Position Statements NCIL Social Security Subcommittee Congressional meetings with members of the
National Council On Independent Living
July, 2005

NCIL Annual Conference, Washington, DC
July 2005
Independence Day Every Day

First Things First!
NCIL members young and old work hard.
NCIL demands access to health care when we work or can’t work.
NCIL demands disability insurance when we can’t work.
NCIL Stands for Universal Access to the American Dream.

Position One: Take Private Accounts in Social Security off the table.
Private Accounts is a non starter, a dead idea.

Position Two: Strengthen Medicare and Medicaid now, not later.

Social Security
“Social Security” is Title II of the Social Security Act, in technical terms Federal Old-Age, Survivors and Disability (SSDI) Insurance. All 3 programs use the same benefit formula. Changes in one affect them all. Changes in one will affect Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. Benefit reductions could make people homeless. As of December 2004, 69% of all Social Security beneficiaries were retired workers, 17% were disabled workers, and 14% were survivors of deceased workers.

The key word is INSURANCE, commonly called social insurance in Washington.

NCIL members and members of Congress know there are a range of sound financial changes that can improve Social Security’s long term financial health without harming beneficiaries, or taking money away from Social Security Trust Funds for private accounts.

NCIL members request each member of Congress this year to announce their priority position and solutions for sustaining and preserving Social Security insurance programs, for life’s uncertain events of death, disability and wage losses to family survivors. NCIL joins the AARP and Students for Social Security:

ONE: “Take Private Accounts in Social Security off the table.”
Private Accounts is a non starter, a dead idea.

TWO: Strengthen Medicare and Medicaid now, not later.

Medicare
Medicare is also social insurance. In the 1950’s half of Americans over 65 had health coverage, now almost all Americans over 65 have health coverage thanks to Medicare.

Medicare today is in dire straits financially, worse than Social Security.

First Things First!
All U.S. health care financing is connected. Health care is available to millions fewer Americans today than four years ago. Health care costs are out of control. Members of Congress have daily access to the best data in the world. Every member of Congress knows that Medicare and Medicaid are in bigger trouble right now than Social Security is.

Position
NCIL requests each member of Congress this year to announce their priority position and solutions for sustaining and preserving all Social Security insurance programs, including Medicare, and for strengthening and expanding Medicaid’s acute and community based long term care services. Money follows the person, not well paid lobbyists.

Members of Congress: Listen. Think. Act.
First Things First!

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