Question

Define social insurance and describe the social programs available in the U.S.

Discuss how these programs affect access to care and the role the government plays in providing them.

Answer 1

An insurance program carried out or mandated by a government to provide economic assistance to the unemployed, the elderly, or the disabled is social insurance.

social programs available in the U.S.
Unemployment Insurance

Workers%u2019 Compensation

Contributions of American Business to Retirement Planning

Public Assistance Programs

Supplemental Security Income

General Assistance

Medicare and Medicaid

Private Insurance and the Managed Care System

Like social security, unemployment insurance is an effective poverty prevention program, although it is a temporary aid.8 That is, unemployment benefits normally last a maximum of 26 weeks. In 1994, a total of $22.7 billion was spent in the United States on unemployment insurance.

worker's compensation is the oldest major social insurance program in the nation, dating back to the Progressive Era at the beginning of the 1900s.9 Spending on workers%u2019 compensation (in 1988 dollar values) grew from 2 billion in 1950 to about 25 billion in 1993.10 Each state oversees its own workers%u2019 compensation program

Employers contribute to the current U. S. public social security system.

The American government sector has played an important role in the development of these private plans. They are not just a good idea promoted by the business sector alone. Both the federal government and state governments have passed legislation to encourage business to offer these plans.

Public assistance programs are %u201Cselective%u201D programs in that benefits are based on individual need. Need is determined by a test of income %u2013 that is, a %u201Cmeans test.%u201D

Answer 2

Social insurance is any government-sponsored program with the following four characteristics:

• the benefits, eligibility requirements and other aspects of the program are defined by statute;
• explicit provision is made to account for the income and expenses (often through a trust fund);
• it is funded by taxes or premiums paid by (or on behalf of) participants (although additional sources of funding may be provided as well); and
• the program serves a defined population, and participation is either compulsory or the program is subsidized heavily enough that most eligible individuals choose to participate.

Social insurance has also been defined as a program where risks are transferred to and pooled by an organization, often governmental, that is legally required to provide certain benefits.

In the U.S., programs that meet these definitions include Social Security, Medicare, the PBGC program, the railroad retirement program and state-sponsored unemployment insuranceprograms. The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) is also a social insurance program.

Major Programs

The larger and better known programs under the Social Security Act and amendments are:

• Federal Old-Age (Retirement), Survivors, and Disability Insurance
• Unemployment benefits
• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
• Health Insurance for Aged and Disabled (Medicare)
• Grants to States for Medical Assistance Programs (Medicaid)
• State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

BENEFITS

The largest component of OASDI is the payment of retirement benefits. Throughout a worker's career, the Social Security Administration keeps track of his or her earnings. The amount of the monthly benefit to which the worker is entitled depends upon that earnings record and upon the age at which the retiree chooses to begin receiving benefits.