Wealthy Americans may have felt the brunt from Washington's compromise on taxes, but with spending now the issue, the middle class may be set to feel the pinch in a debate over entitlement reform.
Entitlement programs are often associated with the poor and unemployed, but that is a misconception about American society.
Working families, the disabled and the elderly receive over 90 percent of the funds from entitlement programs, CNNMoney reports. In fact, in 2010, Americans with income ranging from $30,000 to $120,000 received 58 percent of all entitlement dollars.
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Over the years, more people have been accessing these programs, and with that the costs have soared.
Spending on entitlements was 100 times higher in 2010 than in 1960, economist Nicholas Eberstadt reveals in his book “A Nation of Takers: America's Entitlement Epidemic,” according to U.S. News & World Report.
Further emphasizing the wild growth in spending, Eberstadt notes that in 1960 Medicaid and Medicare did not even exist. By 2010, those programs had price tags of over $900 billion a year.
Kicking the can down the road had its benefits, according to Fox Business Network. Without a budget to serve as financial guidance during most of President Barack Obama's first term, the government was able to spend without focusing on debt or addressing politically sensitive issues.
Now, the government needs the authority to borrow more money, and Fox Business Network notes “small government budget hawks” lurking in the House have more leverage to demand cuts. Thus, entitlement spending is expected to be a contentious issue in the ensuing debt ceiling debate.
For politicians, the issue may be part of their game of nasty politics, but some insist that entitlement spending needs to be addressed because it is simply out of control.
“Our concern is that entitlements and safety-net programs have been growing so rapidly over time, regardless of the economy," William Beach, who recently stepped down as Heritage Foundation's director of the Center for Data Analysis, tells CNNMoney. "The numbers are becoming unsustainable or already are."
With millions of Americans relying on programs such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, Beach believes action is needed as a matter of survival.
"The programs need to be reformed so they'll be there in 10 years," he says.
Editor's Note: Tiny Loophole Found in 70,320 Page IRS Tax Code Could Pay $87,500
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