“The 2009 Social Security Trustees report released Tuesday provides a basis for assessing how each held up. On the one hand, assets in 401(k) accounts — which are predominantly in stocks — have declined in value by about a third, employers are suspending matching contributions, and millions of unemployed workers have seen their retirement savings efforts disrupted.

On the other hand, the Social Security Administration continues to send out monthly checks to 35 million retirees and their spouses, 9 million disabled workers and their families, and 6 million families whose breadwinner has died. In other words, the government system has proved to be much less fragile than the private system of retirement savings.” http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/05/14/munnell.social.security/

The availability, stability and value of traditional defined benefit pensions are diminished. Americans are experiencing dramatic losses in 401(k) and I.R.A. retirement savings accounts. Home equity is shrinking. Employers have been bailing out of retiree health plans. Unemployment is increasing and now, faced with mounting pressures, some employers are reducing contributions to 401(k) plans.

This unfortunate state of affairs serves to remind the nation of the importance of the core mission of Social Security — to provide widespread and basic protection against loss of income due to death, disability or retirement.

See today’s article here

Obama’s fiscal 2010 budget includes increased funding to attack waste, fraud and abuse in federal health and disability programs, an area where the administration estimates every dollar spent will yield far more in savings.

The administration’s fiscal 2010 budget calls for the Department of Health and Human Services to receive $311 million to fight health care fraud. The administration projects that every additional dollar spent by HHS in fighting fraud will yield $1.55 in savings.

Obama’s budget calls for increased scrutiny of spending on Medicaid programs for the poor and two Medicare programs for the elderly, the Medicare Prescription Drug program and Medicare Advantage, an option that typically offers lower out-of-pocket costs for a broader array of medical benefits, including prescription drugs. The administration said the funding will help program operators to identify excessive payments and to adopt new processes to spot and attack problems that result in waste, fraud or abuse of the federal health programs. Link back to NASDAQ story here:

Congressman John S. Tanner (D-TN), Chairman, Subcommittee on Social Security, today announced a hearing on the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) employment support programs for disability beneficiaries, including the Ticket to Work Program. The hearing will take place on Tuesday, May 19, 2009 …

[A]n April 2009 report by the SSA Inspector General found that SSA was not acting quickly enough to terminate the benefits of disability beneficiaries who lose eligibility because they have returned to work. This has been a longstanding concern. Past testimony before the Subcommittee has reported that former beneficiaries have been overpaid tens of thousands of dollars due to SSA’s delays in terminating benefits, even if beneficiaries have informed the agency that they are working. The threat of receiving large overpayments which must later be repaid can be a significant work disincentive for disability beneficiaries. In addition, the failure to terminate benefits in a timely way increases costs to the Social Security Trust Fund, as overpaid funds may not be completely recovered. See Mr. Hall’s blog here

Seniors, disabled and veterans: $300 payments to Social Security beneficiaries, and $300 payments under the Supplemental Security income program for elderly and disabled people living in poverty. Veterans receiving disability or pension payments would also receive $300. The cash payments are one-time only.

See story here:

On the White House web site, the framework for the new president’s policies on Social Security are set out. Obama “will be honest with the American people about the long-term solvency of Social Security and the ways we can address the shortfall.” They will protect Social Security benefits for current and future beneficiaries alike, and they do not believe it is necessary or fair to hardworking seniors to raise the retirement age. Obama and Biden are strongly opposed to privatizing Social Security. As part of a bipartisan plan that would be phased in over many years, they will ask those making over $250,000 to contribute a bit more to Social Security to keep it sound. Obama does not support uncapping the full payroll tax 12.4 percent rate. Instead, he and Joe Biden are considering plans that will ask those making over $250,000 to pay in the range of 2 to 4 percent more in total (combined employer and employee).
See policy under this link:

…”There are a number of great articles and opinion pieces today on Social Security “reform” and the so-called “grand bargain” anti-entitlement crusaders are hoping to elicit from the Obama administration as they consider short-term stimulus legislation.

First, economist Dean Baker with the Center for Economic and Policy Research puts the whole issue in perspective wonderfully in this piece in the Guardian:

The classic definition of ‘chutzpah’ is the kid who kills both of his parents and then begs for mercy because he is an orphan. The Wall Street crew are out to top this. After wrecking the economy with their convoluted finances, and tapping the US Treasury for trillions in bail-out bucks, they now want to cut Social Security and Medicare because we don’t have the money.

The attacks are made even worse by the fact that the attackers, people like Robert Rubin and Peter Peterson, promoted policies that led to this collapse and personally profited to the tune of tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars. In other words, after pushing the economy into a severe recession and destroying the life’s savings of tens of millions of working families, the Wall Street crew now wants to take away their Social Security and Medicare. This can almost make killing your parents look like a petty offence.” See more info here:
And then, under this link here is a good collection of articles on the privatization debate:

It may happen because you did not report some change to Social Security– as examples, perhaps you didn’t tell them that you had some income, or started working, that a child moved out of your house, or that your child began getting child support. We always recommend hand-delivering this information in writing to a Social Security district office, and taking along a second copy that they can date-stamp it, verifying receipt.

Even more frequently, you may have reported the change appropriately, but Social Security doesn’t have it in their computers. There may have been a delay by SSA in making the adjustment in your check, causing an overpayment.

Here is a nice Legal Services site that details all the steps to take if you get such a notice. It is important to act immediately. In some cases, benefits can continue while the investigation is completed. There is also a process for settlement if you are found to owe the money. We have found that they are authorized to accept offers of 80% of the amount owed. Here’s that link:

People are losing jobs and health insurance. In downturns like this, the burden often shifts to Social Security. People apply for disabilty when nothing else is working - and they can’t work. They may not be successful - the standard for proving disability is daunting. But try they will, and the already backlogged Social Security adminsitration will be impacted. Medicare and Medicaid programs will be hard hit as well, as citizens turn to these federal and state-funded programs to cover medical emergencies and ongoing care. See LA Times article here:

“President-elect Barack Obama pledged yesterday to shape a new Social Security and Medicare “bargain” with the American people, saying that the nation’s long-term economic recovery cannot be attained unless the government finally gets control over its most costly entitlement programs.

That discussion will begin next month, Obama said, when he convenes a “fiscal responsibility summit” before delivering his first budget to Congress. He said his administration will begin confronting the issues of entitlement reform and long-term budget deficits soon after it jump-starts job growth and the stock market.

“What we have done is kicked this can down the road. We are now at the end of the road and are not in a position to kick it any further,” he said. “We have to signal seriousness in this by making sure some of the hard decisions are made under my watch, not someone else’s..”Social Security, we can solve,” he said, waving his left hand. “The big problem is Medicare, which is unsustainable. . . . We can’t solve Medicare in isolation from the broader problems of the health-care system.”

Medicare, the government health program for retirees and the disabled, is projected to be insolvent by 2019, according to the most recent report by the Social Security and Medicare trustees. Over the next two decades, Medicare spending is expected to double, consuming nearly one-quarter of the federal budget.” See interview here