The Medicare Ponzi Scheme - This blogger compares the Madoff ponzi scheme to Medicare's huge ($85 trillion) unfunded liability.
[more thoughts to come later...]
[XY comment]: While there is some similarities between the Madoff scheme and healthcare (you could also throw in social security), there is one huge difference: the government. The government is backing these programs, and the government obviously has powers that no institution or individual has. When a company has an unfunded pension plan, that is a serious problem that can bankrupt the company. The government has much deeper pockets and has the power of taxation to raise substantial funds over time. Despite huge obligations to healthcare and social security, there is no reason to think the government cannot raise the funds through taxation although there is always a chance of government default as well (lowering the promised benefits or simply not paying back debt). On the other hand, Madoff can't tax anyone so his default is automatic.
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