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A letter from my Congressman on Medicare and SS!

Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns about discussions to reform Medicare and Social Security. It is good to hear from you, and I appreciate hearing your concerns and opinions on these two very critical issues.

Medicare covers approximately 48 million persons (40 million aged and 8 million disabled) at a total cost of about $569 billion, accounting for approximately 3.7% of GDP. Medicare is an entitlement program, which means that it is required to pay for covered services provided to eligible persons so long as specific criteria are met.

Since 1965, the Medicare program has undergone considerable change. Most recently during the previous Congress, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (HCERA), were signed into law. However, in the absence of congressional action, the Medicare program will be unsustainable in the long run. The Part A trust fund has been estimated to become insolvent in 2024. And although the Part B trust fund is financed in large part through federal general revenues and cannot become insolvent, Medicare spending growth will put increasing strains on Congress's competing priorities.

The Social Security Act (P.L. 74-271) was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on August 14, 1935. While initially created to focus on the income needs of retired workers age 65 and older, this program has been amended significantly to add protections for vulnerable populations. Social Security continues to play a key role in preserving the economic security of Americans. About one-in-six Americans receives a Social Security benefit today. For a third of the elderly, Social Security is virtually their only income. Poverty rates among the elderly fell from 35.2 percent in 1959 to less than 10 percent in 2008 -- a reduction of almost three-quarters in the last 49 years. Younger workers and their families receive valuable disability and survivors’ insurance protection. In fact, about one-in-three Social Security beneficiaries is not a retired worker.

According to the 2011 Annual Report of the Social Security Board of Trustees, in calendar year 2010, 54 million retired workers and their families, disabled workers and their families, and survivors of deceased workers received $713 billion in Social Security benefits. By 2035, Social Security costs as a percent of GDP will increase 28 percent, from 4.85 percent of GDP in 2011 to 6.22 percent of GDP in 2035.

The 2011 Annual Report of the Social Security Trustees again highlighted the financing challenges facing the Old Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) and the Disability Insurance (DI) programs. The trustees project permanent and growing cash flow deficits and estimate that by 2036 the combined OASI and DI Trust Funds will be exhausted. At that point, revenues would cover only 77 percent of benefit payments. The DI Trust Fund is projected to become exhausted in 2018, at which time revenues would cover only 86 percent of benefit payments. The Public Trustees expressed the need for action soon in order to be able to protect vulnerable populations and those at or near retirement age.

Concerns about long-term fiscal sustainability of the Medicare and Social Security programs depend on the projected future path of the budget, absent future policy changes. The Medicare and Social Security 2011 Medicare Trustees reports are a warning call - without action, these programs face certain insolvency, and if Congress doesn't act beneficiaries will face benefit cuts or increased costs. Ensuring the financial viability of Medicare and Social Security is one of Congress’ most important responsibilities. Ignoring this problem only makes the solution more painful for future generations of taxpayers and retirees. We must explore ways to avoid massive tax increases and benefit cuts, provide permanent solvency for the program, and maintain the program’s important safety net. However, we must do this while ensuring no changes for those beneficiaries in or near retirement.

Again, thank you for contacting me in regards to this important issue. As Congress continues to work on addressing the solvency and sustainability of these programs, I will keep your thoughts in mind. Please continue to keep me informed about the issues that are important to you and your family, as your input helps me to better serve you as your Representative in Congress.

Sincerely,
Alan Nunnelee
Member of Congress

AN/EJ

Entitlement my arse... I worked 45 years and paid into the system.

grrrrrrrrrr
 

OldGaffer

Governor
Prepping you for the future gutting of both programs. Wingers have been after SS and Medicare for decades.
 

OldGaffer

Governor
They are trying to con the younger folks into going for it, and throw a bone out there that current seniors would not be affected, just our kids and grandkids will wind up in a 3d world hell hole, with no meaningful safety net whatsoever. I notice they never mention raising taxes even one penny to cover the "projected shortfalls", just gutting.
 

MaryAnne

Governor
Cotton,I just read an article about Sherrod Brown holding a meeting in Warren County, a Republican strong hold. Biggest attendence ever in that county for a democrat.

One man stood and said he was a Republican who had cancer and needed an operation. He contacted Jean Schmidt and John Boehner. Both told him to contact a Lawyer.He contacted Brown,who made sure he had the surgery.The man said he was alive today because of Brown. He got a standing ovation. Guess who he will be voting for this fall? Brown has never once failed to answer my questions. I am sure a staff member does this, but some of the answers seem to come from him.

Jean Schmidt lost her primary so is on the way out. Voters are fast losing faith in Boehner.A truck loaded with a huge roll of duct tape had been making the rounds of Boehner's offices because he will not have a vote on the highway bill.
 
Cotton,I just read an article about Sherrod Brown holding a meeting in Warren County, a Republican strong hold. Biggest attendence ever in that county for a democrat.

One man stood and said he was a Republican who had cancer and needed an operation. He contacted Jean Schmidt and John Boehner. Both told him to contact a Lawyer.He contacted Brown,who made sure he had the surgery.The man said he was alive today because of Brown. He got a standing ovation. Guess who he will be voting for this fall? Brown has never once failed to answer my questions. I am sure a staff member does this, but some of the answers seem to come from him.

