Social Security Retirement Benefits Timing: A Model for Working Families

With more than 61 million individuals receiving Social Security benefits, one out of every four families in America receives monthly cash payments from the Social Security Administration (SSA). These monthly payments directly benefit 48.5 million retired workers, their current and former spouses, 10 million disabled adults, and include more than 3 million children. Several million more children and adults in the increasing number of multi-generational households in America benefit indirectly from Social Security retirement payments. In addition to the broad reach of monthly Social Security retirement benefits these payments have ensured the financial well-being of millions of American families for more than 80 years. Eight-four percent of Americans 65 and older receive benefits with more than 60 percent of Social Security beneficiaries receiving one-half or more of their income from SSA. Notably, 33 percent of all beneficiaries receive at least 90 percent of their income from SSA. The percentages of people of color who rely on Social Security income are even more significant. Hispanic, Black, and Asian seniors rely on Social Security benefits for one-half or more of their income at rates of 73, 69 and 62 percent, respectively. Similarly, Hispanic, Black, and Asian seniors rely on Social Security benefits for 90 percent or more of their income at rates of 52, 45, and 41 percent, respectively. Additionally, about 48 percent of married couples, and 71 percent of unmarried individuals, receive one-half or more of their income from SSA. After decades of decreases in defined benefit plans and interest rates, and escalating health care costs and life spans, these high rates of reliance on Social Security benefits are not surprising. Given the depth and breadth of reliance on Social Security benefits it is critical for households to understand and plan for decreasing average retirement benefit amounts. Seniors rely on Social Security retirement benefits because many have few or no other resources. According to the General Accounting Office, 41 percent of households age 55 and older; 52 percent of households age 65 through age 74; and 71 percent of households age 75 and older have no retirement savings. Therefore, maximizing Social Security retirement benefits is critical for seniors’ and their families’ health, safety, and welfare. As of June 2017, retired workers received average yearly benefits of $16,428, while surviving spouses aged 60 or older only received$15,684 of average yearly benefits. Retired workers and their spouses had average yearly aggregate benefits of $27,336, and a widowed senior with two dependent children received average yearly benefits of$31,968 for the household. These amounts represent current average earnings replacement rates of only 52, 38, 32, and 25 percent of low ($22,215), medium ($49,366), high ($78,985) and the maximum ($120,418) earnings amounts for a retired worker at age 65 in 2017. Over time these replacement rates are scheduled to decrease as full retirement age (FRA) increases. Medium earners’ replacement rates at age 65 will decrease from 38 to 34 and 31 percent in 2020 and 2030, respectively. Because Social Security benefits are such an important component of household income for families, it is not surprising that in 2016 Social Security benefits lifted more than 26 million people out of poverty including 1.5 million children, 7.5 million adults and more than 17 million seniors. Moreover, Social Security benefits decreased the depth of and proximity to poverty for millions more seniors, children, and their families. The amount of monthly Social Security retirement benefits a senior and her family receives is directly related to when they are claimed. Accordingly, the timing of claiming Social Security retirement benefits is a vital decision for individuals who rely on their benefits to support their households. Many decision models and measures being used by individuals to analyze this timing decision, among other individual financial decisions, are the same measures that have been developed to guide large business organizations. However, because of differences in economic size, capacity, life cycle, mission, goals, and unique human attributes, these large organization models do not fit the needs of lower and middle-income households. At the same time, these increasingly vulnerable individuals do need strategic measures to focus on when making financial decisions. Strategic measures specifically designed to meet the unique needs of these individuals could be valuable to their families and the economy at large as benefits are decreasing over time. One such approach is to analyze, determine, and measure the quality-value of marginal Social Security benefits to a household. This Article will present a few exemplary quality-value dollar timing models. The quality-value dollar models better expose financial advantages that seniors gain by delaying their retirement benefits. As members of Congress struggle to resolve the long-term financial viability of Social Security and Medicare given an aging and longer-living U.S. population, it is possible that increasing FRA beyond age 67 may be part of any reform package. A quality-value dollar model would be instructive in senior outreach, education, and engagement regarding Social Security benefits timing decisions and any other changes to the existing Social Security retirement system

Predictable hydrodynamic conditions explain temporal variations in the density of benthic foraging seabirds in a tidal stream environment

VC International Council for the Exploration of the Sea 2016. James J. Waggitt was funded by a NERC Case studentship supported by OpenHydro Ltd and Marine Scotland Science (NE/J500148/1). Shore-based surveys were funded by a NERC (NE/J004340/1) and a Scottish National Heritage (SNH) grant. FVCOM was funded by a NERC grant (NE/J004316/1). The bathymetry data used in hydrodynamic models (HI 1122 Sanday Sound to Westray Firth) was collected by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) as part of the UK Civil Hydrography Programme. We wish to thank Christina Bristow, Matthew Finn and Jennifer Norris at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC); Ian Davies at Marine Scotland Science; Gail Davoren, Shaun Fraser, Pauline Goulet, Alex Robbins and Helen Wade for invaluable discussions; Thomas Cornulier, Alex Douglas, James Grecian and Samantha Patrick for their help with statistical analysis; and Jenny Campbell and the Cockram family for assistance during fieldwork.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Objective measurement of cough frequency during COPD exacerbation convalescence

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Cough and sputum production are associated with adverse outcomes in COPD and are common during COPD exacerbation (AE-COPD). This study of objective cough monitoring using the Hull Automated Cough Counter and Leicester Cough Monitor software confirms that this system has the ability to detect a significant decrease in cough frequency during AE-COPD convalescence. The ability to detect clinically meaningful change indicates a potential role in home monitoring of COPD patients

Real-time assembly of ribonucleoprotein complexes on nascent RNA transcripts.

