Quote:
Originally Posted by RogueGypsy
According to The Budget for Fiscal Year 2008, Historical Tables, total outlays for Means Tested Entitlements in 2006 were $354.3 billion. This was 2.7% of GDP and
Includes Medicaid, food stamps, family support assistance (AFDC), supplemental security income (SSI), child nutrition programs, refundable portions of earned income tax credits (EITC and HITC) and child tax credit, welfare contingency fund, child care entitlement to States, temporary assistance to needy families, foster care and adoption assistance, State children's health insurance and veterans pensions.
The cost of these programs has increased from 0.8% of GDP in 1962 (before Medicaid) to 2.7% of GDP in 2006, or by 1.9% of GDP.
|
Social Security and Medicare account for about 75% of entitlement spending and account for even a larger percent of the increase in the last 10 years, as a result of the first wave of baby boomers.
Until 2007 and the onset of the recession, spending on TAFN had decreased in every year since 1996.