The following editorial sounds like a fair and honest summation of what we
should probably expect in coming years.

Personally, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if Social Security
benefits remain frozen, even beyond 2012 or 2013; particularly if a
Republican administration takes over again.

In fact, while I may be mistaken -- and I hope so -- I don't have much
expectations for Social Security benefits ever going up again. The party may
in fact be over, as far as SS is concerned.

But just you watch the Republicans spit out all kinds of cut-cut rhetoric
for the poor man, while they continue to hold their fancy dinner parties,
drive their fancy cars, live in their fancy homes, eat the best food and
give tax cuts to their rich friends.

They should all read the Epistle of James chapter five!

Following is the full editorial.


The Latest on Medicare and Social Security

New York Times Editorial

August 9, 2010


It's the time of year when the trustees of Medicare and Social Security
release their annual reports on the programs' financial health. And that
means Americans are likely to be bathed in a fog of political rhetoric that
makes it hard to sort out fact from fiction.

Here's the bottom line: The recently passed health care reform bill is
promising to have a positive effect on Medicare, assuming Republican
opponents don't succeed in killing the reform in court or otherwise
undermining its main provisions. Social Security is holding up even in the
face of a weak economy. According to the reports, the date of insolvency for
Medicare's hospital fund was pushed back, from 2017 to 2029, because of
cost-saving measures in health reform. As for Social Security, without any
changes, it will be able to pay full benefits until 2037 and partial
benefits after that, the same estimate as in last year's report, despite
temporary setbacks from the recession.

Of course, neither program is sound for the long run. But the reports show
there is time for lawmakers to reform and strengthen both of the programs
for the long haul. The real question is whether they will rise to the
challenge or continue to view these vital programs as battlegrounds for
scoring partisan points.

The trustees stressed that the improvement in Medicare depends on how
effectively the new health care reform law is implemented. For instance, the
law envisions paying doctors based on quality and efficiency of treatments,
rather than on the number of visits or procedures. As that transition
occurs, will Congress resist the inevitable outcry?

Future savings also depend on how Congress and the White House react to the
Medicare payment advisory board, established under the new law to recommend
additional ways to reduce costs. The recommendations take effect unless
Congress passes a law to reject them. Will lawmakers be generally supportive
of the board or generally antagonistic?

Technically, Social Security is an easier fix. To put the program on a sound
footing will require a combination of moderate benefit cuts and tax
increases, which could be distributed fairly and phased in over decades.

A lot of attention will be paid to the finding in the Social Security report
that payouts will exceed revenues in 2010 and 2011, as high unemployment
drives down payroll taxes. That doesn't endanger benefits, because any
shortfall can be covered by the trust fund. But some politicians will depict
the imbalance as evidence that deep and urgent cuts are needed soon. That is
not the case. If anything, public attention to near-term fluctuations should
serve as a reminder that by acting to reform the system sooner rather than
later, needed reforms can be fair, gradual and modest.

Medicare is a thorny problem; Social Security, by comparison, is a cinch.
More worrisome than either is the hyperpartisan atmosphere in Washington.



Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS  Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your Download Center 4 Mac BBS Software & Christian Files.  We Use Hermes II


--- Hermes Web Tosser 1.1