Your thoughts on likelihood of rolling back SS, Medicaid, Medicare after first week

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

Right, which is why it won’t be cut.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

+ 1

I work at SSA but if I’m going to get RIF’d and not be able to collect benefits until I’m 80, then I’d like to unsubscribe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

$50K was in the early 2000s. Back in the 80s, they at most made $20K

[Anonymous]

On Medicaid it is likely to be those that states have added to Medicaid in recent years where the federal government pays 90% of the cost to the state's 10% I believe for at least a period of time. For individuals with a disability, the match if 50/50 and that is why there is such a waiting list for services funded under what is called a Developmental Disability Medicaid Waiver (DDWaiver). Rather than throw folks off of Medicaid, why not take the time to renegotiate the percentage that a state might pay closer to that of those with a disability.

The reorganization is basically two men of wealth -o ne of extreme wealth and intelligence(did not say smarts ) - but both men driven by power grab and seeking retribution in various ways. Both want to see world of the 1950s with healthy, white males in charge and as little as possible of women and even less of any minority group. They just can't deal with the way the country and world is evolving around them. The elderly will pay the same cost as the young - no longer useful and a "drain on the economy" or should I say a block to the ultra wealthy getting a tax break along with corporations.
If you want something to do, pick up the phone and start calling your congressmen and senators, especially if Republican and letting them know you will not be voting for them in the future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

They should have done a Medicaid trust which is entirely legal and helps create/increase generational wealth

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Do you understand your parents were lucky? Like seriously so? Same scenario for my parents, right down to the child, but they had other expenses too. Two layoffs due to recessions with five kids under 18 still at home = use savings. Aunt in domestic violence situation = care for her and kids until she was able to land employment. Paternal grandfather dies early = support grandmother until she is able to launch her sewing business. No SS for her as she never worked outside of the home/self employed.

My parents also had no expectations of living a luxurious life - they were incredibly frugal because that is how they had to survive, not because of some Insta influencer. Both of them were on Medicaid LTC.

Folks on here need to get serious about the macro as opposed to navel gaze on the micro.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

They should have done a Medicaid trust which is entirely legal and helps create/increase generational wealth

And where do they get the money to pay for the legal fees to create it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

You don’t get to pass on money with Medicaid unless it occurred five years or more before the “look back” period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

They should have done a Medicaid trust which is entirely legal and helps create/increase generational wealth

Why would they do that when they could pay for their own care for as long as possible? They were people of integrity who were not going to hide money in a “Medicaid trust” instead of paying for their own care.

And I and my siblings are also people of integrity who are not interested in getting “generational wealth” that only exists because of “perfectly legal” ways to hide funds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

They should have done a Medicaid trust which is entirely legal and helps create/increase generational wealth

Why would they do that when they could pay for their own care for as long as possible? They were people of integrity who were not going to hide money in a “Medicaid trust” instead of paying for their own care.

And I and my siblings are also people of integrity who are not interested in getting “generational wealth” that only exists because of “perfectly legal” ways to hide funds.

That’s good because you probably won’t have the chance. The super wealthy have sited through the history of this country paying little to nothing while the poor and middle classes pay taxes out the wazoo. It’s about to become even more difficult for regular people to pass on even a little bit of their hard earned life savings to the next generation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

They should have done a Medicaid trust which is entirely legal and helps create/increase generational wealth

And where do they get the money to pay for the legal fees to create it?

They’ve ostensibly saved enough for their old age. Also they have kids who are interested in preserving the inheritance?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

You don’t get to pass on money with Medicaid unless it occurred five years or more before the “look back” period.

Of course. Needs to be done in advance.

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Anonymous wrote:As a millennial I'd like to make ss optional so I can stop paying and cash out

"cash out"? It's a pay as you go system-- the most you can do is destroy the social safety net for seniors by ending social security but you are never getting your contributions back.

Don't be a tool and let the right wing propaganda tell you the money isn't there for social security-- it's only not there if they steal it for other things, like tax cuts for the wealthy.

but the money isn't actually anywhere. It's an IOU from the feds. Your payments into the system are spent by Congress immediately. Your payments aren't sitting anywhere compounding or earning interest.

All the money the government collects is then redistributed by the government. That's how taxation works.

