Friday, Sept. 17, 2004 | 8:54 a.m.
Many young Americans think Social Security and Medicare won't be there for them when they reach 65. Therefore, many think these aren't the issues that affect them now.
What if the elderly in American families didn't have the benefits of Social Security and Medicare? Are most younger people able to pay for the living expenses, medical bills and prescribed medications of their parents and older relatives? If their parents and grandparents had no Social Security, would most younger people be able to help them to pay for their homes and food? Would younger families be able to make a place for their parents and elderly relatives in their own homes?
These were the alternatives that most caring families had to face before Social Security and Medicare became the law of the land. If these "entitlements" (as we know them) are destroyed by President Bush's initiatives and his disastrous new prescription drug plan, the loving families of Medicare and Social Security recipients will have to pick up the slack.
Social Security and Medicare are major issues for all who love their parents and grandparents.
ANNETTE BONDER
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