970
Pages: 4
Open Document
As a result of changes to Social Security enacted in 1983, benefits are now projected to be allocated in full on a timely basis until 2037, when the trust fund reserves are projected to become drained (Annual Trustee Report, 2009). In order for Social Security to grow, and to endure in the long run, institutions must met fundamental human needs and must be aligned with fundamental human motivations. Institutions can be modified and changed, but it must emerge and conform to the experience of the human race (Ball,n.d. ). The popularity of the method has meant rapid growth. In 1950, before the first of the recent series of social security improvements, only about 25 percent of the people aged 65 and over were protected under social security and very few had any other kind of retirement coverage. Today, 85 percent are protected under social security, and, if you add the number protected under the civil-service retirement and railroad retirement systems, 90 percent of the present aged have pensions they can count on under programs of the Federal Government, based upon their work and contributions and paid without a test of need (Ibid, n.d.). The insurance program does much more, though, than reduce the need for assistance. Social insurance in this country has taken a form that has made it not just a program for low-income people but rather a universal retirement system supplemented with disability and survivorship protection and now health insurance for persons aged 65 or over.
The Social Security program was designed to stop poverty, and the system has similar objectives as any retirement system. And like any retirement system, it is meant to help people to live in retirement at levels above a minimum existence. The adequacy of Social Security benefits is the key element in determining how well people will be able to get along in retirement, and the same is true for widows and orphans and the disabled. Many people are on the benefit rolls for 15 or 20 years, or even longer, after entitlement. Both the civil-service retirement system and the military retirement system now include provisions to automatically adjust benefits to increases in the cost of living (Ball, n.d. ). Automatic adjustment of social security benefits to changes in price levels could be provided for without increases in the contribution rates that underlie the financing of the system. As wages rise, additional contribution income becomes available to the system and, because wage levels rise faster than price levels, the additional income would be more than sufficient to pay for adjustment of benefits to changes in price levels provided that, from time to time, the contribution and benefit base is increased as earnings levels rise (Ibid, n.d.).
Exhaustion of trust fund assets is projected to occur under the intermediate assumptions because program cost will begin to exceed the tax revenues dedicated to the trust funds in the future, requiring increasing amounts of net redemptions from the trust funds. The assumptions adopted for the 2009 Trustees Report resulted in projected "cash flow" shortfalls for the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI:OASI and DI combined) program as a whole starting in 2016, when tax revenue alone was first expected to be insufficient to cover the annual cost of the program. Historically, the OASI and DI Trust Funds have reached times where dedicated tax revenue fell short of the cost of providing benefits and also times where the trust funds have reached the brink of exhaustion of assets (Annual Trustees Report, 2009).
The Social Security trust is expected to be drained by 2033. Economists and the media have derived alternatives and changes to the system to prevent these harsh benefit deductions. Increasing Social Security taxes would help out the trust fund. Workers currently pay 6.2 percent of their earnings into the Social Security system up to $113,700 in 2013. If that tax rate was gradually increased to 7.2
Show More

Related Documents: Social Security Essay

Essay on Social Security

Social Security Tamiko Holloman Strayer University PAD 510-Intro. To Public Policy Analysis Dr. Thomas Walkington December 11, 2014 Historical Perspective on Social Security The purpose of this paper is to critique a policy across two different presidential administrations. It begins with a historical perspective, followed by the social, economic, and political environments associated with molding the program. It will also identify a couple issues across two presidential administrations within…

Words 3254 - Pages 14

Essay Social Security

days, but what if you had an almost 80 year old I Phone that was in okay condition but you knew you really needed to upgrade. That is the same issue we have with Social Security, it was developed almost 78 years ago in 1935. With the promise of being a safety net for aging Americans, people with disabilities and a death benefit. Social Security wages are taken in the form of taxes by the government, and in turn are used to fund the program, the government creates the guideline on how much each individual…

Words 959 - Pages 4

Social Security Privatization

Mitchel Spencer Macroeconomics November 11th, 2014 Final Should Social Security be Privatized? A question that has been talked about a lot in the recent years is the privatization of Social Security. This is the case because Social Security is scheduled to become insolvent by the year 2037. This means that by that time the Social Security system will only be able to pay out 75 percent of benefits to beneficiaries. This is where privatization comes in. People are pointing out that there is a 25…

Words 1429 - Pages 6

Social Security Dbq

The Social Security Act came to be because of two separate factors, the Industrial Revolution and the Great Depression. You see, before these two events which shaped the United States to what we know it as today security for the elderly came from another source. In this time prior to the 1930’s America was almost entirely an agricultural nation. A typical life in this period would be to grow up on the farm working the land until you were too old to do so. Once this occurred your extended family would…

Words 950 - Pages 4

Social Security Paper

“Is Social Security Worth Salvaging?” The social security program is a hot topic right within our political realm, and those governing our country do not know how to fix the current issues, if they should even repair the program, or if it should be scraped altogether. This is slightly alarming, although not too surprising, given the United States’ recent political and economic track record. Because a bipartisan agreement is literally something out of a fairy tale at this point in time, it would…

Words 788 - Pages 4

Social Security Threats

but if this is true, why are so many people so quick to throw their bank and credit card information at whatever website happens to have the items they want at the time, and why are we so trusting of online job applications that require our social security number and criminal…

Words 690 - Pages 3

Social Security In America

The Social Security Act was adopted in 1935, which regulated unemployment and retirement programs. “The United States was a relative latecomer in covering its employed workers with compulsory old-age insurance, and perhaps, for this reason, it is not surprising that the U.S. program was largely inspired by continental European models, particularly the German example, in the 20 or more years preceding its adoption” (Hoskins (2010, pg. 79). Social Security has become essential for many Americans; many…

Words 944 - Pages 4

Social Security Dbq

Social Security is one of the largest government programs, that provides a monetary assistance to people. Social Security pay billions of dollars to Americans over age 65, whom have worked for the county, monthly; every year. Social Security benefit can be for retirement, disability, death, or Medicare/Medicaid. This paper will discuss the position Democrats and Republicans have regarding Social Security. Social Security was passed by Franklin Roosevelt in 1936; during the Great Depression.…

Words 193 - Pages 1

Social Security Benefits

Goal: Article About Social Security Benefits Word count in this document: 367 Title: SSDI and chronic kidney disease If you are trying to get social security benefits chronic kidney disease, there are a number of things you must do and steps you must take. All genitourinary disorders that result in chronic kidney disease are evaluated. These disorders include things like hypertensive nephropathy, diabetic nephropathy, chronic obstructive uropathy, and hereditary nephropathies. You will need…

Words 385 - Pages 2

The Debate of Social Security Essay

Debate of Social Security COMM/215 ESSENTIALS OF COLLEGE WRITING Introduction Social Security can be a vital and reliable resource of income for disabled and retired citizens. However, although social security is available today, it may not be available in the near future. In this paper, you will find the history of social security, and its intended purpose to exist. The debates for the plans for social security will also be discussed; also, the attempts to reform social security…

Words 750 - Pages 3