No means testing.
Slowly raising the age.
I’ll put it another way … SS is an insurance … really longevity insurance. Currently a demographic that statistically is making big claims for that insurance relative to their premiums paid, the wealthier knowledge worker group, and other, lower middle class and below, especially unskilled laborers, making fewer longevity insurance claims and particularly smaller relative to their premiums paid.
Does that seem like equity to you?
This thread has some less than useful comparisons of nominal values of funds that are received years apart. Low real discount rates do favor delaying claiming, but even then a dollar seven years from now is not a dollar in hand today.
What alternative methodology do you suggest?
I frequently acknowledge my privilege and my luck (it’s up there next to my name). Much of what I have achieved would not have been as easy without those factors. But they would not have been impossible either, if I had the will and tenacity to achieve them. Because I don’t count my possession of native abilities as inherently unfair.
Each person’s work life and the rewards therefrom are the result of a large number of factors including personal abilities, personal actions and decisions, and external influences, the combination of which is unique to each person. That is what I take the phrase “life isn’t fair” to mean in the context of this thread.
This does not mean that I am opposed to reform of the social security system, either its collection of payments from workers, nor its payouts to retirees. But I do think the OP’s stated goal is, at best, impractical.
What does it matter? That’s how insurance works. All of it.
Which as an aside, is something people don’t really understand about common health insurance. It’s not a health care subscription. And Social Security isn’t an old age subscription either.
The only real way to do what you’re proposing is some sort of UBI for the elderly, and I’m not sure that’s sustainable, much less full blown UBI.
Um no.
You buy auto insurance your rate and benefits are going to based on what they statistically expect they may need to pay out, based on your driving record, your vehicle … You live in certain regions and home insurance is going to cost more and need special coverage for fire, flood, or hurricane, based on actuarially calculated risk of what sort of pay outs. Buy long term care insurance, you betcha rates and coverage will vary based on risk that you will make a large claim over the years. And on. Unless regulations forbid adjusting based on individualized risks of future payout (such as the presence of pre existing conditions) of course insurance rates and/or benefits vary based on the likelihood of you making or not making sizable future claims.
This isn’t the simple solution that it sounds like. Companies don’t want older employees; they cost too much. Without some sort of transition plan (like @Kimstu was proposing), you end up with unemployed and underemployed older workers.
And while an average 60 year old in 2026 is much healthier than one from 1976, the productivity we expect from them is much higher too – blue collar and white collar.
When I was a kid, there were 3 guys on the trash truck. Nowadays there is one and he hauls butt from house to house in order to finish his route. In offices, the execs used to take 3 martini lunches and disappear playing golf. Nowadays you’re on calls and chat 24/7 and squeezing in your work in-between them.
@DSeid thanks for updating. With Claude’s new numbers, it doesn’t seem like such a huge gap: $20k more income for 5 years (or $10k for 10 years).
This is an interesting OP. Normally I’d be all on-board with your definition of equality and would want to close the gap. But for some reason I’m not, and I have to reflect on why that is the case.
But there were efforts and they came with an opportunity cost. You must have spent something like 20 years of working hard at school, 3 years of residency, exams, certifications, etc. While you did this there were experiences you missed, memories not made, opportunities lost.