Business CEOs call for raising retirement age
An influential group of business CEOs is pushing a plan to gradually increase the full retirement age to 70 for both Social Security and Medicare and to partially privatize the health insurance program for older Americans.
Medicare is in worse shape. Its trust fund for inpatient care is projected to run dry in 2024, leaving the program unable to cover all its bills.
"The facts are clear: If we want future generations to have access to Social Security and Medicare, America can no longer afford to wait," said Randall L. Stephenson, Chairman and CEO of AT&T Inc. "The time to act is now."
Among the CEOs' proposals:
—Adopt a new government inflation measure that would result in smaller annual increases in Social Security benefits.
—Make initial Social Security benefits more progressive by guaranteeing low-wage workers enough benefits to stay out of poverty, while lowering initial benefits for retirees with higher incomes.
—Require newly hired state and local workers to join Social Security. Some state and local agencies are not part of the system.
—Expand means testing for Medicare benefits so that wealthier recipients must pay more for services.
—Improve Medicare services for low-income people by better coordinating prevention and care for chronic conditions.
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Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. 