社会保障体制改革中的美国经历与中国道路

Pattern of the Transition of Social Security System in USA and Its Implications to China

文章在总结美国20余年来社会保障体制改革的理论和实践的基础上,分析了美国社会保障体制的优势和缺陷,并且指出表面上的美国社会保障体制危机所蕴含的深刻的制度性危机及其原因。提出了在市场经济中,统一的社会保障体制的生命周期大约为100年的理论假说。在对比了中美社会经济背景3个方面差异的基础上,提出中国在改革和建立社会保障体制的道路上必须留意到的5个方面启示。

This paper analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of the US social security system by reviewing its reform practice and theoretical researches in the last two decades. From the perspective of special social circumstances and functions of a social security system, the paper gives an in-depth exploration into the internal and institutional causes of American crisis of social security system besides its external causes. The paper hypothesizes that in a market economy, any unified social security system generally lasts about 100 years. Six aspects should be noticed during the reform and rebuilting of China's social security system while taking the different social and economic backgrounds of the US and China into consideration.