Summer Help

[jeffk]

Originally Posted by kawishiwi

... I can't even hallucinate a scenario where US politicians would vote in a majority to reduce seniors benefits ... so the taxes will go up & benefits will be paid.

I can and it's not even a hallucination. Consider several European countries that are now on the brink of bankruptcy because leaders over promised benefits to people. Governments have limits on the amount of money they can pretend to have. They go into debt. Someone needs to pick up that debt. If the debt is excessive, creditors will not buy in because they know the government can go into default and they would lose their investment. Think Greece. They have had to be bailed out repeatedly in recent times.

Besides that, there are sneaky government ways to reduce benefits that never require a vote. They reduce the amount they will pay for the benefit. Less providers can afford to do it for that price. Now there is a waiting list that stretches into years. People suffer because they cannot get timely care. They can also deny benefits for various reasons. After you cut through the baloney, the reason they tightened the rules is to cut costs. It's happening NOW under Medicare.

BTW, how did this thread get hijacked from summer help to government benefits?