tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17206839.post2958429423240292916..comments2023-09-09T09:26:22.175-04:00Comments on Andrew Samwick's Blog: How to Reform Social Security, Part IIAndrewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13514024573333057559noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17206839.post-8179153782704120912004-11-01T21:19:00.000-05:002004-11-01T21:19:00.000-05:00Generally people are so healthy today at age 65, i...Generally people are so healthy today at age 65, it does not make sense to turn them out of the workforce. If people reach 65 their life expectancy is close to 90 years old.<br><br>It will be difficult for people to have 25 years of retirement both financially and psychologically. The retirement age should be raised to age 70.Jakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09208548778259311459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17206839.post-20074978463452994092004-11-03T02:06:00.000-05:002004-11-03T02:06:00.000-05:00But what about the larger problem, Medicare? The c...But what about the larger problem, Medicare? The current administration has made this worse with last year's Big Pharma subsidy act. Extending retirement in theory helps this problem as well. However, you are exposing the majority of our older work force to being dumped from the work force without either retirement or health care. I suspect employers will not want to shoulder the cost of the health care issues of a very large number of 65-69 year old employees.<br><br>It would seem to me that your suggestion does not work without a simultaneous health care remedy, e.g. some sort of single payer system.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17206839.post-5098101052735244982005-02-17T11:40:00.000-05:002005-02-17T11:40:00.000-05:00While the need to increase retirement age as life ...While the need to increase retirement age as life expectancy increases is indisputable, a few comments are in order. <br>First, in the 1930's the age of entry into the work force was much lower. High School graduates were a minority, and most workers were working and contributing to SS before they were twenty, not 22 to 25 as is the case today.<br>More significantly for planning purposes is the number of workers in the public sector who are not contributing to the system. Folding civil service employees into the system in some form will help tremendously with the funding problem. Federal, state and local workers should contribute to social security as a base, with their pensions funded as a supplement.<br>Double dipping should be stopped. The current practice whereby a federal civil servant can retire after thirty years at 80% of salary, and then take a job in the private economy, qualifying for social security on top a civil service pension cannot be sustained.David Connorhttp://connordr@charter.netnoreply@blogger.com