Social Security
A Universal Basic Income Might Hurt Poor People More Than Help
Research finds that paying for a universal basic income would likely mean cutting welfare, food stamps, and the Earned Income Tax Credit.
How Facebook's Political Ad Verification Policy Stifles Immigration Activists
The social media company says it's working to resolve concerns that the policy will silence countless activists, particularly undocumented people decrying the Trump administration.
More People Than Ever Depend on the Federal Government for Help. So Why Is Public Trust at an All-Time Low?
In her new book, political scientist Suzanne Mettler asks: How can the U.S. government provide so much, yet still be the object of such derision?
Transgender Americans Have Been Registering Their Transitions With Social Security Since 1936
Very few surveys ask people if they're transgender. One economist managed to mine American government data for clues to the transgender American experience over the last seven decades.
The Future of Work: Two Tidal Waves, Headed Our Way
The latest entry in a special project in which business and labor leaders, social scientists, technology visionaries, activists, and journalists weigh in on the most consequential changes in the workplace.
How Unauthorized Immigrants Support Legal Users of Medicare
A new study finds unauthorized immigrants create a huge surplus in Medicare by contributing to payroll taxes, but not withdrawing benefits.
How One Town Ended Homelessness
Can the lessons of small-town North Dakota be applied to the big city?
On the Road to Retirement Struggles
Millions of Californians—like many tens of millions throughout the country—lack adequate pension security to sustain them after their work lives end.
Facebook's Continued Growth, Harassment Online, and Social Security
Updates to past Pacific Standard print stories.
Smoking Mad: Tobacco Users Caught Up in Insurer's Obamacare Glitch
After signing up for coverage and disclosing they were smokers, about 100 New Hampshire consumers, including Terry Wetherby, find their new Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield policies canceled because they were charged incorrect “non-smoker” rates.
Superhero Love and Increasing Social Security Payouts
Updates to past Pacific Standard print stories.
How a Blogger Made Expanding Social Security a Respectable Idea
Thanks to decades of stagnant wages and the Great Recession, more than half of American working-class households are at risk of being unable to sustain their standard of living past retirement. Duncan Black is trying to change that.
What Are New Retirees Most Concerned About?
More than social security, pension, and personal savings, those currently entering retirement fear the cost of health care, according to a new survey.
What Does a U.S. Government Shutdown Mean?
Passports, park admissions and poo are among Pacific Standard's list of 10 things that will be affected if the budget-less U.S. government shuts down this weekend.
Actuaries Insist We've Got to Retire Later
Early retirement, bah! The people who measure our life spans say Social Security should be less something that kicks in at 65 and more something Americans tap for, say, their last 20 years.
Social Security Dilemma: Americans Are Living Too Long
Among non-politicians, there's remarkable unanimity on what areas of the Social Security system need fixing and what techniques are likely to work best. Second in a three-part series.
Social Security: Where Do We Go From Here?
From past debates on privatization to new proposals to tap benefits in midlife and shifting the federal focus from the old to the young, experts of various stripes find fertile ground in debating the future of the program.
An Honest Look at Social Security
In the first of a three-part series on that 'third rail' of American politics, our Tom Jacobs examines the history of the program.
Seniors: How Taxed Are They?
The editor of Public Policy & Aging Report asks if tax regimes set up when the words 'elderly' and 'poor' were nearly synonymous may have outlived their good intentions.
Memorable Stories of 2008
A host of meaningful stories from Miller-McCune.com's first full year on the Web.
P. People O.
Miller-McCune's experts offer solutions to problems that were under-discussed during the presidential campaign.
Pushing Americans to Save for Retirement
Two new proposals look to greatly increase the number of people who have adequate retirement plans, one by encouraging workers to save and the other by requiring them to.
Social Security Debate Reignites
Surprisingly, the idea of privatizing Social Security is back as part of the 2008 presidential race — as is the false claim that the system is heading for bankruptcy.
Book Review — "The Long Baby Boom" by Jeff Goldsmith
Hey, man, this baby boomer retirement thing ain't that big a deal. OK?