Jean Schmidt lost her primary so is on the way out. Voters are fast losing faith in Boehner.A truck loaded with a huge roll of duct tape had been making the rounds of Boehner's offices because he will not have a vote on the highway bill.
Good story Mary Anne...
 

MaryAnne

Governor
I have been listening to CSpan this morning. The subject was what President Obama said about the death of the young man. I was surprised how many first said they were Republicans but thought he said just the right words. One went so far as to say she had not liked President Obama, but now she knew she should stand behind him.
 

fairsheet

Senator
All this weenie-whining around Social Security, is pathetic, diversionary bullshit. Social Security's "issues" are so marginal and so nominal, that they could be fixed in one afternoon's worth of Congressional work, without anyone hardly noticing. BUT...Congress (both sides, for their own seperate reasons) doesn't WANT to "fix" Social Security. They'd rather leave it hanging out there to employ as one big-assed, scare-mongering wedgie, to use at their convenience.

As just ONE example (and there are many) of the nominal/marginal nature of Social Security's "issues", lets look to the claim that Social security will grow from 4.85% of GDP to 6.22% of GDP by 2035. Well gimme an "f-ing" break. I've never been one to shout that we should "Slash defense now!". But good God...don't tell me that over the next 23 years, we can't shift that 1.35%.....1.35%!!!, over from the defense side to the Social Security side.
 

NightSwimmer

Senator
Prepping you for the future gutting of both programs. Wingers have been after SS and Medicare for decades.
Precisely. They have been "warning" us of impending doom since before either program even went into effect. Now they think that they can justify gutting the social safety net by telling us that they only intend to screw our children and grandchildren -- but not us!

I'm not buying it.
 

MaryAnne

Governor
Email him,Cotton,or write. I saw Mike Turner on MSNBC and let him know I would not vote for him for dogcatcher after watching him.

Never got any answers from him at all, but now he is running for his life so he sends me all kinds of emails.

Did not answer the last one though.Mike showed up in a segment of the Daily Show being made fun of. I bet he hated that!:eek:)
 
All this weenie-whining around Social Security, is pathetic, diversionary bullshit. Social Security's "issues" are so marginal and so nominal, that they could be fixed in one afternoon's worth of Congressional work, without anyone hardly noticing. BUT...Congress (both sides, for their own seperate reasons) doesn't WANT to "fix" Social Security. They'd rather leave it hanging out there to employ as one big-assed, scare-mongering wedgie, to use at their convenience.

As just ONE example (and there are many) of the nominal/marginal nature of Social Security's "issues", lets look to the claim that Social security will grow from 4.85% of GDP to 6.22% of GDP by 2035. Well gimme an "f-ing" break. I've never been one to shout that we should "Slash defense now!". But good God...don't tell me that over the next 23 years, we can't shift that 1.35%.....1.35%!!!, over from the defense side to the Social Security side.
Now, how do you really feel FL??!!! LOL
 
"Horse of a different color!" (Greece has a whole different set of problems) But, having said that, do u think it would be fair to take about SS from people who paid in for 45 years? huh?? Cot is NOT looking for a hand out, but what is MINE.
 

anti.reptile

Council Member
I agree, what is yours is yours but when Bush offered solutions the left ran around assuring us there was no problem with SS? There are 4 solutions.

1. Means testing. I'm sure your against this, after all if you pay I,n it's yours right?
2. Raise the eligibility age. Makes the most sense as we are living nearly 2 decades longer than when SS was initiated.
3. Reduce benifits. This still meets your goal . If you live your expected lifetime you get yours back and then some even with a smaller monthly pay out.
4. Raise the income level which is taxed to include all income. Well again I imagine you would also be against this. Your contribution( tax) would be much higher if you made more than the 106k cut off with no increase in benifits.

So using your logic the only palpable solution is to raise the age to start collecting .
 

OldGaffer

Governor
I agree, what is yours is yours but when Bush offered solutions the left ran around assuring us there was no problem with SS? There are 4 solutions.

1. Means testing. I'm sure your against this, after all if you pay I,n it's yours right?
2. Raise the eligibility age. Makes the most sense as we are living nearly 2 decades longer than when SS was initiated.
3. Reduce benifits. This still meets your goal . If you live your expected lifetime you get yours back and then some even with a smaller monthly pay out.
4. Raise the income level which is taxed to include all income. Well again I imagine you would also be against this. Your contribution( tax) would be much higher if you made more than the 106k cut off with no increase in benifits.

So using your logic the only palpable solution is to raise the age to start collecting .
95% of the populations earns less than 100k a year, so raising the cap is only going to affect 5%, as far as living longer, of those who reach age 65, the life expectancy has only gone up 4 years. And w ehave already raised the retiremnt age 2 years, to 67. Who wants geezers in their 70's still in the workforce, piloting planes, laying brick, digging ditches, and other manual labor or high risk jobs?
 
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