There has been a large amount of attention being brought upon issues related to social security in the United States as of late. While millions of people rely on this public service in order to be able to live when they retire, the government have been looking to make cuts in this area.
While everyone was too busy commenting about Trump and writing news stories about him, people’s attention was taken away from the massive piece of news that was released highlighting how by the year 2021, which is only three years away, there will be more social security paid out than what is taken in.
It is subsequently being forecasted that by the year 2034, which is only sixteen years in the future, the pay-outs could very well be cut by 23% unless drastic measures are now taken in order to prop up a program that is ready to collapse.
It is estimated that by the year 2034, the population of the United States will be 340 million, which would result in drastically lower cheques for those 87 million Americans who will be in need of receiving this form of compensation.
This could mean a decrease of roughly $5,969, per year, which will come as shocking news as currently, 60% of those retired in America rely on their social security cheques or more than half of their incomes each and every month. If this is taken away, then there are going to be massive social issues at play and there could be devastating consequences.
The main reason for all of this is down to the number of people in retirement constantly reaching new highs. In this day and age, healthcare is so good and people are so much more aware of potential health issues that they are living a lot longer.
While this is great on a fundamental level, it does put a lot of strain on a country’s resource when it starts to get out of hand. Social security strains are just the beginning, as there will be strains on the likes of land, housing etc. in the future if the proper protocols are not put into place.
It is estimated that on a daily basis, there are over 109,000 baby boomers retiring. This is expected to keep rising until 2029. Life expectancy now is an average of 76.3 years for men and 81.2 for women in the United States.
Therefore, these people are going to be receiving benefits for longer than they previously would have when the life expectancy was slower. There is also a shortfall in the number of young people who are paying into the social security system.
For every one person on social security, there are three workers at the moment contributing to this. Come 2034, this number will fall to two workers for every one person on social security. Back in the 1970s, this figure was four people for every person on social security.
This is a triple threat and they all combine for a harsh reality. Only approximately one in eight Americans currently have a pension and almost half of all families have nearly no retirement savings. Something needs to be done and quick.
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