Deck 8: Should Age or Need Be the Basis for Entitlement

Question 1

According to the reading by Thurow, reducing government support for older adults so that they must rely on more of their own resources may have which of the following effects?

A) The young may have to shoulder some of the costs of taking care of their parents
B) There may be smaller inheritances for young people
C) The federal government will raise taxes
D) All of the above
E) A and B above

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Samuelson argues that the government is too generous, especially toward affluent older adults.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The dependency ratio for children has ______ since 1960, and the dependency ratio for older adults has ______.

A) increased, increased
B) increased, decreased
C) decreased, increased
D) decreased, decreased

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which of the following best describes the generational interdependence framework?

A) The retirement of a particular generation should be shared by other generations
B) Cutting benefits to the retired or nearly retired would unfairly burden their adult children
C) Intergenerational transfers create interdependence among generations
D) All of the above
E) A and B above

Question 5

Rising rates of poverty among children are due mainly to government entitlement programs.

Question 6

The support ratio, or dependency ratio, refers to:

A) The proportion of the federal budget that is devoted to age-based entitlement programs
B) A numerical measure of the number of persons in the labor force compared to the number of persons not in the labor force.
C) A measure of the life-time contributions of older persons to the economy
D) None of the above
E) All of the above

Question 7

Poverty rates among children in the United States are higher than those of every industrialized country in the world.

Question 8

According to Burtless, government spending on older adults continues to climb for which of the following reasons?

A) Increases in the cost of medical care
B) The rapid growth in the number of older adults in the United States
C) Increases in spending on benefits per person
D) Both A and B
E) Both B and C

Question 9

Which of the following is an example of a cohort?

A) People who were born in 1966
B) The World War II generation
C) People aged 65+
D) All of the above
E) A and B above

Question 10

Burtless suggests that it is misleading to focus solely on federal spending for older adults.

Question 11

In recent years, poverty among the old has been ______, while poverty among young people has been ______.

A) increasing, decreasing
B) increasing, increasing
C) decreasing, increasing
D) decreasing, decreasing

Question 12

Since poverty rates among people age 65+ have been declining steadily since 1966, it is safe to say that poverty has been erased among the aged.

Question 13

More than half of older people in the United States depend on Social Security for more than ______ percent of their income.

A) 10
B) 25
C) 50
D) 75
E) 80

Question 14

According to the "generational accounting" method of analyzing generational equity, the lifetime tax rate of baby boomers is about one-third higher than that of their parents.

Question 15

The poverty rate among older adults is higher than it is among children.

Question 16

Social Security and Medicare are unpopular governmental programs.

Question 17

A more accurate picture of poverty rates results from looking at rates for specific ethnic and racial groups.

Question 18

Which of the following the term tweeners refers to?

A) The cohort of people born between World Wars I and II
B) The growing differential in poverty rates among young people compared to old people
C) The distinction between the deserving and undeserving poor
D) Economically insecure older adults who are not poor enough to qualify for means-tested programs
E) None of the above

Question 19

When the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM), an experimental income-based method that takes into account more factors than does the official poverty level calculation, is used the poverty rate for older adults is higher.

Question 20

For which of the following reasons Samuelson disagrees with Burless's analysis about governmental spending for older adults?

A) Subsidies for older adults are crowding out other governmental activities
B) Federal spending for children is increasingly inadequate
C) Most older adults are affluent and do not need subsidies
D) Both A and B
E) Both B and C

Question 21

High poverty rate among younger generations is caused mainly by family structure, unemployment, and declining wages.

Question 22

Describe trends in poverty among older adults in recent decades. What impact have major entitlement programs had on poverty among the aged?

Question 23

The privatization of Social Security is more consistent with the generational interdependence framework than with the generational equity framework.

Question 24

Should eligibility for entitlement programs, such as Social Security and Medicare, be based on need rather than age? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of need-based eligibility for what are currently entitlement programs.

Question 25

Intergenerational transfers refer to the inheritance of assets by younger generations that were once held by older generations.

Question 26

Explain the logic of "generational equity." What evidence is used to support the generational equity thesis that older adults are to blame for economic problems in the United States?

Question 27

Out-of-pocket medical expenses contribute to the economic insecurity of many older adults.

Question 28

Thurow argues that the group in greatest need of government support is unemployed persons between ages 18 and 64.

Question 29

Proponents of generational equity have a different conception of fairness compared to proponents of generational interdependence. Compare and contrast these differing notions of fairness. Which are you more likely to agree with, and why?

Question 30

Do you agree or disagree with Thurow's concern that the growing population of older people will comprise a political force that will make excessive economic demands for their benefit?

Question 31

The average condition of older Americans has improved markedly in recent decades when measured according to income, health status, and educational level.

Question 32

Advocates for the aging often argue that both young and old have a "common stake" that should overcome generational differences. What do you consider to be some of the features of this "common stake" and what ideas do you have for intergenerational cooperation and interdependence?

Question 33

Proponents of generational equity argue that we need to rethink the values that inform policy decisions, while those who support the generational interdependence framework argue that this is unnecessary.

Question 34

Thurow argues that means-tested benefits for older adults would be opposed by young and old alike.

Question 35

Burtless and Samuelson offer different perspectives on governmental spending on older adults. Summarize their arguments and discuss which seems the most reasonable to you, and why.