FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, February 12, 2019
CONTACT: Erin Humiston, (972) 874-5139, or erin@IPI.org
DALLAS – Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and some 80 U.S. welfare programs are pushing the country to the precipice of an entitlements cliff. Congress has the ability to stop it, but will it? If past actions are any indication, it’s more likely Congress will only make the problem worse.
A new book, “On the Edge: America Faces the Entitlements Cliff,” explains the pattern employed by politicians both here and abroad: Identify a perceived social need, propose a new safety-net program, swear that the program is financially sustainable, pass the legislation, then keep expanding it until it becomes a drain on the economy, both now and for generations to come.
Furthermore, “On the Edge” shows how the U.S. can move away from the crumbling patchwork of unsustainable government programs and easily address funding for healthcare, welfare, and retirement in a way that is financially sustainable long-term. The reforms proposed by the book’s authors, actuary Mark E. Litow and Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) resident scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews, grants working Americans the freedom to set aside their own money in their own accounts that invests in and grows with the economy.
Avoiding the entitlements cliff is not difficult, it just takes adopting actuarially sound programs, write Litow and Matthews. “We would see millions of Americans start the slow but steady climb toward financial independence as they begin creating wealth that belongs to them.”
“If Congress were to implement these changes, it would dramatically reduce the size of government and of its role in our finances and our lives,” write the authors. “And we would expect an economic explosion the likes of which the country has never seen, as trillions of dollars enter capital markets instead of government coffers.”
Copies of “On the Edge: America Faces the Entitlement Cliff” are available at ipi.org.
The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) is an independent, nonprofit public policy organization based in Dallas. IPI resident scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews is available for interview by contacting Erin Humiston at (972) 874-5139, or erin@ipi.org. For copies of “On the Edge: America Faces the Entitlement Cliff”, visit www.IPI.org.