In May of this year, Social Security announced that program costs will exceed revenue by 2016, one year sooner than what was reported last year. Additionally, the social security trust fund will be exhausted in 2037, four years sooner than projected last year.
Shouldn't social security merit top priority over healthcare reform? Think about our children born in the 70's with no supplemental retirement benefits. Why pay into social security at all? Most of them are currently unemployed and unable to set up their own individual retirement plans so as not to rely on social security. Such a bleak picture of the future should be compelling enough to command urgent action.
If that is not enough, consider this: to pay all scheduled benefits over a 75 year period, the social security trust fund would need additional revenue equivalent to $5.3 trillion in today's dollars. The country's projected deficit over a 10 yr. period is a whopping $9 trillion!
Why is the administration rushing to pass the healthcare reform bill this year? Haste makes waste. Is this the way to run government? Set priorities, lay out a plan and stay focused on the goal. It appears that the agenda is to react to issues triggered by special interest groups under the banner of serving the public interest.
Can we please have a plan to reform social security before next year's annual report?
http://riyah6.blogspot.com/
About Me
- zoni
- I'm your next door neighbor with serious concerns about our America. Most people have been silent about things that matter because they do not have the facts. This blog's mission is to educate you about the issues that impact your financial security, your health and your values. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, "Our lives begin to end, the day we become silent about things that matter". Speak the truth. Be empowered and stand on the facts. Rise in righteous indignation and together we can effect the change to take back America.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Healthcare Reform This Year - Why the Urgency?
The rush to reform healthcare is turning into an obsession for the people behind it. Their message is clear: get on board or the train is leaving the station. Taking such a stance might work in other cases of change management. I facilitated one on managed care in the mid-90's. It was my job and it had to be done. It became evident to me, soon after, that such a change was not in the public interest because the focus was on the bottom line. Still is. I should mention that I was out of that league really fast. Taking care of the concerns of Main Street is what I do now. I expect the same of our elected officials, aka public servants.
It is plain to see a parallel here and I just have to question the urgency to pass the healthcare reform bill this year. The effects of managed care have contributed to the complex problems in healthcare. The proposed bill does not provide clear and specific answers to people's concerns. The sales pitch is coverage for the uninsured and the unhappy insured and the details will be worked out later. Is it really the public interest that matters or that of special interest groups?
All sectors of the healthcare industry, not lobbyists, should be represented at the table to give legislators a clear picture of our healthcare system, its impact on the economy and public welfare. More importantly, get a representative account on the plight of the uninsured and concerns of the insured. You can't go wrong getting the information directly from the horses' mouth. Do all these now through December and rework the bill next year. How could that hurt the public good?
For me and Main Street, saving social security should be top priority.
http://riyah6.blogspot.com/
It is plain to see a parallel here and I just have to question the urgency to pass the healthcare reform bill this year. The effects of managed care have contributed to the complex problems in healthcare. The proposed bill does not provide clear and specific answers to people's concerns. The sales pitch is coverage for the uninsured and the unhappy insured and the details will be worked out later. Is it really the public interest that matters or that of special interest groups?
All sectors of the healthcare industry, not lobbyists, should be represented at the table to give legislators a clear picture of our healthcare system, its impact on the economy and public welfare. More importantly, get a representative account on the plight of the uninsured and concerns of the insured. You can't go wrong getting the information directly from the horses' mouth. Do all these now through December and rework the bill next year. How could that hurt the public good?
For me and Main Street, saving social security should be top priority.
http://riyah6.blogspot.com/
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