Why Entitlements are a Good Thing!

Entitlements are a form of distributive justice. They often are the most efficient way to achieve a particular goal. Yes, they also may foster dependency, but that is not because they are an entitlement. The problem is how they are designed.

It is also true that all entitlements are not in the interest of the common good. For example, should farmers receive payment for non-planting if their household income exceeds national averages?

Without the federal or state entitlement system, it is likely that a person would be treated differently depending on whether the person was from an affluent or poorer area of the state, especially if assistance was from non-government resources. A wealthy community, for example, might have a small number of homeless, yet very adequate resources to address that problem while a community with a large number of homeless may not have the resources to address the problem. A government-sponsored program would ensure greater equity in how the homeless person is treated. We can see this more clearly with education, health care and road and bridge construction. 

Regarding dependency, this is not primarily an issue of it being an entitlement, but more of design. Programs can be designed to help the poor, for example, to receive financial help with the expectation that services will be provided to help the person become financially independent from the entitlement. Oftentimes, the public does not want to pay it, and would rather impose time limits or other expectations. 

By the way, the portion of the budget that constitutes "entitlements," outside of Medicare and Medicaid is very small, and to some degree those are like insurance programs.

The military makes up the major portion of the budget. In fact we spend more on defense than all the other developed countries in the world combined, and yet often produce poor results.

Let me also cite a few myths on entitlements.

1. President Barack Obama is not a “food stamp president.” According to recent figures, more food stamp recipients were actually added under President George W. Bush than under President Obama. Under President Bush the number of recipients rose by nearly 14.7 million.

2. Blacks are not the primary recipients of assistance through federal benefit programs. 35.7 percent of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, recipients and 43 percent of those on Medicaid—two of the largest public benefit programs—are white.

3. The main reasons why people living in poverty are not employed are illness and inability to find work. Approximately 56 percent of those who did not work in 2010 did not work due to illness, disability, retirement or an inability to find work.

4. Social Security benefits have saved many senior citizens from poverty. If Social Security were excluded from income, 14 million seniors over the age of 65 would fall into poverty.

5. Many Americans receiving public benefits paid for them. Thirty-nine percent of Americans receive benefits they paid for through payroll taxes taken out of their own paychecks.

6. More white Americans live in poverty than any other group. In 2010 31.6 million white Americans lived in poverty, more than any other racial or ethnic group.

7. Many people of color who receive Social Security benefits do so for survival. Forty-five percent of all black beneficiaries and 58 percent of “other” beneficiaries (those who are neither black nor white) use the program for its survivor and disability benefits, not for its retirement benefits.

8. Social benefit programs like Medicaid really do serve those most vulnerable. Two-thirds of Americans living in poverty are not enrolled in Medicaid because single individuals and childless couples are largely excluded from Medicaid coverage.

9. Many beneficiaries of low-income public benefit programs are elderly, children or disabled. Among American households receiving food assistance under SNAP, 75 percent have an elderly or disabled person or a child.

10. The federal government does not hand out checks. Only about 10 percent of all federal dollars committed to public benefit programs for low-income Americans are paid in cash, and the majority of cash assistance programs are focused on those who cannot work.

So if you are serious about controlling our deficits, then focus on the big-ticket items in the budget like the military. The last time we had a surplus was when Bill Clinton was president. Most of the entitlement programs like TANF or Food Assistance programs are counter-cyclic and short-term.