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In the United States, it's not the same. Social welfare programs here are paid out of general budget allocations. This is for things like food stamps, disabil
by techsupporter 12y ago
In the United States, it's not the same.
Social welfare programs here are paid out of general budget allocations. This is for things like food stamps, disability payments (one exception, dealt with in a moment), housing assistance, Medicaid, and similar.
Unemployment payouts, Social Security ("Old age pension"), Social Security Disability, and Medicare are paid for through dedicated taxes and charges on employers (in the case of unemployment). That's why we usually call them insurance or entitlements. Social Security Disability Insurance, or SSDI, is paid as part of Social Security itself.
- zo1 12y ago"Unemployment payouts, Social Security ("Old age pension"), Social Security Disability, and Medicare are paid for through dedicated taxes and charges on employers (in the case of unemployment). That's why we usually call them insurance or entitlements. Social Security Disability Insurance, or SSDI, is paid as part of Social Security itself." And are you able to choose not to pay into such a scheme? If not, then it might as well be a plain tax that happens to be labelled as separate.
- TheCoelacanth 12y agoI would distinguish insurance vs. welfare by whether you can collect them without having paid into them first. That would make Social Security, SSDI and unemployment insurance programs while food stamps, Medicare and Medicaid are welfare programs. Whether they are paid with a special tax or from the general fund is orthogonal to whether they are insurance or welfare.