Privatization

The Perils of Privatization

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:08:08 -0700

An idea to radically change Social Security that has already been soundly rejected by the American people—privatization—is being resurrected. If its proponents succeed, 8.6 million older Americans would lose a safety net that keeps them from falling into poverty, according to research released by the Institute for America's Future.

Three years ago, President Bush declared that Social Security faced a financial crisis, and his solution was privatization — taking payroll taxes we all pay into the system and investing a portion of those funds in private stock market accounts.

Now Senator John McCain is bringing the idea back. In March 2008, McCain told the Wall Street Journal, "As part of Social Security reform, I believe that private savings accounts are a part of it — along the lines that President Bush proposed." The idea became more concrete in July 2008, when McCain named economist Martin Feldstein, the "chief intellectual force behind privatization," as a surrogate on his campaign.

In a town-hall event on July 7, 2008, when McCain was asked about the future of Social Security, McCain criticized the fundamental design and structure of the program. He said: "Americans have got to understand that we are paying present-day retirees with the taxes paid by young workers in America today, and that's a disgrace, it's an absolute disgrace and it's got to be fixed," he said.

This report updates research previously published by the Institute for America's Future. It estimates the reduction in Social Security benefits that a typical United States resident can expect and the number of seniors exposed to poverty if Social Security were privatized. The main findings are that for future generations, Social Security privatization would:

Cut lifetime benefits by $240,264
Make 8.6 million senior citizens vulnerable to poverty.

Read the United States report.

Read reports on the impact on: Women | African Americans | Hispanics

Read the state reports:

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More facts are in our Making Sense alert on Social Security privatization. Also browse the Social Security section of our website.

New GAO Report: Extra subsidy makes private Medicare Advantage more expensive than traditional Medicare

Eric Lotke — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 08:24:26 -0700

The GAO reports that Medicare spends more per beneficiary in private Medicare Advantage plans than it does for beneficiaries in the original Medicare program - a projected $54 billion more from 2009 to 2012.

Under Medicare Advantage, the government first reimburses insurance companies for medical expenditures. Then it provides an additional payment for nonmedical expenses such as marketing, sales and profits.

Treasury Rekindles Social Security Debate

Alexandra Walker — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 11:32:22 -0800

The Bush administration stepped up its attempt to build support for restructuring Social Security, saying in a Treasury Department report that the popular program will require either tax increases or cuts in benefits to remain viable in its current form.

Social Security's Future: No Cause for Alarm

Anne Thompson — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 08:01:36 -0800

Eric Lotke

Eric Lotke — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 14:22:48 -0800

Eric Lotke is Research Director at the Campaign for America's Future. Before coming to CAF, he worked over a decade in and around the criminal justice system. As Policy Director at the Justice Policy Institute and a Soros Senior Justice Fellow, he authored path breaking research on the demographics of incarceration, patterns of youth homicide, and the fiscal and electoral impact of the U.S. Census Bureau counting people in prison where they are confined rather than their original homes. As Executive Director of D.C. Prisoners’ Legal Services Project, Mr. Lotke represented inmates in a groundbreaking class action lawsuit against the private Corrections Corporation of America, and he pioneered litigation over excessive, non-competitive pricing of prison phone calls. Mr. Lotke has been an adjunct professor at Georgetown and George Washington Universities, and a judicial clerk on the Supreme Court of Connecticut.

Most recently, Mr. Lotke published a novel, 2044. 2044 starts where George Orwell’s 1984 left off. The problem isn’t Big Brother and the leviathan government. The problem is Big Brother Inc., and the all-powerful marketplace.

Will Social Security Privatization Return?

Scott Laczay — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:41:39 -0800

Scorecard on the large number of candidates who support privatization of Social Security – and prospects for a new congressional majority that could dismantle Social Security.

Read the full report »

Health Care Gets Personal

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 09:33:48 -0800

Health Care Double-Whammy

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 09:39:50 -0800

Public Libraries, For Profit

Anita Chariw2 — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 08:44:43 -0800

Iraqis Detail Shooting by Contracting Firm

Terrance Heath — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 08:12:33 -0800