The United States has fallen heavily into debt in the funding of the country’s social insurance programs. Currently, the country is $18.5 trillion in debt, and Social Security is the single largest cause of America’s debt.
The trust funds of Social Security hold about $2.7 trillion in total assets. However, the government predicts that the program’s total liabilities will eventually exceed $40 trillion.
Making matters extremely troubling is that the second largest trust fund of Social Security, the Disability Insurance Fund, will be completely depleted in just a few weeks. Needless to say, this has fund managers totally panicked.
The 2015 report from the Social Security and Medicare Board of Trustees says, “Social Security as a whole as well as Medicare cannot sustain projected long-run program costs.” The report also says that the United States government must give the public adequate time to prepare for the situation.
Politicians have regularly defended Social Security, promising that the money will be there for those who need it.
However, the Social Security Board of Trustees includes very credible sources such as the United States Treasury Secretary. Thus, it appears that the money will, in fact, not be there. Social Security is going to bust. It’s only a matter of time.
Meanwhile, tens of millions of Americans have not saved anything for retirement. About half of all Baby Boomers have absolutely zero retirement savings. And it goes without saying that many of these people are in severe debt as well.
Needless to say, counting on Social Security for retirement is a very bad idea. Congress has long stated that Social Security was never intended to serve as the single retirement income source for families.
Luckily, there is time to prepare. People in their 40s and younger should be fully prepared to cover their retirement years completely. Planning to rely on income provided by the government will certainly lead to failure.
Many people should also consider moving abroad, where money goes further.
However, counting on Social Security will only lead to disaster. It’s not a matter of if it is going to fail. It’s a matter of when. The younger you are, the more vulnerable you will be further down the road.
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