The SS Trust Fund has not been on the verge of insolvency since the payroll tax increase and reforms were put in place in 1984.
The current balance is listed at $2.91 trillion, and the SS puts out a required statement each year.
https://www.ssa.gov/policy/trust-funds-summary.html
When you remove the cap, the only way for it to actually cover a decent percentage of the gap is to cap the benefits.
The SSA also does projections on each proposal.
https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/proj...ons/index.html
People currently earning over the tax cap will see that SS will replace even less of their current earned income, so they must save even more than the average... and the numbers seem to show that they are not saving nearly enough to maintain their current lifestyle.
The 40% replacement rate for SS benefits is based on median incomes, those far below see a greater percentage, and those closer to the cap see a smaller percentage. The replacement rates for earnings above the cap is zero... that must be completely done with savings.