Welcome to the weekly QuizCap, a fun way to test your knowledge on what’s going on in Washington. This week we highlight our top stories including Medicare for All, how Congress can benefit from Tom Brady’s TB12 method, and civil discourse with Nikki Haley.
There has been much debate about Medicare for All. Expanding Medicare will be no walk in the park, either. What year was the current Medicare program placed on the Government Accountability Office’s ‘High Risk List’?
The current program has been on GAO’s high risk list since the agency started the list in 1990, due to its “size, complexity, and susceptibility to mismanagement and improper payments.” You could probably guess that if its “size, complexity, and susceptibility to mismanagement and improper payments,” are already an issue, that problem would greatly increase with Medicare expansion.
Speaking of improper payments, last year, Medicare and Medicaid paid out how much in improper payments?
Last year, Medicare and Medicaid paid out a combined $89 billion in improper payments. That’s about the size of the Department of Education ($60 billion) and the Department of Energy ($29 billion) combined.
Since there is already a doctor shortage in the U.S., many are concerned with how doctors will be reimbursed if Medicare for All makes its way to America. How much less do doctors get reimbursed from Medicare than from private insurance?
Doctors get reimbursed 40% less from Medicare than private insurance. One could only assume if doctors, who spend decades in school and training, are forced to take a 40% cut across the board, it would make the field much less appealing.
Finally, there is the cost of Medicare for All to consider. According to the Urban Institute, how much would a Medicare for All plan cost over 10 years?
Depending on the publisher, Medicare for All is expected to add a large chunk to the U.S. budget. With unfunded liabilities and the national debt already at record highs, younger generations will be forced to solve the problems of past generations.
Recently, Nikki Haley, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, spoke to a group of young college students, and we highlighted her speech in an article this week. What position did she hold before U.S. Ambassador?
Nikki Haley challenged her audience to stop “trolling” those who disagree, and instead engage in civil discourse. “Real leadership is about persuasion, it’s about movement, it’s bringing people around to your point of view. Not by shouting them down, but by showing them how it is in their best interest to see things the way you do.”
This week, we suggested Congress take notes from Tom Brady due to his fondness of preparation. If Congress does nothing, the Social Security Trust Fund is expected to go insolvent. What year did the Social Security Trustees project it to go insolvent?
According to the Social Security Trustees, absent Congressional action, 2034 is the year the trust fund goes insolvent. With the TB12 method, Tom Brady may still be playing in 2034. It’s time for Congress to get to work.
Absent changes from Congress, by how much will Social Security beneficiaries’ benefits be cut?
In order to stave off consequences, Congress needs to prepare now. If they do nothing, a 21 percent cut will fall on beneficiaries - a program that millions of Americans rely on.
The number of Social Security beneficiaries is rising at record pace. How many baby boomers are retiring every day, on average?
The baby boomer generation is retiring at a pace of 10,000 people per day and the workers to retirees ratio is dramatically shrinking.
Speaking of ratios, what was the earliest documented ‘worker to retiree’ ratio?
According to the earliest historical data, in 1945 there were almost 42 workers per beneficiary. Now there are only about 2.8 workers per beneficiary, and that number is expected to decrease - placing a heavy burden on younger generations to pay future benefits.
Over the past two weeks we documented the failures of the F-35 and F-22 fighter jets. Before the program launched, the Joint Strike Fighter Program was estimated to cost $600 billion. How much has it actually cost taxpayers?
In 2017, GAO released a separate report, estimating the lifecycle cost to be almost double, $1.12 trillion. GAO concluded that the Department of Defense F-35 program is the “most expensive weapon system in history” and the costs are still rising.
What did Congress do to address the $21 trillion national debt and $100 trillion in unfunded liabilities this week?
Congress kicked the can further down the road by agreeing to a continuing resolution that will fund parts of the government until December 7th.
