Washington, DC - AMAC's determined focus on Social Security gained independent support from a survey conducted by MassMutual Life Insurance Company and released this week, reports Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens.
"The study showed that the great majority of Americans have trouble understanding what, for many, is perhaps the most important element of the their retirement resources. AMAC saw this coming and that is why we have been creating resources to educate what is the fastest growing segment of our population - our senior citizens - including a dedicated Web site, www.socialsecurityreport.org," Weber said.
Ten-thousand people turn 65 years of age each day in the U.S. and, according to Pew Research, the rate of growth among seniors will continue at that pace for the next two decades. By then, that segment of the population will account for nearly one-fifth of the residents of America, most of whom will be looking forward to receiving Social Security benefits without a clue as to what they can expect.
"Americans who lack the proper knowledge and information about Social Security may be putting their retirement planning in jeopardy. In fact, many may be leaving Social Security retirement benefits they're entitled to on the table, or incorrectly assuming what benefits may be available in retirement," Phil Michalowski, Vice President, U.S. Insurance Group, MassMutual, said in a news release describing the study.
The study revealed that just 28% of the more than 1,500 people who took part in the research managed to pass a simple true/false quiz. For example, 71 percent of them did not know what the retirement age is for those seeking Social Security benefits. Despite the broad-based coverage of the potential depletion of funds available for future benefits, nearly two-thirds of respondents expressed confidence that the money will be there for them when they retire. Seventy-five percent of them think that only American citizens are eligible to receive benefits.
"We did our own research and found that in some cases the advice that was available was complex and unintelligible for most people and that in other cases it was downright wrong. So, AMAC decided to dedicate itself to simplifying the facts about Social Security and providing a source for real-time information. We owed it to our over-50 membership and to all seniors as they approached retirement age. In addition, we launched a massive effort to work with our lawmakers on Capitol Hill to help shape the future of Social Security," Weber said.
He singled out the Social Security Guarantee plan his association has proposed that Weber said would ensure 75 years of solvency for the Social Security OASI Trust Fund. The plan would include a fair and balanced setback for future recipients, guaranteed cost of living increases and a provision for a new personal Early Retirement Account (ERA).
The ERA that AMAC envisions would be similar to an IRA or a 401(k) plan. But, in order to ensure that the funds will not be lost as a result of risky investments half of the money individuals invest in ERA accounts would have to be used to purchase guaranteed interest products such as government bonds or annuity contracts. Workers would be free to invest their balances in any other investment that meets certain suitability standards.
