Is Medicaid on the chopping block?. Will Social Security be trimmed back? Are the knives out for Medicare?
These are huge concerns for Americans who depend upon these
entitlements for health care and survival.
Those who have enthusiastically championed massive cuts in the federal
government are now reflecting on how critical the Medicaid program, for example, is for their
constituents and local economies.
Imagine the harm done medically and economically when rural community
hospitals would wither without these federal dollars.
A large measure of public angst on these issues is derived
from distrust in our politicians. We
have seen them engage in flip-flopping, backtracking, u-turning, ‘evolving’ and
other iterations of political gymnastics.
Can we really be reassured by what they are saying today or when on the
campaign trail? (Hint: We can’t.)
When they reassure us that there will be no cuts in (insert government
program here), can we trust them? (Hint: We can’t.)
Politicians are contortionists as they bend and twist their positions.
Isn’t closing Social Security offices across the country a
form of a cut even if the monthly check amount remains the same?
Isn’t instituting a work requirement for certain Medicaid
recipients a form of a cut since many enrollees who cannot meet these
requirements will be taken off the rolls?
I understand that technically a politician can declare that
an entitlement has not been cut if the dollar amount remains stable, but this
is rather disingenuous if not downright dishonest.
Consider this example which is a product of my imagination.
An east coast individual sends in $500 per month via a bank transfer to a
charity in California. He notifies the charity that going
forward, a representative of the charity must travel to his Manhattan office on
the 1st of every month to receive the monthly $500
donation. The charity, of course, is
unable and unwilling to comply with the expense and hardship of the new
process. Can the donor truthfully
maintain that he has not cut his charitable donation?
Thanks for bearing with my absurd hypothetical, but you get
my point. We face so much political
legerdemain and outright mendacity all of which serves as rocket fuel for our
growing cynicism.
So the next time you hear one of your elected officials
profess with religious zeal that no benefits will be touched, look behind or
underneath the statement to search out the truth.
We are going broke at an alarming rate. Your solution is?
ReplyDeleteTax the ultra wealthy and large corporations a reasonable amount
DeleteMedicare and Social Security must both be reformed. Anyone of either party saying
ReplyDelete‘We won’t touch’ has made a tacit decision to let both become insolvent . Nevermind their effect on the massive unsustainable deficit and the grossly unfair transfer of wealth from younger generations to older generations. Anyone under 40 not insisting on changes and demanding it from politicians is not paying attention.
While I am not an economist, I suspect the contours of necessary reform have been known for decades. Alas, these reform measures are politically radioactive. Folks are living longer. There are fewer younger workers today supporting retiring folks (who will be living longer!) We must delay the age when one can collect Social Security to address this actuarial and economic reality. Naturally, you would have to transition these changes in and exempt those who are relatively close to the current retirement age to make it politically feasible. The longer we wait, the more difficult it will be to extend the system's solvency. Our politicians will act only when enough of us demand that they do so. .
ReplyDeleteOR we could stop the foolish anti-immigrant nonsense, let more immigrants in to work the jobs Americans won't and also contribute to the taxes for Social Security and Medicare. And by the way, remove the income cap on Social Security which will bring in billions.
DeleteYes, it is absolutely incredible that the US Congress has not removed the cap on Social Security contirbutions, currently capped at about $165K. Easy fix and would keep Social Security going for many years. Why haven't the politicians fixed this YEARS ago, instead of leaving the system to wither going forward?
DeleteWhy haven't politicians stepped up? That's an easy one. They are cowardly invertebrates who wouldn't dare support any position or program that my threaten their political viability!
ReplyDelete