Summary
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick claimed that most seniors would not complain if Social Security checks were missed, suggesting that only “fraudsters” would object.
His remarks sparked backlash as Social Security is a critical income source for millions, including 15% of women and 12% of men over 65 who rely on it for 90% of their income.
Amid rising concerns, Maryland Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander criticized acting SSA head Lee Dudek for threatening to cut IT access, escalating fears of disruptions.
Old people don’t fuck around when it comes to their money.
Source: cashier at grocery store in highschool
They won’t complain, cause they may very literally die.
This is not hyperbole. There are many elderly living alone, SScheck to SScheck with no one to lean on.
They’re a common admission when neighbors call in wellness checks and they’re found down or confused.
The other piece is the people who supply medical care and social services still get paid, one way or another and that payment comes from SS and Medicare. Every time someone doesn’t pay their bill, costs increase. That said, the purpose of a hospital care management team is to transition these elderly cases to a safe living situation. If that is now assisted living or a nursing home it happens by the grace of those institutions now essentially taking the monthly SS check to pay for the new room and board situation with caregivers on site.
These institutions would certainly miss the SS check. In fact, there’s a hard cap on the level of profit these institutions can make because they rely on the monthly senior benefits to pay their staff, supplies, and electricity. Those monthly benefits don’t really increase. And before you scream that there should be no profit, without profit, these institutions would not exist. People get paid, or doors close. We see this a lot on well meaning but short sighted (regarding money) mental health care institutions. But for elderly care, up until now, SS and Medicare paying costs has been reliable.
Which raises the question. If the nursing home doesn’t get paid and the dependent old person gets evicted? Where do they get evicted to? Bedbound, confused, where do they go?
I have an answer for that one. A medical reason will be found to drop them at a local ER, with no return (the needs of a patient can exceed the capability of an institution so this is legal and happens often enough). This makes the displaced SS recipient and senior citizen a not paying hospital customer. Moreover, they are a non-acute person taking up an acute care bed, leaving the ER even more clogged with even longer wait times as the flow out (in the form of discharges, freeing beds for ER admissions, which frees space in the ER for people in the waiting room) slows down even more.
I give the long explanation so you can follow yet another crack as it forms, leading to the eventual collapse of the already tenuous and strained healthcare system.
Your statement that they may just die is apt. Strangely, Heritage is serious about banning assisted suicide because it “lacks dignity”.
I refute your statement that “without profit these institutions would not exist”.
Profit is what you get after every expense is paid. Caretakers, building maintenance, etc. Are expenses. People would still get paid.
Leeches on the other hand… those “investors” who buy up assisted living places and force them to be “profitable”… they should not be allowed to gain off the increased suffering of people.
In a perfect world.
If what you say could come to pass then we’d never see another mental health institution close. But that is, sadly, not the world we live in.
Sadly, I have to agree with you.
The AARP has already started publicly lobbying against this move, and the for-profit institutions and their investors are probably doing so as well, but more privately because they don’t want to rub their leechiness in everyone’s face. So there is some small hope.
“You’re not understanding me bro. We’ve solved all of societies problems already. The only way we can trim the fat, is by seeing if all the elderly people with dementia and alzheimers can survive in abject poverty.”
All we have to do to achieve this empathetic utopia, is give the Bourgeoisie a few trillion in tax cuts! Welcome to thunder-dome, BITCH!
“Only fraudsters will complain”
I smell a “no true Scotsman” fallacy here.
It’s laying the groundwork for “if you complain we’ll take your benefits away completely, because you’re a fraudster” instead.
Seniors could be dying of hunger on state capitol steps and they would be saying “it’s just a few bodies, they were old anyway”
See also: COVID-19 response under Trump
indeed. republicans do not care.
Texas’ lieutenant governor suggests grandparents are willing to die for US economy
I wish we could say that about Donald and the rest of the old fucks in Congress
Oh, he’s STUPID stupid, got it.
No, he’s malicious.
Not saying he isn’t that too, just that his take is bafflingly stupid.
never attribute to stupidity, that which can be attributed to malice.
Yes because that’s what boomers are known for. Not complaining.
Man, they even complain about it when it isn’t even relevant.
The number of times I’ve heard “blah blah blah, my social security is my investment, blah blah blah, take it over our dead bodies, and we’ll leave no inheritance behind” is too damn high
I have a relative that lives off social security. They have no other income will literally die quickly without social security. So yeah I guess they can’t complain if they are dead can they.
Donald: some of you may die. But that is a sacrifice I am willing to make.
So he hopes they just starve and die quietly?
That’s what they want for all of us who aren’t “productive”.
So, who’s gonna tell Lutnick that voter turnout for those age 65 and above is 75%+?
And it’s not like old folks like to complain about things just for the fuck of it, right?
Lutnick and Trump are going to discover why they call Social Security the third rail of American politics.
No theyre not, these people will probably still vote for them
You massively underestimate the old people in this country.
You massively underestimate the brainwashing that’s been done.
This is one thing you don’t fuck with. Every time it has been tried, senior citizens say “fuck it, if I’m dying I’m bringing the bastards down with me.”
Boomers don’t need us for this fight. If the government skips out on social security, the absolute worst people to piss off, get pissed off.
You know what Boomers have? Free time. You know what Boomers are acutely aware of? They’re running out of time.
Medicaid? Honestly, they can cut that with minimal fear. Medicare? Same thing.
Social Security? That’s pulling the pin on a grenade and playing hot potato with it.
I think they are counting on 2024 being our last elections.
They haven’t hid that giving Trump a third term is their intent.
Even if you only care about the economy, it’s so stupid. All that money won’t circulate because people can’t spend what they don’t have. so businesses get less, they have to let people go, and now they can’t spend. giving money to poor people is great for the economy, because it instantly recirculates and doesn’t sit in an account. it’s not even ‘giving,’ in this case, either. people pay into it for a purpose.
But they don’t care about the economy, and of course they don’t care about the human cost. They care about ‘fraud,’ as in, how to commit it and enrich themselves through theft of the money people pay for services.
Conservatives aren’t generally considered smart, kind, people.
They won’t be able to complain because you’ve turned off all the phones and shut down most of the SSA branches.
Maybe his rich cushy mom won’t, but once all those poor, fat, fraudulent whale welfare queens in the South don’t see their monthly “disability” check, it’ll be a different story.
I’m not sure I understand which argument you’re supporting here.
He’s saying Trumpistan is the biggest welfare recipient. They are also armed, angry, and uneducated. At some point they will discover its not Brandon taking the social security checks. If they are hungry enough it won’t matter. The trumpers across the street form me had 3 generations of adult men living with their 95 year old grandmother. Who’s income do you think that was?
This
'Where did you get all the money?” “The Government. I didn’t earn it, I don’t need it. But if they miss one payment, I’ll raise hell!”
- Grampa Simpson
But he DID earn social security
Well Grampa Simpson more then likely didn’t need social security because of the pension he received after working 30yrs as a night watchmen at the cranberry silo.
according to this survey: in 2023 only 64% of retired people age 65+ received any income from pensions. I can’t he but think that number is probably inflated as they note “Sources of income include the income of a spouse or partner.”
I found this out when researching care for my grandparent. You have to spend all of the money before they can be eligible for certain types of care. They make you get rid of it all or forfeit it.
