Dependency on the Government at an all time high, but read the small print

One of the problems with a lot of right wing/conservative web sites that cite the Heritage Foundation Special Report of Feb. 8, “The 2012 Index of Dependency” is they don’t note that for purposes of reporting, Social Security and Medicare are included as government assistance programs—as in, my husband and I are lumped in with 67.3 million Americans who depend on the federal government for housing, food, income, student aid and other assistance.  “These programs [SS, Medicare, Medicaid] currently make up 42 percent of all non-interest federal program spending. . . Jointly, these programs will enable the government dependence of nearly 80 million baby boomers.”

Those of us who have paid into Social Security and had Medicare payments deducted from every paycheck don’t like being included in that. We just sent in our 2011 tax returns, and 85% of my husband’s SS check is taxed, as is my STRS pension. So we’re not exactly free loaders when it comes to paying taxes.

Index [of Dependence] measurements begin in 1962; since then, the Index score has grown by more than 15 times its original amount. This means that, keeping inflation neutral in the calculations, more than 15 times the resources were committed to paying for people who depend on government in 2010 than in 1962. In 2010 alone, the Index of Dependence on Government grew by 8.1 percent.