The Number of People Filing for Social Security is Skyrocketing
Older Americans are claiming their Social Security benefits earlier than ever before. According to a report by Fox8 News in Cleveland, individual retirement claims are up 13 percent compared to last year. Social Security Administration data shows an increase of nearly 320,000 claims. Over the past 10 years, retirement claims increased 3 percent yearly on average.
While demographic factors, such as the large number of baby boomers now reaching retirement age, certainly contribute to this, the fate of the Social Security program may also play a part. It’s a well-known fact that Social Security is facing a funding deficit, and if nothing happens soon, it will be forced to cut benefits in less than ten years.
Perhaps seniors are concerned they will not receive the benefits they’ve counted on for retirement and are opting to take their money sooner rather than later. This speaks volumes for the need to protect this precious program.
Social Security Solvency
The Seniors Trust believes the best way to ensure Social Security is around for today’s seniors and future generations is for Congress to enact the Social Security Expansion Act. Not only will this landmark piece of legislation ensure the long-term solvency of Social Security, but it will also provide seniors with bigger benefits.
Under this bill, seniors would receive an extra $2,400 in benefits each year. In addition, it would recalculate the way the Social Security cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) is calculated, using the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly (CPI-E) instead of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). The CPI-E more accurately reflects the actual spending of seniors, which tends to be on expenses such as healthcare and housing.
To fund the proposed benefits boost and maintain solvency far into the future, the Social Security Expansion Act calls for applying the Social Security payroll tax on all income above $250,000. Currently, earnings above $176,100 aren’t subject to the Social Security tax.
If enacted, the Social Security Expansion Act could keep Social Security solvent for about 75 years.
