(File Photo: Source for Photo: This Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2021, photo shows a Social Security card in Tigard, Ore. Social Security checks to increase by 5.9%, as inflation fuels largest COLA for retirees in nearly 40 years (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

(Reported by Danielle Smith of Keystone News Service)

(Harrisburg, PA) A new poll marking Social Security’s 90th anniversary finds nearly two in three retired Americans rely heavily on the program. An overwhelming 96-percent say it’s important, and 80-percent are concerned it won’t be there when they need it. More than one in five Pennsylvanians get monthly Social Security payments, according to A-A-R-P, that’s almost 3 million people. Nora Dowd Eisenhower with A-A-R-P Pennsylvania says August 14th marks Social Security’s 90th anniversary. She notes that A-A-R-P has tracked public views on the program for decades and just released a new poll on how retirees and people of all ages feel about it. Social Security benefits add nearly 63 billion dollars each year to Pennsylvania’s economy through retirement, survivor and disability payments — supporting consumer spending, increasing business revenue and generating jobs across the state.