Social Security

Social Security Is Going Bankrupt Because Its Benefits Are Too Generous

Social Security's approaching insolvency is usually talked about as a revenue problem. It's actually a spending problem.

Eric Boehm | 6.11.2026 2:20 PM

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Ernest Hemingway once wrote that there are two ways to go bankrupt: "gradually and then suddenly."

For Social Security, the "gradually" phase is coming to an end. According to the latest report from the trustees who oversee Social Security, the program will hit insolvency in late 2032—and, at that point, benefits will be cut by about 22 percent. That moment of crisis is no longer some distant problem to be worried about in the future. Senators elected later this year will be serving their terms when the "suddenly" arrives. 

But there are two other ways in which to go bankrupt: by spending too much money, or by not taking in enough to cover those expenditures. 

Often, Social Security's fiscal problems are thought of as being the latter. For years, Social Security has run deficits, and that literally means that the........

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