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Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez - Executive Vice President for Multicultural Markets and Engagement, AARP
by Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
Executive Vice President for Multicultural Markets and Engagement
As Congress considers ways to reduce the deficit, some are calling for cuts to Social Security and Medicare. These proposals reflect a lack of understanding of the daily lives of millions of older Americans. Social Security and Medicare are critically important for the financial security and well-being of individuals and families.
Instead of compounding the hardship of so many seniors and undermining their peace of mind, Congress ought to be going after waste and closing tax loopholes.
In a survey AARP conducted of people 45 and older, most Hispanics said they were not confident they will have enough money to take care of medical and living expenses in retirement. Nearly two-thirds of Hispanics have under $50,000 in retirement savings.
Social Security is the principal source of family income for nearly half of Americans 65 and older. It is the primary source of income for older minorities. For more than a quarter of older Hispanics Social Security accounts for almost all of their family income.
The average benefit of Social Security recipients today is about $14,000. So many seniors are just getting by on very tight budgets—where dollar counts and every lost dollar can hurt.
No wonder the cost-of-living adjustment or COLA for Social Security beneficiaries is so important. Next year, for the first time in three years, beneficiaries will receive a COLA. At the same time, as part of a deal to reduce the deficit, some in Washington are proposing a new way to calculate the COLA that would cut Social Security benefit by $112 billion over 10 years. Over their lifetimes, seniors’ benefits would be cut thousands of dollars. The older the beneficiary, the larger the cut would be.
Social Security is the principal source of family income for nearly half of Americans 65 and older.
AARP is fighting against this proposed change in the COLA that would have such a negative impact on older Americans. It is simply not right for Congress to target a vital and successful program.
Just as Social Security is critically important for seniors’ well-being, so is Medicare. Today there are 47 million older Americans and Americans with disabilities who depend on Medicare.
Medicare is hardly a free ride. On average, Medicare beneficiaries spend more than $4000 out of pocket on health care. Those beneficiaries who are oldest and poorest spend about a quarter of their income on health care.
AARP is opposing any efforts in the Congress to make arbitrary, harmful cuts to Medicare or shift costs on to the backs of Medicare beneficiaries.
We are urging Congress to reject proposals that would delay Medicare eligibility from age 65 to 67. It is estimated this change would increase costs for people 65 and 66 by over $2,000 a year. Forced to wait longer to enroll in Medicare, many people would have to put off retirement so they could have health coverage.
The long and deep economic downturn in our country has hit seniors very hard—and taken an especially heavy toll on the Hispanic community. The last thing Congress ought to be doing is making matters worse by cutting Social Security and Medicare.
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