Tag Archives: Social Security

CBO Director on Choices for Federal Spending and Taxes

The Director of the Congressional Budget Office, Douglas W. Elmendorf, made a presentation on the Federal Budget to the Harvard Economics 10 class on April 26.  I encourage you to download and read the entire presentation. It’s a clear and concise overview … Continue reading

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Why Is Age 65 Still a Preferred Retirement Age for So Many People?

A large proportion of workers continue to retire at age 65 despite the increase in Social Security’s Full Retirement Age (FRA) to age 66 for recent retirees. Why is age 65 so sticky? The Center for Retirement Research at Boston … Continue reading

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Only 42% of Private Sector Workers Age 25-64 Have Any Type of Pension Coverage in Their Current Job

The Pension Coverage Problem in the Private Sector Major findings are: Only 42 percent of private sector workers age 25-64 have any type of pension coverage in their current job. This coverage gap creates two types of problems: More than … Continue reading

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What’s the Big Deal about the Chained CPI and How Would It Affect Social Security Benefits?

I. What is the Chained CPI and how does it differ from other CPI measures? First, there are numerous consumer price index measures. Among the most notable are: CPI-U (Consumer Price Index – Urban) – measures prices for consumers in … Continue reading

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The Economist on the Morally Troubling Proposal to Raise the Retirement Age to 67 or 71

The Economist, not noted as a liberal magazine, weighs in on the morally troubling proposal to raise the retirement age to 67 or 71. “Take a minute to process this. As a bipartisan proposal to bring entitlement spending under control, raising the … Continue reading

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Social Security and Medicare: Taxes Paid and Benefits Received

What are the lifetime benefits and taxes paid for a typical recently retired couple? According to the Urban Institute this couple paid less in taxes than they will receive in Medicare and Social Security benefits. Here are the specific estimates for the … Continue reading

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If the U.S. Defaults on Its Debt, Be Scared, Very Scared

If the United States defaults on its debt, this is what is likely to happen according to Ezra Klein: The choices it (the government) will face quickly become stark. It can cover interest on the debt, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, … Continue reading

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Summarizing 2012 in Charts

Steven Rattner provides a good summary of 2012 in charts. “In 2012, the slow recovery dominated both the economic news and the worries of most Americans, but the underlying components of the weak job market were not always fully dissected. In … Continue reading

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11 Shocking, True Facts about Simpson-Bowles

Via the Wonkblog: 1) Simpson-Bowles ends the the Bush tax cuts for income over $250,000. And note that they do that before they reform the tax code. The expiration of the tax cuts is built into their baseline. That way, … Continue reading

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Fed Study Questions CBO Conclusions Regarding Healthcare Costs as Driver of Fed Deficit

Yesterday I encouraged readers to examine the CBO report, What’s Driving the Federal Deficit and What are the Realistic Choices? I still do. However, an interesting paper, An Examination of Health-Spending Growth in the United States: Past Trends and Future Prospects, from reputable … Continue reading

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