US's Snow: Need action on Social Security, Medicare

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.forbes.com/markets/newswire/2004/03/24/rtr1310424.html

WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow on Wednesday again called for action on reforming Social Security and Medicare, a day after the Medicare system's trustees said it will go insolvent sooner than thought.

"The fundamenatal math of Social Security is escapable as the large baby boom generation reaches retirement age and the number of workers paying into the system declines significantly relative to the number of retirees," Snow said in prepared remarks to be delivered to the House Ways and Means Committee. snip

On Tuesday, Snow and the Medicare program's other public trustees reported that the hopsital care trust fund for the medical program for the elderly is expected to be exhausted in 2019, seven years earlier than thought.

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[74dodgedart]

1. John Snow, stating the obvious....

Does he actually get paid for this ?

[sinkingfeeling]

2. Bush's reply will be to cut taxes on the wealthiest 2%....

should fix it...fixed everything else, right? Right?

[Palacsinta]

3. But don't they want to 'fix" them to get rid of them?

as in "starve the Beast"? ala Grover Norquist? And I thought I read in a Paul Krugman article that SS was actually OK and the efforts to reform are masking the true agenda?

WHY CAN'T WE GET STRAIGHT ANSWERS FROM OUR GOVERNMENT!!!

[camero]

4. Pubies always complain about SS

But then again it's also the pubies that take the most out of SS to cover the huge deficits they run up. Another fake crisis.

[Lindsay]

5. I've had quite enough of BushCo's "fixing,"

thank you very much.

[papau]

6. The SS/Medicare tax rate could be cut under the easy solution below

The SS/Medicare tax rate could be cut under the easy solution below


Below is an easy solution to Social Security and Medicare Funding w/o benefit cuts


In 2004, the phase in of the Reagan 1984 law’s age 67 Social security retirement age means those born in 1939 retiring this year must be Age 65 and 4 months to get FULL NORMAL retirement benefits with a max monthly benefit of $1,825.

The bend points for that calculation of the PIA from the average indexed monthly earnings (AIME) will be 90% of first $612, plus 32% of amount between $3,689 and $612, plus 15% of the amount over $3,689.

Which of course leads to the question of why a wage base – for taxes paid and benefits as calculated above – must be capped – in 2004 – at $87,900. All the financing problems go away if there is no cap – meaning SS taxes all wages, and the benefit is calculated using the same old formula – namely 15% of the amount over $3,689 is part of the rich fellows PIA/benefit.

Indeed there would be no change in PIA Family benefit calculation of 150% of PIA up to $782, plus 272% of PIA between $1,129 and $782, plus 134% of PIA between $1,472 and $1,129, plus 175% of the PIA over $1,472 per month.

As to Medicare financing, just move Medicare from a “wage base” to an “income base” tax, with capital gains and investment income included in the amount against which the 2.9% Medicare tax is applied. Heck, just use the individual portion – 50% of the 2.9%, or 1.45% - as the tax that would be collected when the person’s FIT is filed, and even then only collect the excess of that “total adjusted income” Medicare tax calculation over the amount already paid via withholding.

[JoFerret]

7. Well - if your administration had not

squandered all the cash and stashed it away for your pals then we could look for these programs to be properly funded. Outrageous.