WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) issued the following statement on the release of the Trustees of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds annual report examining how much longer these programs can operate without significant benefit cuts. The report quickens to insolvency timeline projecting that the Social Security Trust Fund will become insolvent in 2033 and the Medicare Trust Fund will become insolvent by 2031. This means the trust funds will not have enough money to pay full benefits promised to taxpayers.
“Social Security is going broke a year sooner than we thought. Choosing to do nothing guarantees a 24% cut in Social Security for all current and future retirees,” said Dr. Cassidy. “The President needs to show leadership by engaging with Democrats and Republicans. While Biden’s inflation has sped up the insolvency timeline, the greatest threat to Social Security remains politicians who choose to do nothing.”
Under current law, Social Security beneficiaries will receive a 24% benefit cut when the Social Security Trust Fund goes insolvent. This includes those currently receiving Social Security checks and those who will receive them in the future.
Background
Cassidy is leading a working group with Senator Angus King (I-ME) and a bipartisan group of colleagues to preserve and protect Social Security. He questioned Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on the Biden administration’s lack of a plan to address Social Security at a Senate Finance hearing and delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling on President Biden to honor his pledge to protect Social Security and meet with a bipartisan group of senators currently discussing options to save the program.
In February, the Congressional Budget Office updated its estimates saying Social Security is heading toward a financial cliff in 2032. They found Medicare and Social Security spending rapidly outpacing federal tax revenues further hastening the insolvency deadlines to 2032.
Last June, Cassidy reacted to the latest Social Security and Medicare Trustees annual report saying these programs are heading toward a financial cliff. The report stated Social Security needs to either cut benefits by 24% or increase revenue by 33% to gain long-term stability.
###