In the official models for projections and policy analysis (used by the Treasury, the Social Security and Medicare Trustees, and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO)), many key variables are assumed as a continuation of past trends. By contrast, in our model, these variables are simultaneously...

It is well established from research studies and basic data analysis that there is an exponential relationship between age and the infection to fatality ratio for COVID-19. Hence, the high mortality of the pandemic has been concentrated among the elderly. The close living arrangements of nursing...

This paper reviews the literature on the recent benefit and funding landscape of state and local government employee pension plans. Many plans, with generous benefit structures and inadequate funding, are in troubled financial shape. The state of Connecticut pension plans are a good illustration...

In a prior article (Warshawsky and Marchand, 2017), a colleague and I put forward some broad proposals to improve the system of financing long-term services and supports (LTSS) for older Americans, to make it fairer, more sustainable, and more consistent with the value of self-reliance. In this...

There are adjustment factors for early and late claiming of retirement benefits in Social Security which depend on the age when benefits are claimed. These adjustment factors are seriously out of date, as both interest and mortality rates have declined since the rules were designed and put into...