H. Luke Schaefer, director of the Poverty Solutions program at the University of Michigan and co-author of a recent study on material hardships among seniors and children, said that “one of the major takeaways is how incredibly important Social Security is in the retirement security of low- and moderate-income households.”¶¶”If I had to say what program is most effective in providing a safety net in the U.S. today, Social Security is it,” he added. “This report adds more evidence to that conclusion, in my view.”