The federal government has made Social Security promises that total $10.4 trillion, according to the program trustees. Medicare dwarfs the Social Security system, with $61.6 trillion in promised benefits. In fact, by 2040, 67 cents of every dollar the federal government collects will be needed to pay for current promises to boomer retirees, according to the National Center for Policy Analysis. And that statistic doesn't include the $16 trillion estimated unfunded liability of the new Medicare Part D drug benefit for seniors