The Insurance Role of Social Security : Theory and Lessons for Policy Reform /

This paper examines the impact of social security on welfare. The provision of social security reduces precautionary savings and encourages early retirement. Consequently, it lowers aggregate capital, employment, output, and consumption. On the other hand, it also provides old age insurance. This tr...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Valdivia, Victor
Format: Journal
Language:English
Published: Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 1997.
Series:IMF Working Papers; Working Paper ; No. 1997/113
Online Access:Full text available on IMF
Description
Summary:This paper examines the impact of social security on welfare. The provision of social security reduces precautionary savings and encourages early retirement. Consequently, it lowers aggregate capital, employment, output, and consumption. On the other hand, it also provides old age insurance. This trade-off is examined using a life-cycle general equilibrium model. The paper finds that the current U.S. Social Security system can improve welfare even though the levels of aggregate output, employment, capital, and consumption fall relative to their levels without such a system. The welfare gains arise from insurance against living much longer than expected.
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Physical Description:1 online resource (49 pages)
Format:Mode of access: Internet
ISSN:1018-5941
Access:Electronic access restricted to authorized BRAC University faculty, staff and students