Cellular protein-RNA complexes assemble on nascent transcripts, but methods to observe transcription and protein binding in real time and at physiological concentrations are not available. Here, we report a single-molecule approach based on zero-mode waveguides that simultaneously tracks transcription progress and the binding of ribosomal protein S15 to nascent RNA transcripts during early ribosome biogenesis. We observe stable binding of S15 to single RNAs immediately after transcription for the majority of the transcripts at 35 °C but for less than half at 20 °C. The remaining transcripts exhibit either rapid and transient binding or are unable to bind S15, likely due to RNA misfolding. Our work establishes the foundation for studying transcription and its coupled co-transcriptional processes, including RNA folding, ligand binding, and enzymatic activity such as in coupling of transcription to splicing, ribosome assembly or translation

Impact of Recent Tax Legislation on Small Business

This paper discusses selected changes in the tax laws, made in the Summer of J 996, which are expected to have significant impact on small businesses.  The general areas discussed are 1) S Corporations, 2) SIM PLE pension plans, 3) independent contractors, 4) leased employees, 5) expensing qualified small business assets, 6) the work opportunity tax credit, 7) life insurance policy loans, and 8) medical savings accounts. In each case, we first discuss the basic importance of the issue to small business and then briefly discuss some of the technical issues involved in applying the new laws

Latex: It\u27s Not Just for Condoms! A Learning Experience to Actively Engage and Educate Students Regarding Testicular Anomalies

Testicular cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer among younger males, and, if detected early, it is highly curable. Objectives: Specific to testicular cancer, after this lesson, students will be able to (1) identify the two main forms, (2) identify genetic and behavioral risk factors, (3) access valid and reliable information, (4) assess personal beliefs/feelings about testicular self-exams (TSEs), and (5) correctly identify pathological and non-pathological testes as demonstrated through palpation of latex models. Primary Audience: High-school through college-aged students. The instructor may decide to present the lesson in single sex classrooms if student or parent discomfort level exists

Component Depreciation: A Tax Planning Strategy for Small Businesses

Recent federal   court  and  Internal  Revenue  Service  (IRS)  decisions  have  opened  up  an excellent  opportunity for   both  small  and  large  businesses  to  once  again  use  component depreciation,  thus  accelerating  depreciation  deductions  and reducing  cost  of buildings and improvements  in present  value terms.   Minor changes in the design or in the procedures followed  in purchasing  a building make it possible  to shorten the depreciable lives of portions of the "building". The savings can easily exceed the additional design, construction, and bidding costs especially if the changes are minor. Small business owners,  who may  not always retain  a fulltime  tax  advisor,  should  be  aware  that  it  is  necessary  to  involve  a  tax consultant at the beginning of the design process for construction projects or early in the search for  a building purchase

Life History Attributes of Asian Carps in the Upper Mississippi River System

INTRODUCTION: The Upper Mississippi River (UMR) system starts at the confluence of the Ohio River at Cairo, Illinois, and serves as a conduit for many aquatic invasive species to enter the waterways of the central and northern interior of the United States, including the Great Lakes. One well-established group found in this waterway is the Asian carps including the common carp Cyprinus carpio, grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella, and two recent invaders, the bighead car

Continuous cough monitoring using ambient sound recording during convalescence from a COPD exacerbation

Purpose Cough is common in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and is associated with frequent exacerbations and increased mortality. Cough increases during acute exacerbations (AE-COPD), representing a possible metric of clinical deterioration. Conventional cough monitors accurately report cough counts over short time periods. We describe a novel monitoring system which we used to record cough continuously for up to 45 days during AE-COPD convalescence. Methods This is a longitudinal, observational study of cough monitoring in AE-COPD patients discharged from a single teaching-hospital. Ambient sound was recorded from two sites in the domestic environment and analysed using novel cough classifier software. For comparison, the validated hybrid HACC/LCM cough monitoring system was used on days 1, 5, 20 and 45. Patients were asked to record symptoms daily using diaries. Results Cough monitoring data were available for 16 subjects with a total of 568 monitored days. Daily cough count fell significantly from mean±SEM 272.7±54.5 on day 1 to 110.9±26.3 on day 9 (p<0.01) before plateauing. The absolute cough count detected by the continuous monitoring system was significantly lower than detected by the hybrid HACC/LCM system but normalised counts strongly correlated (r=0.88, p<0.01) demonstrating an ability to detect trends. Objective cough count and subjective cough scores modestly correlated (r=0.46). Conclusions Cough frequency declines significantly following AE-COPD and the reducing trend can be detected using continuous ambient sound recording and novel cough classifier software. Objective measurement of cough frequency has the potential to enhance our ability to monitor the clinical state in patients with COPD