DeSantis said no, Haley said yes to raising the Social Security retirement age.
Whether or not to raise Social Security’s retirement age was the question, and in Wednesday’s CNN debate, only two Republican presidential candidates disagreed on the answer.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would not raise the Social Security retirement age, at least for now, and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said she would do so for younger voters. “We must keep our promises to our seniors, but we cannot let down our guard,” she said.
Social Security is on the road to bankruptcy. If nothing is done to address the problem, the trust funds supporting the program are expected to be depleted in about 10 years, at which point beneficiaries will have their monthly checks cut. Congress has never let Social Security falter, but lawmakers have not yet decided how to restore the program. Potential solutions include raising the retirement age, raising taxes, eliminating income caps for high-income individuals, or a combination of these and other proposals.
Current full retirement age (FRA) is 67 for those born in 1960 or later. The last time the FRA was raised was in 1983 (from age 65 to age 67). This resulted in a 13% cut in benefits. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, moving FRA from 67 to 70 would “effectively cut currently scheduled benefits by nearly 20%,” as some have suggested in recent years.
If a beneficiary claims Social Security benefits before FRA, their benefits will be permanently reduced. As you get older, the wounds may feel deeper.
Low- and middle-income individuals will fare worse than higher-income individuals, in part because they rely more on Social Security and their life expectancies do not increase as much as those with higher incomes, CBPP said. .
This is not the first time Rep. Haley has proposed reforming the Social Security program. Under Haley’s proposal, retirement ages for younger Americans, such as those in their 20s, would be higher, while older Americans, such as those in their 20s, would see no change. At an event in New Hampshire last September, Haley said the program would remain the same for those in their 40s and older.
Haley also noted that DeSantis has voted to increase the Social Security retirement age in the past. According to Factcheck.org, Florida’s governor voted for proposals in the early 2010s that included changes to Medicare and Social Security eligibility and full retirement ages, respectively, but recently said his position has “changed.”
See also: Life expectancy in the United States has declined. What does that mean for your retirement?
During Wednesday’s debate, DeSantis said now is not the time to change the Social Security retirement age.
He said, “The problem is that life expectancy is falling, and I don’t know how we can raise the retirement age in a situation where life expectancy is collapsing.” The Florida governor also said the cost of living, including food prices and rent, is rising “excessively” and that Social Security’s cost-of-living adjustments alone are not enough to cover those increases. He said, “I will not ruin the welfare of the elderly.”
Haley argued that Florida is one of the most inflation-prone states. Asked when the new retirement age will be and whether workers in their 20s plan to work until age 70, the former governor did not provide a specific answer but said they should expect the age to rise.
“We need to start looking at how we can get out of this,” she said during the debate. “We want to make sure everyone gets what they’re promised and they get it, but we also want our kids to have something when they get it.”
