This may come as no surprise to many, but our country’s Social Security and Medicare funds will vanish in the near future.

The annual Social Security and Medicare Trustees report officially called “The 2008 Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Federal Disability Insurance (OASDI) Trust Funds” was published yesterday. This report details the current and projected future financial status of the Social Security and Medicare funds and here are the highlights:

• The combined costs of these funds are projected to increase from $2,238 billion at the beginning of 2008 to $4,273 billion at the beginning of 2017
• Medicare funds will be exhausted by 2025
• For Social Security, trouble begins in 2017 as the annual cost exceeds tax income. All assets will be exhausted in 2041

So what is the solution? Fix the national deficit and our failing healthcare system or begin to channel resources into the development of technologies to colonize the moon.

More info: 2008 OASDI Trustees Report, U.S.National Debt, Colonization of the Moon

Filed under: Health Policy