People need to stop thinking about Social Security like some sort of savings account. It's welfare for the elderly (and a few other groups)

No. If that were the case, we'd means test it. Which we should be doing. I don't get why my mother and stepfather are driving around in a jag and collecting SS.

The only reason SS has lasted this long is that everyone gets some. The minute we start means testing, people will start thinking of SS like Medicaid. And you know how highly Republicans think of Medicaid.

Wish an enterprising local reporter would uncover how many Republican electeds have their parents/relatives in nursing homes under Medicaid LTC. Can’t imagine it is a small number as the annual salary for a senator/rep is $174K and the national median cost is $9733/month for a private room or $8669/month for a semi-private. That’s $116,796/year and $104,028/year, respectively. Can’t imagine they can swing either on that salary….

I highly doubt you will find many MoC whose parents are using Medicaid LTC. They are more likely to have parents who saved and invested, possibly have pensions. Their parents don’t need money from them, they are paying from their own savings and pensions. Medicaid LTC is for the very poor; it is very unlikely that elderly parents of MoC would be eligible for Medicaid LTC.

Wrong. Most assisted living retirement places nursing homes etc all push you to put your family on Medicaid. It is huge in MOCO. They burn down the savings before entering these places and then Medicaid kicks in.

That could be just the people you’ve come in contact with- unless you work at one of these facilities?

In my extended family’s experience, in which most of the elderly had been very working class/blue collar, the expenses were paid by the elderly individual. A lot of the over 75 crowd were very frugal and saved every extra penny, so were able to pay for their own care when it was needed.

My own parents never made very much- in fact, I and my siblings all qualified for Pell Grants. But they saved a lot, especially after the kids grew up and left home. They were able to completely pay for their own care.

In fact, it would have been difficult to use up all their savings to qualify for Medicaid. And they would have been too embarrassed to take Medicaid, anyway. Same story for the elderly parents of many of my cousins.

My parents always said that the best gift they could give their kids was to be able to pay for their own care in old age, and they were right. And this was a very common belief among their working class/blue collar peers.

You hit the nail on the head!! My parents were poor/LMC. They saved and were extremely frugal. at age 75 they still had over $800K to their name after selling their home. That was enough to get into one of the nicest CCRCs in their area (minus the $400K+ entry fee---we had to fund that). 10 years later, they are still frugal and worth over $700K and will likely never "run out of money" until mid to late 90s. And then they get to stay in the CCRC with no charges.

How they saved that much I don't know---they invested and were extremely frugal. Never made more than $50-60K/year combined.

They were very lucky and you keep bragging about it but that's not everyone. My MIL was extremely frugal but never made more than minimum wage so she was always pay check to pay check. She had very little in terms of material things and her clothing was terrible (and yes, I bought her tons of clothes which she did wear and other things). She lived in a mobile home for many years. She got early onset dementia and could no longer take care of herself and I got her on social security disability not realizing it was early onset dementia and thinking it was mental health. Eventally we move her into our very small house after she lived with a woman who stole pretty much anything of value, including her car, jewelry (nothing worth that much) and cash from selling the mobile home. She came with almost nothing and the police or social services wouldn't do anything to help. I replaced everything and took care of her for about a year but I could no longer care for her anymore as I couldn't safely leave her home alone, the adult day care was horrible and it because too much with young kids. Our only option was medicaid LTC.

$50-60K is a lot way back when. Try making $15-20K a year then brag.

The most my parents ever made in one year was $30,000- and that was one particularly good year. But they still managed to save enough to take care of themselves in old age with no need for Medicaid LTC. They had one child with special needs who was never able to move out of their home, but they were extremely frugal and careful with their money. They had always been poor so they didn’t have expectations of living what they would consider a luxurious life.

Wouldn’t it be better to pass that money on and get free care from the government?

That would be cheating. My parents saved specifically so they could pay for their own care in their old age. Are you suggesting they should have hidden the money they had so that they could get free care from the government?

They should have done a Medicaid trust which is entirely legal and helps create/increase generational wealth

Why would they do that when they could pay for their own care for as long as possible? They were people of integrity who were not going to hide money in a “Medicaid trust” instead of paying for their own care.

And I and my siblings are also people of integrity who are not interested in getting “generational wealth” that only exists because of “perfectly legal” ways to hide funds.

This is outdated thinking