In the April 23, 2012 Chicago Tribune, Noam Levey’s article, Dismal outlook for Medicare, Social Security lays out facts regarding the impending bankruptcies of Medicare and Social Security.

Mr. Levey states, “Medicare, which is expected to provide health insurance to more than 50 million elderly and disabled Americans this year, is expected to start operating in the red in its largest fund in 2024, according to the annual assessment by the trustees charged with overseeing the programs.

And the Social Security trust fund, which will provide assistance to more than 45 million people in 2012, will be unable to fulfill its obligations in 2033, three years earlier than projected last year.”

Mr. Levey states that if nothing is done, deficits are likely to force major cuts in these programs.

He goes on to describe why nothing is being done about this looming catastrophe.  The basic reason is hyper-partisan posturing in both houses of Congress, resulting in stalemate. Democrats and Republicans each believe they have a better way to resolve the issues.

Meanwhile, we observe that these crises worsen every day.

If you still don’t own long-term care insurance, or if you haven’t made other concrete plans to fund your very likely need for long-term care, it is difficult to understand why. It’s obvious that you will not be able to rely on government assistance to cover the costs.