Government Spending on Seniors’ Benefits Soon to Make up Majority of Federal Budget

In this Worthy Christian News article, Thérèse Boudreaux reports that federal spending on Social Security and Medicare benefits for Americans 65 and older is projected to consume a majority of non-interest federal spending within the next decade.

• A Joint Economic Committee report projects that Social Security and Medicare payouts will rise from 45% to 52% of non-interest federal spending by 2036.
• The report warns this is not a temporary peak but part of a longer upward trajectory driven by demographics and federal spending patterns.
• The article notes that the national debt has passed $39 trillion, while the federal government is projected to run a $2 trillion deficit in fiscal year 2026.
• JEC researchers estimate that monetary transfers to seniors accounted for $350 billion to $520 billion of the federal deficit in 2025, depending on how interest costs are calculated.
• The report frames the issue as a growing intergenerational burden, with younger workers increasingly funding senior-oriented programs through payroll and other taxes.
• Social Security and Medicare trust funds are described as being less than seven years from insolvency, raising the prospect of automatic benefit cuts if Congress does not act.
• The article cites projections that Social Security depletion could trigger benefit cuts of up to 28%, which would hit lower-income seniors hardest.
• One proposed solution from the Republican section of the JEC report is to expand the contributing workforce, including through attracting high-earning immigrants in fields facing labor shortages.
• The article notes that such an immigration-based approach is unlikely under the current Trump administration.

Read the full story: https://www.worthynews.com/114566-government-spending-on-seniors-benefits-soon-to-make-up-majority-of-federal-budget