COLUMBUS, Ohio (Ohio News Service/WOWO): Social Security turned 81 this week, and a new poll suggests some Ohio women are concerned about how many more birthdays the program will mark.
In the AARP survey of likely female Ohio voters age 50 plus, about two-thirds believe the next president and Congress need to act quickly to update the program.
Nancy LeaMond, AARP’s executive vice president of Community, State and Federal Affairs, explains that includes women of all races, ages and party affiliations.
“They know that it isn’t until 2034 where there becomes some issues in the financing of the program and they don’t think that this should be one of those things that Washington waits until the last minute to address,” she states. “It’s just too important to them.”
LeaMond says despite the urgency, the majority of those polled indicated they don’t think they are getting enough information from the presidential candidates about their plans for Social Security.
The survey also revealed 52 percent perceive Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton as a leader who would keep the program strong, and 32 percent believe Republican Donald Trump would do a better job.
LeaMond contends Social Security is an economic lifeline, especially for older women.
“Older women’s Social Security check is around $1,200 a month, compared to men at $1,500, and for a great percentage of women this is their only or their major source of income for the retirement years,” she explains.
