Another year, more cowardice on Social Security and Medicare

From the Duh Department comes the annual news that Social Security and Medicare remain on the brink of insolvency.

On Monday, the Trump administration released a yearly government report on the status of the nation’s two largest entitlement programs. And just as it has been for decades, the news isn’t good.

The report found that, for the first time since 1982, Social Security payouts will exceed the program’s income in 2020. The program’s reserve fund has about 16 years left, meaning it will be unable to meet promised benefits at that point, barring reform.

Meanwhile, Medicare’s hospital insurance fund is expected to run dry by 2026. This will likely drive up costs for recipients as reimbursements to health care providers would decline.

Without changes, the two programs will eat up almost 12 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product by 2025, further crowding out spending in other areas.

“Lawmakers should address these financial challenges as soon as possible,” the report noted. “Taking action sooner rather than later will permit consideration of a broader range of solutions and provide more time to phase in changes so that the public has adequate time to prepare.”

Politicians actually stepping up to address a looming time bomb that they’ve ignored for years? How quaint.

Several Democrats campaigning for president have proposed expanding benefits for Social Security — and even Republican President Donald Trump campaigned on avoiding reform. But given the current fiscal realities, expanding benefits makes absolutely no sense and is a luxury the nation simply cannot afford.

Instead, the priority should be to reach consensus on addressing the fundamental structural issues that plague these entitlements— fewer and fewer workers to support a rising retirement population, for instance — and shoring up their financial stability while avoiding cuts to low-income retirees or those on the verge of retirement.

Perhaps it’s time to brush off the 2010 Simpson-Bowles report, recommendations produced by an 18-member bipartisan panel designed to tackle entitlements and the soaring debt. The plan featured something for everybody to hate, which means it included several credible — if unpopular — proposals involving taxes and entitlement eligibility requirements, among other things.

The fact that this problem continues to be ignored speaks volumes about a political culture — abetted by voters — that encourages survival through inertia and cowardice rather than statesmanship and courage. But if Congress continues to neglect the issue in order to “protect” Social Security and Medicare recipients, there will soon be nothing left to protect.