AARP Online Community and Discussion Forums - 2024 Social Security Trustee Report Summary

GailL1 · ‎05-07-2024

For those who would like to read it themselves - straight from the horses’ mouth, so to speak.

2024 Social Security Trustee Report Summary

Sometimes other media outlets tend to emphasize somethings in the report rather than others -

So is the outlook really any better? Not in my book - personally with employment doing so well and with wages being way up - I was really expecting more as it relates to extending the SS programs of Retirement and Survivors (OASI).

Yes, the SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) seems to be doing better but remember we have OVER a million disability claims that are backlogged at the present time.

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/11/01/over-1-million-people-are-waiting-on-social-security-disability-clai...

For those who are retired or are almost to that point: (from the link) -

Based on our best estimates, this year's reports show that:

• The Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund will be able to pay 100% of total scheduled benefits until 2033, unchanged from last year's report. At that time, the fund's reserves will become depleted and continuing program income will be sufficient to pay 79 percent of scheduled benefits.

The Disabled who are eligible for Social Security (NOT Supplemental Security Income)

from the link:

• The Disability Insurance (DI) Trust Fund is projected to be able to pay 100 percent of total scheduled benefits through at least 2098, the last year of this report's projection period. Last year's report projected that the DI Trust Fund would be able to pay scheduled benefits through at least 2097, the last year of that report's projection period.

For Medicare: (from the link)

Medicare Part A

• The Hospital Insurance (HI) Trust Fund will be able to pay 100 percent of total scheduled benefits until 2036, 5 years later than reported last year. At that point, that fund's reserves will become depleted and continuing program income will be sufficient to pay 89 percent of total scheduled benefits.

Medicare Part B & Part D - we just pay more in premiums - well, at least those of us who actually pay them because the Medicare Savings Programs are getting bigger and bigger. Maybe you, as a Medicare beneficiary, qualify for one of the programs and just don’t know about it.

• The Supplemental Medical Insurance (SMI) Trust Fund is adequately financed into the indefinite future because, unlike the other trust funds, its main financing sources--enrolled beneficiary premiums and the assocoated federal contributions from the Treasury--are automatically adjusted each year to cover costs for the upcoming year. Although the financing is assured, the rapidly rising SMI costs have been placing steadily increasing demands on beneficiaries and general taxpayers.

And of course, the report ends with the same cautionary words that it has used for the last 10+ years.

from the link

Lawmakers have many options for changes that would reduce or eliminate the long-term financing shortfalls. Taking action sooner rather than later will allow consideration of a broader range of solutions and provide more time to phase in changes so that the public has adequate time to prepare.

But our lawmakers just argue over who should get MORE and who should pay MORE - IMO, we need to fix these programs as they stand right now - then if benefits need to be added or modified after that, we can just determine how the [whatever ] additions would be paid for -

If you would like to digest the whole report rather than this summary - see this SSA link. FULL 2024 Social Security Trustee Report

As the Summary ending says . . . . . time to get prepared !!